Ghislaine Maxwell, former associate and girlfriend of Jeffrey Epstein, has requested to be freed from her 20-year prison sentence, asserting that new evidence reveals constitutional violations that affected the fairness of her trial. This petition comes just days before the long-anticipated release of Epstein-related records by the U.S. Justice Department scheduled for December 19.
Maxwell, convicted in December 2021 for sex trafficking of minors, filed her petition on December 17 in a Manhattan federal court, asking for her sex trafficking conviction to be overturned. The request follows the implementation of the Epstein Files Transparency Act signed into law by President Donald Trump, compelling the Justice Department to disclose extensive records from the investigation.
The upcoming release will include 18 categories of investigative materials such as search warrants, financial documents, victim interview notes, and data extracted from electronic devices tied to the probe. Epstein was initially arrested in July 2019 on sex trafficking charges and subsequently died by suicide in jail a month later. Maxwell was arrested a year after Epstein’s death.
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In her habeas corpus petition, Maxwell argues that crucial information that could have exonerated her was withheld during her trial and that false testimony was presented to the jury. The filing highlights new evidence emerging from civil actions, government disclosures, investigative reports, and documents that, according to her legal team, prove constitutional violations and undermine the trial’s fairness.
The petition states, “In the light of the full evidentiary record, no reasonable juror would have convicted her.”
While the Justice Department requested permission last week to release grand jury and other pre-trial discovery materials, Maxwell’s attorney, David Markus, cautioned that public exposure of certain documents could prejudice a future retrial if her petition succeeds. Nevertheless, Judge Paul A. Engelmayer approved the Justice Department’s request to unseal the materials.
U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton affirmed the commitment to comply with the law and court orders regarding the dissemination of the records. Despite Maxwell’s current petition, such habeas petitions challenging convictions are typically denied by courts.