Wave of sex abuse lawsuits seen as NY opens door for victims
Sexual assault victims in New York are getting a one-time opportunity to sue their abusers under a new law expected to bring a wave of litigation against prison guards, middle managers, doctors and prominent figures including former President Donald Trump.
Epstein victim drops claim against attorney Alan Dershowitz
A woman who recently settled a lawsuit against Prince Andrew resulting from claims she was sexually trafficked to the British royal and others by financier Jeffrey Epstein has dropped a similar claim against attorney Alan Dershowitz, saying she may have erred.
Prince Andrew effort to toss sex assault suit hits roadblock
A judge appears mostly dismissive of arguments by a lawyer for Prince Andrew who wants to win fast rejection of a lawsuit filed by a woman who says she was sexually trafficked to the royal by the millionaire Jeffrey Epstein when she was 17.
Maxwell family seeks more food, soap for sister during trial
The family of the British woman charged with helping the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein exploit underage girls has asked the U_S_ attorney general to improve the treatment she is receiving during her trial “in the interest of justice and common humanity.”.
Scenes from Week 1 of Ghislaine Maxwell's sex-abuse trial
The first week of the sex-abuse trial of Ghislaine Maxwell saw the first of her four main accusers taking the witness stand to give emotional testimony accusing the British socialite of coaxing her into sexual encounters with financier Jeffrey Epstein.
Evidence at Maxwell trial: massage table, unfolded in court
A folding massage table used by financier Jeffrey Epstein was carried into a Manhattan courtroom and set up in front of a jury on Friday to bolster allegations he teamed up with British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell to sexually exploit underage victims.
Maxwell's brother says US prosecutors seeking to 'break' her
The brother of a British socialite charged with helping Jeffrey Epstein exploit underage girls says her prosecution is “the most over-hyped trial of the century,” designed to break a woman targeted by authorities who are desperate to blame someone for the late financier’s crimes.
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In court, Ghislaine Maxwell pleads not guilty to new charges
Ghislaine Maxwell has faced her trial judge in person for the first time as lawyers squabble over exactly when she should be tried on sex trafficking charges alleging that she procured teenage girls for Jeffrey Epstein to sexually abuse at his posh residences.
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Judge rejects ex-CIA worker's try to dismiss hacking charges
A judge says Schulte, a former CIA employee, cannot get espionage charges against him dismissed on the grounds that there weren't enough Hispanic or Black individuals on the grand jury that indicted him. Schulte faces an October trial on charges that he leaked a massive trove of CIA hacking tools to WikiLeaks. AdCrotty, though, said the reliance on a White Plains grand jury rather than one seated in Manhattan was necessitated by an “external force,” the pandemic, rather than an effort to exclude certain segments of the population from being empaneled. He called the decision by prosecutors to seek indictment in White Plains “entirely proper." A jury last year deadlocked on espionage charges, though it convicted Schulte of less serious charges of contempt of court and making false statements.
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Ghislaine Maxwell jail conditions 'degrading,' says brother
FILE - In this Nov. 7, 1991, file photo, Ghislaine Maxwell, daughter of late British publisher Robert Maxwell, reads a statement expressing her family's gratitude to Spanish authorities after recovery of his body. Jeffrey Epsteins former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell has been held in U.S. jail since July 2020, and her brother Ian Maxwell said Wednesday March 10, 2021, she should be released on bail, claiming that she was being held in degrading conditions that amount to torture. (AP Photo/Dominique Mollard, File)LONDON – The brother of Jeffrey Epstein’s former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell said Wednesday she should be released on bail from a U.S. jail, and claimed that she was being held in “degrading” conditions that amount to torture. Ghislaine Maxwell is “in effective isolation” in a 6- by 9-foot (1.8- by 2.7-meter) cell without natural light that contains a concrete bed and a toilet, he said. Ghislaine Maxwell was charged with recruiting three teenagers aged as young as 14 for Epstein to sexually abuse between 1994 and 1997.
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Ghislaine Maxwell makes third attempt at bail on sex charges
Maxwell, Epstein's former girlfriend, claims a guard physically abused her at the federal prison in Brooklyn where she's being held. A judge has previously rejected two bail attempts, including a $28.5 million bail release proposal in December. AdThe 59-year-old was arrested seven months ago on charges alleging she recruited three girls for Epstein to abuse in the mid-1990s. Epstein, her one-time boyfriend, killed himself in a Manhattan federal lockup in August 2019 as he awaited trial on sex trafficking charges. “These motions significantly call into question the strength of the government’s case against Ms. Maxwell and the underlying justification for continued detention,” the lawyers wrote.
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In 2016, Maxwell said she grew unhappy with Jeffrey Epstein
Maxwell, criminally charged with aiding Jeffrey Epstein in his sexual abuse of teenage girls, testified in 2016 that she had no memory of anything amiss on his properties in the 2000s despite the accusations from dozens of women and girls that they were sexually abused by Epstein. Ghislaine Maxwell, 59, said during a July 2016 deposition for a defamation lawsuit that she learned about abuse claims “like everybody else, like the rest of the world, when it was announced in the papers." The transcript of a deposition of Maxwell that took place earlier in 2016 was released in October. “Did anyone ever complain to you that Mr. Epstein had demanded sex of them?” attorney David Boies asked. Maxwell has been held without bail since pleading not guilty in July to recruiting girls for Epstein to abuse in the mid-1990s.
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Epstein's ex-girlfriend seeks dismissal of charges she faces
Manhattan federal prosecutors maintained they could proceed against Epstein or those who worked for him regardless. Federal prosecutors declined through a spokesperson to comment. In the event Maxwell's lawyers can't force a dismissal of the charges against her, they also made requests that would reduce the number of charges she faces. The lawyers also asked that Maxwell be tried separately on charges that she committed perjury when she testified in a civil case brought by one of Epstein's accusers. They said prosecutors were using those charges improperly as a way to introduce evidence from after the 1990s.
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Judge: $28.5M bail package for Epstein ex not a close call
U.S. District Judge Alison J. Nathan in Manhattan made the observation while explaining her reasons for denying bail earlier this week for Ghislaine Maxwell, the former girlfriend of Epstein, the wealthy financier and convicted sex offender. Defense lawyers recently asked for bail again, saying Maxwell has pledged her $22.5 million in assets plus millions more from friends and family. The judge noted the charges carry a presumption of detention before trial and could result in a long prison term. “But by and large, the arguments presented either were made at the initial bail hearing or could have been made then," Nathan wrote. She noted that Maxwell wasn't living with him in July and claimed they were getting divorced.
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Judge rejects Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell's bail bid
U.S. District Judge Alison J. Nathan in Manhattan rejected the proposed bail for Ghislaine Maxwell in an order. Her attorneys said Maxwell would remain in a New York City residence under 24-hour guard and would submit to electronic monitoring if the judge accepted the bail package. A message seeking comment was sent to Maxwell's lawyers after Nathan ruled. She was charged with recruiting three teenagers as young as age 14 for Epstein to sexually abuse between 1994 and 1997. Epstein killed himself in August 2019 at a Manhattan federal jail as he awaited a sex trafficking trial.
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US questions Maxwell's marriage in push to keep her jailed
On Tuesday, Nov. 24, one of Maxwell's attorneys said that her client is awakened every 15 minutes in jail while she sleeps to ensure she's breathing. Maxwell’s husband has not been identified in court papers. Epstein, Maxwell's ex-boyfriend, killed himself in his cell at a Manhattan federal jail in August 2019, a month after his arrest on sex trafficking charges. Maxwell's lawyers have said that she “vehemently maintains her innocence" and is committed to remaining in the U.S. and defending herself. Maxwell's first attempt to get out on bail, shortly after her arrest, was rejected.
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Evidence deadline looms in case of Epstein's ex-girlfriend
NEW YORK – Prosecutors and defense lawyers are clashing days before a deadline for evidence to be turned over in the prosecution of Jeffrey Epstein’s one-time girlfriend on charges that she recruited girls for him to sexually abuse. The trial of Ghislaine Maxwell is not scheduled to start until July, but prosecutors must turn over evidence to her lawyers by Monday. Maxwell has pleaded not guilty to charges alleging that she recruited three girls in the mid-1990s for Epstein to abuse. Epstein killed himself in a Manhattan federal lockup in August 2019 as he awaited trial on sex trafficking charges. In their letter, prosecutors called the defense claims factually and legally incorrect.
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Transcripts: Epstein’s ex-girlfriend combative and defensive
In the deposition, Maxwell said she had flown on Epstein's private planes with Clinton but refused to label Epstein and Clinton as friends. Maxwell parried a long list of inquiries about Epstein’s sexual proclivities and her interactions with Giuffre and other young women, insisting she never saw him have sex with anybody. “Fifth,” he replied when he was asked if Maxwell was “one of the main women” he used to procure underage girls for sexual activities. Preska had ordered the transcripts of seven hours of depositions of Maxwell over two days in 2016 released by 9 a.m. Thursday. She said Maxwell recruited her at age 17 to be sexually abused by Epstein and Maxwell from 1999 to 2002.
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Judge OKs release of Ghislaine Maxwell transcripts
NEW YORK – Transcripts of interviews lawyers conducted with the ex-girlfriend of the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein must be released by Thursday morning, a judge said Tuesday. U.S. District Judge Loretta A. Preska's order allows the public release of transcripts of two days of depositions in 2016 of British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell and related documents, along with the deposition transcript of an anonymous accuser. The judge briefly permitted the immediate release of the transcripts but reversed herself after an attorney for Maxwell made a late plea to delay the release. The lawyer cited objections to some redactions and said Maxwell had not had decided whether to further appeal an appellate ruling. Preska gave lawyers on each side until 9 a.m. Thursday to confer and release the transcripts.
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Trump's convention gives platform to some with fringe views
In this image from video, Abby Johnson speaks from Washington, during the second night of the Republican National Convention on Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020. A candidate who has peddled in racist tropes and bizarre QAnon conspiracy theories. President Donald Trump has long surrounded himself with controversial characters who hold out-of-the-mainstream views. Republican Jewish Coalition executive director Matt Brooks applauded the decision, saying her views clearly disqualify her from addressing the convention." So the fact that, in his head he would be more careful around my brown son than my white son, that doesnt actually make me angry.
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How an arrest upended filming of 'Surviving Jeffrey Epstein'
This combination of photos released by Lifetime shows participants in the new docuseries Surviving Jeffrey Epstein top row from left, Virginia Roberts Giuffre, Teresa Helm, Jena Lisa Jones, Kiki, Rachel Benavidez, Marijke Chartouni, Chaunte Davies, and Courtney Wild. (Lifetime via AP)NEW YORK The filmmakers behind Surviving Jeffrey Epstein moved quickly when Ghislaine Maxwell was arrested on federal charges that she acted as a recruiter for the financiers sexual abuse. If your timing can be great, our timing was great, said executive producer Robert Friedman. Production was underway when the 66-year-old Epstein killed himself in his New York City prison cell last August after his arrest on sex trafficking charges. To finally have a shot at it (after Maxwell's arrest) is remarkable.Maxwells arrest just a month before the series' premiere triggered a race, but definitely worth it said Sundberg.
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Trump says of Ghislaine Maxwell, 'I wish her well'
WASHINGTON President Donald Trump on Tuesday offered sympathetic words to Ghislaine Maxwell, the longtime companion of Jeffrey Epstein who stands accused of facilitating the abuse of girls by the now-deceased sex offender. I just wish her well, frankly," Trump said when asked about Maxwell during a news conference. An indictment alleged that Maxwell groomed the victims to endure sexual abuse and was sometimes there when Epstein abused them. Epstein associated over the years with many high-profile figures in politics and business, including Trump, former President Bill Clinton, Prince Andrew of Britain and the retail mogul Leslie Wexner. Ive met her numerous times over the years, especially since I lived in Palm Beach, and I guess they lived in Palm Beach, Trump said of Maxwell.
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Maxwell denied bail on Epstein-related sex abuse charges
FILE - In this June 5, 1991 file photo, British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell arrives at Epsom Racecourse. Jeffrey Epsteins former girlfriend will face a judge and at least one of her accusers by video at a hearing to determine whether she stays behind bars until trial on charges she recruited girls for the financier to sexually abuse a quarter-century before he killed himself in a Manhattan jail. The hearing Tuesday, July 14, 2020, in Manhattan federal court was expected to feature a not guilty plea by Maxwell along with arguments over whether she'll flee if she's released. (Chris Ison/PA via AP, File)
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Epstein associate to face accusers in video court appearance
The hearing Tuesday afternoon in Manhattan federal court was expected to feature a not guilty plea by British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell along with arguments over whether she'll flee if she's released. In an indictment, she is charged with recruiting at least three girls, one as young as 14, for Epstein to abuse between 1994 and 1997. The indictment alleged that she helped groom the victims to accept sexual abuse and was sometimes there when Epstein abused them. It also alleged that she lied during a 2016 deposition in a civil case stemming from Epstein's abuse of girls and women. Maxwell vigorously denies the charges, intends to fight them, and is entitled to the presumption of innocence," her lawyers wrote.
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Prosecutors: Epstein victim to speak at associate's hearing
Prosecutors made the revelation in court papers as they argued there is no reason to free British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell on bail. “As the agents approached the front door to the main house, they announced themselves as FBI agents and directed the defendant to open the door," prosecutors wrote. The government said agents were forced to break through the door to arrest Maxwell, who was in an interior room in the home. Prosecutors also revealed that Maxwell had been guarded at the home by a security company staffed with former members of the British military. “The Government is deeply concerned that if the defendant is bailed, the victims will be denied justice in this case," prosecutors wrote.
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AP source: Feds feared Epstein confidante might kill herself
The concern comes in part because Epstein, 66, killed himself in a federal jail in Manhattan last summer while in custody on sex trafficking charges. The Bureau of Prisons has been the subject of intense scrutiny and conspiracy theories since then, with staff shakeups and leadership changes. Maxwell, the daughter of the late British publishing magnate Robert Maxwell, was the former girlfriend and longtime close associate of Epstein. Several Epstein victims have described Maxwell as his chief enabler, recruiting and grooming young girls for abuse. Marshals Service, which utilized a series of suicide-prevention protocols, including taking away her sheets, as well as other safety measures, fearing a repeat of what happened with Epstein.
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Maxwell moved to NY for Epstein-related sex abuse charges
FILE - In this Sept. 2, 2000 file photo, British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, driven by Britain's Prince Andrew leaves the wedding of a former girlfriend of the prince, Aurelia Cecil, at the Parish Church of St Michael in Compton Chamberlayne near Salisbury, England. The FBI said Thursday July 2, 2020, Ghislaine Maxwell, who was accused by many women of helping procure underage sex partners for Jeffrey Epstein, has been arrested in New Hampshire. (Chris Ison/PA via AP, File)
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Maxwell moved to NY for Epstein-related sex abuse charges
A police K-9 walks outside the Merrimack County correctional facility, Friday, July 3, 2020 , in Boscowen N.H., where Ghislaine Maxwell was being held after her arrest Thursday at a wooded estate in Bradford, N.H. The British socialite faces charges she helped lure at least three girls one as young as 14 to be sexually abused by the late financier Jeffrey Epstein. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)
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Maxwell moved to NY for Epstein-related sex abuse charges
Maxwell, 58, was moved to the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, where she will await a July 14 remote appearance in Manhattan federal court, her lawyer told a judge. Maxwell, the daughter of the late British publishing magnate Robert Maxwell, was the former girlfriend and longtime close associate of Epstein, who killed himself at a federal jail in Manhattan last August while he awaited trial on federal sex trafficking charges. Several Epstein victims have described Maxwell as his chief enabler, recruiting and grooming young girls for abuse. She will appear by video remotely from the federal jail. The jail's former warden, Cameron Lindsay, said it is “one of the most troubled" facilities in the federal prison system and had a “unique history of staff misconduct."
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Prosecutors seek Friday court appearance for Epstein friend
NEW YORK – Prosecutors on Sunday asked a judge to schedule a Friday court appearance in New York for Jeffrey Epstein’s longtime associate to face charges she helped him recruit women to sexually abuse. Prosecutors have labeled her an “extreme risk of flight" and said they want her jailed until trial. Epstein killed himself in a Manhattan jail last August while he awaited trial on federal sex trafficking charges. Prosecutors say Maxwell had both a personal and professional relationship with Epstein. Authorities said she sometimes hired girls to give him massages before joining as Epstein tried to engage the girls in sex acts.
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Epstein cohort's arrest becomes new test for plea deal
A police K-9 walks outside the Merrimack County correctional facility, Friday, July 3, 2020 , in Boscowen N.H., where Ghislaine Maxwell was being held after her arrest Thursday at a wooded estate in Bradford, N.H. The British socialite faces charges she helped lure at least three girls one as young as 14 to be sexually abused by the late financier Jeffrey Epstein. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)
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Epstein cohort's arrest becomes new test for plea deal
The British socialite faces charges she helped lure at least three girls one as young as 14 to be sexually abused by the late financier Jeffrey Epstein. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)NEW YORK Before Jeffrey Epsteins jailhouse suicide last year, his defense hinged on a 2008 deal with federal prosecutors in Florida over his alleged sexual abuse of multiple teenage girls. Could that same deal now help Ghislaine Maxwell, the Epstein confidante arrested Thursday, evade charges she helped lure at least three girls into sexual liaisons with him? A key for Maxwell is that agreement also sought to prevent criminal charges from being brought against any potential co-conspirators of Epstein." Maxwell may not have necessarily counted on the Epstein deal to protect her.
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Epstein pal arrested, accused of luring girls for sex abuse
Epstein, 66, killed himself in a federal detention center in New York last summer while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. Maxwell has, for years, been accused by many women of acting as a madam for Epstein, helping him scout young girls for abuse, then hiring them to give him massages, during which the girls were pressured into sex acts. In one lawsuit, a woman alleged Maxwell was the “highest-ranking employee” of Epstein’s alleged sex trafficking enterprise. “Through this process, Maxwell and Epstein enticed victims to engage in sexual activity with Epstein. In some instances, Maxwell was present for and participated in the sexual abuse of minor victims,” according to the indictment.