Judge Denies Ghislaine Maxwell’s Request to Delay Unsealing of Court Documents

Ghislaine Maxwell appears via video link during her arraignment hearing where she was denied bail for her role aiding Jeffrey Epstein to recruit and eventually abuse minor girls, in Manhattan Federal Court, New York, on July 14, 2020 in this courtroom sketch. Jane Rosenberg/File Photo via Reuters

A federal judge on Aug. 12 declined a request by Ghislaine Maxwell to delay the unsealing of potentially explosive additional court documents related to her dealings with the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Maxwell, the former girlfriend and longtime associate of Epstein, faces criminal charges that she aided the disgraced financier’s sexual abuses. She was arrested in New Hampshire over a month ago on charges that she facilitated and aided Epstein by recruiting, grooming, and sexually exploiting minor girls. She has denied all of the allegations and intends to fight the charges in court.

Her attorneys on Monday requested a 3-week delay in the unsealing of the documents over “critical new information” they said could affect the British socialite’s ability to obtain a fair trial.

U.S. District Judge Loretta Preska denied Maxwell’s request in a two-page order, saying that the 58-year-old “knows, her ipse dixit does not provide compelling grounds for relief,” using a term in Latin that means making an assertion without evidence.

(L) Ghislaine Maxwell attends a symposium in New York City in a 2013 file photograph. (Laura Cavanaugh/Getty Images) (R) Jeffrey Epstein in a 2013 mugshot in Florida. Florida Department of Law Enforcement via Getty Images

“Given that Ms. Maxwell is not at liberty to disclose this new information because it is subject to the protective order in the criminal action … the Court has no reasonable basis to impose a stay,” Preska wrote.

“Should the protective order in the criminal action be modified to permit disclosure of the relevant information to the Court, Ms. Maxwell may renew her request for a stay of the unsealing process.”

Maxwell’s attorneys did not specify what “critical new information” they had discovered on Friday, but said that it was subject to a court protective order.

The documents come from a long-settled civil defamation case against Maxwell by Virginia Giuffre, who said Epstein kept her as a “sex slave” with Maxwell’s help.

Maxwell has asked the federal appeals court in Manhattan to block the release from that case of a 2016 deposition about her sex life, also citing the threat to a fair trial.

That court is scheduled to hear oral arguments on Sept. 22. Maxwell’s criminal trial is scheduled for next July.

By Thursday, U.S. prosecutors are expected respond to a request by Maxwell’s attorneys to move Maxwell to the general prison population. Her lawyers argue that the defendant is unable to adequately prepare for her trial defense due to the “onerous” conditions of her confinement resulting from the purported prison suicide of Epstein.

The Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) where Ghislaine Maxwell, the alleged accomplice of the late financier Jeffrey Epstein, is being held, in New York City on July 6, 2020. Mike Segar/Reuters

According to a letter from her attorneys (pdf), Maxwell has been held in solitary confinement under 24-hour surveillance for 40 days. The prison guards constantly watch her and take notes about everything she does. Some of the guards do not appear to be regular prison employees, the lawyers noted.

A lawyer representing seven women who say they were abused by Epstein previously told The Epoch Times that he is worried that Maxwell will end up dead.

“I have grave concerns that she doesn’t make it out of jail alive,” Spencer Kuvin said.

Ivan Pentchoukov and Reuters contributed to this report.