The convicted pedophile’s girlfriend argued that she was shielded from prosecution by an earlier plea deal
The US Supreme Court has rejected Ghislaine Maxwell’s bid to overturn her conviction for helping Jeffrey Epstein procure minors for his pedophile network. She is currently serving a 20-year prison term for multiple offenses, including the sex trafficking of a child.
Earlier this year, the case spurred controversy after the administration of US President Donald Trump backpedaled on promises to release Epstein’s alleged ‘client list’, claiming the late sex offender never had one.
On Monday, justices turned away Maxwell’s appeal.
Her legal team argued she was shielded under a plea deal federal prosecutors struck with Epstein in 2007 that protected his “co-conspirators” from criminal charges in return for his cooperation.
According to US Solicitor General Dean John Sauer, the clause is “highly unusual” and cannot be compared to other non-prosecution agreements (NPAs).
“The case-specific interpretation of a particular NPA is not a matter that warrants this Court’s review,” he said in a response to the petition.
Maxwell agreed to be interviewed about the Epstein case by Deputy US Attorney General Todd Blanche in July, reportedly receiving limited immunity to answer questions without risk of new criminal charges. During the interviews, she denied that Epstein kept a ‘client list’ of people he had trafficked women and girls to.
The DOJ and the FBI earlier this year said they found “no credible evidence” that Epstein maintained such a list, after months of promises to release the full files. The announcement ignited backlash even among staunch Trump supporters, who felt betrayed due to the president’s pre-election promise to make the document public.
In late September, Democratic members of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability published a redacted batch of the Epstein files, alleging links between the sex trafficker and figures including Elon Musk, former Trump adviser Steve Bannon, and investor Peter Thiel.
In response, Republicans have accused their opponents of “intentionally withholding documents that contain names of Democrat officials.”
Epstein died in pre-trial detention in August 2019. His death was ruled a suicide.
