Judge Rejects Ghislaine Maxwell’s Bid for Retrial

A federal judge rejected a new trial for Ghislaine Maxwell, who argued her sex trafficking case was tainted after it was revealed that one juror did not disclose he was a victim of child sex abuse.

Judge Alison Nathan of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York upheld Maxwell’s conviction in a decision Friday.

“His failure to disclose his prior sexual abuse during the jury selection process was highly unfortunate, but not deliberate,” Nathan wrote. “The Court further concludes that Juror 50 harbored no bias toward the Defendant and could serve as a fair and impartial juror.”

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Scotty David, whom the judge referred to as Juror 50, did not disclose the abuse he endured beforehand. All jurors were given a questionnaire before the trial began last winter.

Nathan said David’s testimony proved “he was not biased and would not have been stricken” from the jury, “even if he had answered each question on the questionnaire accurately.”

The hearing took place in March after news interviews in which David revealed the abuse he experienced in the past. He also reported that he told other jurors about his experience. Maxwell’s lawyers attempted to delay Nathan’s ruling until after a Paramount+ documentary was released because David makes an appearance.

Maxwell, 60, Jeffrey Epstein’s girlfriend and confidant, was convicted in December on five of six felony counts, including sex trafficking. The British socialite had pleaded not guilty and refused to testify in her own defense. She faces up to 65 years in prison and is expected to be sentenced June 28.

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Epstein was arrested in July 2019 and charged with sex trafficking and conspiracy to traffic minors, allegedly abusing girls as young as 14. He pleaded not guilty to the charges before he was found dead in his Manhattan prison cell that August. His death was ruled a suicide by the New York City medical examiner’s office.