But the DOJ argued the Florida-based plea deal was never intended to bind prosecutors in other districts and that Maxwell, now 63, was not even known to be involved in Epstein’s conduct when the agreement was signed.

“Petitioner was not a party to the relevant agreement,” Sauer wrote. “There is no evidence that the parties to the NPA intended for the coconspirators clause to benefit” her or that Florida prosecutors had authority to bind the entire Justice Department.

The DOJ’s position arrives amid mounting political pressure over its handling of Epstein-related investigations. Attorney General Pam Bondi has come under fire from conservative commentators for, in their view, backtracking on promises to expose Epstein’s network. Critics were further incensed after a DOJ memo last week declared there was no Epstein “client list” or evidence of a blackmail scheme.

That backdrop fueled speculation over whether Bondi’s DOJ would fight Maxwell’s petition or allow it to proceed quietly. A statement from Maxwell’s attorney, David Oscar Markus, took aim at President Donald Trump’s team directly: “I’d be surprised if President Trump knew his lawyers were asking the Supreme Court to let the government break a deal. He’s the ultimate dealmaker—and I’m sure he’d agree that when the United States gives its word, it should keep it.”

In its 16-page filing, the DOJ emphasized that plea agreements are interpreted like contracts and must be narrowly construed unless expressly made applicable to multiple jurisdictions. The Florida agreement shielded only four named assistants, not Maxwell, and was signed solely by local prosecutors.

“While ‘the United States’ could conceivably refer to the entire federal government,” Sauer wrote, “the entirety and context of the NPA here make clear that the term is used—as it often is—as one alternative way to refer to the U.S. Attorney’s Office executing the agreement.”

The government also cited a long-standing DOJ policy prohibiting prosecutors from striking deals on behalf of other districts without written approval, which was never sought or granted in Epstein’s case.

Epstein pleaded guilty to two offenses in Florida state court in 2008, procuring a child for prostitution and soliciting a prostitute, but he only served 13 months behind bars due to the controversial plea deal and extensive work release. He was later charged in 2019 by the Southern District of New York on federal charges of sex trafficking minors. He was found dead in his prison cell on Aug. 10 that year, with federal officials then and now maintaining he died by suicide.

In addition to Maxwell’s latest effort to appeal her conviction, her representatives reportedly said she would be willing to testify to Congress about her involvement with Epstein as the public clamors for more information about the disgraced financier.

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“Despite the rumors, Ghislaine was never offered any kind of plea deal,” a source close to Maxwell told the Daily Mail. “She would be more than happy to sit before Congress and tell her story.”

The Supreme Court is expected to decide in the coming months whether to take up Maxwell’s petition. If denied, her 20-year prison sentence will stand. It takes four or more justices to vote in favor of granting a petition for review.