Lawyers urge leniency at sentencing for Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell

Lawyers for British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell urged leniency at sentencing, asking a judge Wednesday to disregard a probation department recommendation of a 20-year prison term for her sex trafficking conviction and role in financier Jeffrey Epstein’s sex abuse of teenage girls.

They said in court papers in Manhattan federal court that Maxwell deserves leniency, and called it “a travesty of justice for her to face a sentence that would have been appropriate for Epstein.” Epstein took his own life as he was awaiting a federal sex trafficking trial in New York in 2019.

“Ghislaine Maxwell is not an heiress, villain, or vapid socialite. She has worked hard her entire life. She has energy, drive, commitment, a strong work ethic, and desire to do good in the world,” the lawyers wrote in advance of a sentencing scheduled for June 28.

They wrote that her life has been ruined and she has faced onerous and punitive jail conditions that should aid the request for a significant downward departure from sentencing guidelines that would otherwise call for her to spend decades in prison.

They also said leniency is deserved because she had a “difficult, traumatic childhood with an overbearing, narcissistic, and demanding father” that made her “vulnerable to Epstein, whom she met right after her father’s death.”

“It is the biggest mistake she made in her life and one that she has not and never will repeat,” they said.

They added that she has had two committed, long-term, loving relationships with men who had young children in the 15 years since her relationship with Epstein ended.

Prosecutors declined comment through a spokesperson. They will submit their own written arguments in advance of sentencing.

In its final report, the probation department recommended the 20-year prison term, which would be a slight downward departure from what sentencing guidelines would otherwise call for, Maxwell’s lawyers said.

Maxwell, 60, was convicted in December of recruiting teenage girls for Epstein to sexually abuse from 1994 to 2004.

U.S. District Judge Alison J. Nathan in April upheld Maxwell’s jury conviction, saying it was “readily supported” by extensive witness testimony and documentary evidence at a month-long trial.

Earlier this year, Nathan refused to toss out Maxwell’s conviction on the grounds that a juror during deliberations told other jurors he had been sexually abused as a child even though he had not revealed it in response to questions about prior sex abuse in a written questionnaire given to prospective jurors.

Epstein pleaded guilty to state charges in Palm Beach County in July 2008. He admitted he hired local underage girls to provide sex and erotic massages at his home. His sentence has been referred to as a “sweetheart deal” that allowed him lenient work release while he served about 13 months of an 18-month sentence, followed by a year of house arrest.

An investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement focused on former Palm Beach County State Attorney Barry Krischer’s decision not to aggressively prosecute sex abuse allegations against Epstein over a decade ago; Epstein’s generous work release privileges in jail; and allegations that Epstein had sex with young women while under the jail’s supervision.

The investigation found Epstein received “differential treatment” in jail, but no evidence was uncovered that suggests county officials broke any laws.