A US judge has upheld British socialist Ghislaine Maxwell’s conviction for sex trafficking and rejected her request for a retrial. The 60-year-old asked for a retrial after it was revealed that a juror in his court had failed to disclose that he had been sexually assaulted.
His lawyers said this meant the trial “was not fair and impartial.” But Judge Allison Nathan refused to issue a new trial order after being questioned by a jury in a New York courtroom.
He said the jury did not disclose his past sexual assault in the jury selection process, which included a 50-page questionnaire, which is highly unfortunate but unintentional. Judge Nathan concluded that the jury “has no bias” against Maxwell and “can serve as a fair and impartial judge.”
Its ruling states: “The Court concluded that the defendant had failed to comply with the requirements of the Supreme Court’s ruling v. McDonough Greenwood. The 50th jury at the hearing considers the testimony to be credible.
(Photo: Elizabeth Williams/The Associated Press)
Judge Nathan said the 50 jury “gave the specter of honesty and integrity, even when the answers they gave were a source of personal embarrassment and regret.” He said: The court appreciates his testimony by being attentive when filling out the questionnaire and “moving very quickly,” which made him misunderstand some questions.
Assuming he wouldn’t be one of the 12 jurors chosen from among hundreds of promising jurors who were called, he was promptly questioned. This led to inaccurate answers.
“It is unfortunate that the 50-person jury did not pay attention and accurately answered all the questions in the questionnaire, but the court is satisfied that the disclosure was not intended.” Maxwell, who was described by prosecutors as “dangerous” during a three-week trial in New York, pleaded guilty last December to luring vulnerable teens on Jeffrey Epstein’s property to sexually assault him from 1994 to 2004.
He said he is innocent. Epstein committed suicide in August 2019 in a New York federal prison awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. Maxwell will be sentenced on June 28 in New York.
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Source: Belfastlive
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
