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Ghislaine Maxwell gets sentencing date despite juror's sex abuse revelations
15 January 2022, 08:21
Ghislaine Maxwell has been given a date for her sentencing despite a juror’s admission about being sexually abused as a child.
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The revelation threw speculation on whether the British socialite’s lawyers could push for a mistrial.
He has said that he told other jurors during deliberations over Maxwell’s charges that he was sexually abused as a child, and used what he learned about abuse to persuade others to convict her.
Maxwell’s defence lawyers said the remarks warrant a fresh trial. The 60-year-old was convicted of child sex trafficking and conspiracy over the recruitment of teenage girls for Jeffrey Epstein to abuse.
Judge Alison Nathan, who has set a date of June 28 for sentencing, will rule on what will happen as a result of the juror’s revelations in the future.
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Maxwell was convicted after prosecutors said she recruited and groomed teenage girls for Epstein to abuse between 1994 and 2004.
She was once in a relationship with him and later worked for him at five residences that included a New York City mansion and a Palm Beach estate in Florida.
Maxwell’s lawyers had said she was made a scapegoat after Epstein took his own life in prison in 2019 as he faced a trial over sex trafficking charges.
Meanwhile, prosecutors have said they will drop perjury charged against Maxwell if she gets sentenced on schedule.