Ghislaine Maxwell Petitions U.S. Supreme Court to Overturn Sex Trafficking Conviction
TALLAHASSEE, FL — Ghislaine Maxwell, the British socialite and longtime associate of convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, has filed a 159-page petition with the U.S. Supreme Court, seeking to overturn her 2021 conviction on multiple counts of sex trafficking and conspiracy.
Maxwell, now serving a 20-year sentence at the Federal Correctional Institution in Tallahassee, is challenging her conviction on the grounds that she was improperly prosecuted in violation of a 2007 non-prosecution agreement made between Epstein and federal prosecutors in Florida.
The Basis of the Supreme Court Petition
In the filing submitted Thursday, Maxwell’s attorneys argue that she was covered under Epstein’s controversial non-prosecution agreement (NPA), which granted immunity to his unnamed “co-conspirators” as part of a plea deal that saw him serve just 13 months in a Palm Beach jail for two state-level prostitution charges.
“Despite the existence of a non-prosecution agreement promising in plain language that the United States would not prosecute any co-conspirator of Jeffrey Epstein, the United States in fact prosecuted Ghislaine Maxwell as a co-conspirator,” the petition states.
Her legal team claims that the Southern District of New York, where Maxwell was tried and convicted, violated that agreement by prosecuting her as if the prior deal had no legal bearing across jurisdictions.
Rejection in Lower Courts
Maxwell’s arguments have already been rejected by the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, which held that the original Florida plea deal did not bind prosecutors in other districts, including New York.
That rejection followed a broader legal interpretation that federal jurisdictions may vary in their obligations to honor agreements made by U.S. attorneys outside their own district.
“A defendant should be able to rely on a promise that the United States will not prosecute again, without being subject to a gotcha in some other jurisdiction,” said Maxwell’s attorney, David Markus, in the filing.
Conviction Background
Maxwell was convicted in December 2021 of five felony counts, including sex trafficking of a minor, for her role in recruiting and grooming underage girls for Epstein’s abuse in the early 2000s. Her sentencing in 2022 drew international attention, particularly given her ties to elite social circles and high-profile figures such as Prince Andrew.
Epstein’s Death and Continued Fallout
The late Jeffrey Epstein died under suspicious circumstances in a Manhattan jail cell in 2019, officially ruled a suicide. Since then, many of his former associates have faced increased legal scrutiny. Maxwell remains the highest-profile individual to be prosecuted in connection with Epstein’s network.
Maxwell maintains her innocence and continues to deny the allegations, despite extensive witness testimony and documentary evidence used at trial.
The Supreme Court has not yet indicated whether it will hear the case.
If the high court declines to intervene, Maxwell’s conviction and sentence will remain in effect, and she will continue serving her time in federal prison until at least 2037, barring further legal developments.
