by Brayden Yee
Ghislaine Maxwell has been found guilty on five of six counts related to her role in Jeffrey Epstein’s sexual abuse of female minors during the period of 1994-2004. Maxwell pled not guilty to all six charges including sex trafficking of minors and conspiracy. Maxwell, now 60, faces up to 65 years in prison.
The defense called up nine witnesses over the course of two days. After Epstein’s case was revived and after his controversial suicide, the case moved to Maxwell, which the defense argued was her being scapegoated for Epstein’s actions. They also tried challenging the memories of the accusers, stating that their memory could be unreliable or malleable based on facts that the victims learned about after the matter. The defense concluded with Maxwell, stating that the government had not proven their case beyond a reasonable doubt, and therefore had no reason to testify.
The prosecution called up 24 witnesses in ten days, arguing that Maxwell aided Epstein in his sex trafficking ring and that Epstein could not have continued it for a decade without Maxwell’s help. The prosecution's argument revolves around four witness testimonies of women who say that they were abused by Epstein as minors and that Maxwell facilitated, and at times participated, in the abuse.
The jury of six men and six women deliberated for around 40 hours over the course of six days, finding Maxwell guilty on all charges except count number two: enticing a minor to travel to engage in illegal sex acts. While many are glad about the result of the case, many questions regarding it are still open, such as the infamous Little Black Book containing names of celebrities, world leaders, and victims of Epstein and Maxwell.
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