Is Ghislaine Maxwell already naming names to save herself?

As Ghislaine Maxwell awaits trial, many are speculating whether or not she’ll eventually make a deal with the U.S. Dept. of Justice. Although she pled not guilty to the counts she’s charged with and maintains her innocence, the trial is a long way away, set to begin in the summer of 2021. 

Ghislaine Maxwell is being charged with multiple counts concerning her former boyfriend Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking ring. These include enticement of minors, sex trafficking of children, and perjury. Epstein’s victims implicate Maxwell as a recruiter and even an abuser herself. Jeffrey Epstein died in his cell while awaiting trial. Maxwell was arrested nearly a year later. 

Right now, “discovery”, the part of court proceedings where the prosecution & defense gather evidence for trial and submit it to the court, is underway. Federal judge Alison Nathan already released a trove of information to the public, including a deposition from Virginia Roberts-Giuffre implicating Prince Andrew, Duke of York. 

While the unsealed documents revealed names, will Ghislaine Maxwell name names herself? Let’s take a look. 

After Ghislaine Maxwell’s arrest

Ghislaine Maxwell was arrested on July 2nd in her house in New Hampshire. Per Reuters, Maxwell his from federal agents when they knocked on her door. After her arrest, Virginia Roberts-Giuffre tweeted that she should start naming names. “I go to bed at night thanking God you are sleeping in a cage,” Giuffre’s tweet said. 

Ghislaine Maxwell was transferred to the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, NY after her arrest. On July 14, her request for bail was denied after a two-hour hearing. The court determined Maxwell was a flight risk due to her multiple nationalities and massive wealth. 

“Onerous conditions”

Although it appears that Ghislaine Maxwell would be willing to name names at this point, her legal team’s efforts center on moving her to the general population. Since being in the MDC, Ghislaine Maxwell has been on suicide watch and in solitary confinement. 

Ghislaine Maxwell’s legal team argued that her treatment was vastly different than other inmates in her situation. The legal team claims that the reason is Jeffrey Epstein, which is hindering her right to a fair trial. 

“Ms. Maxwell is being treated worse than other similarly situated pretrial detainees, which significantly impacts her ability to prepare a defense and be ready for trial on the schedule set by the Court,” her lawyers argued. 

Ghislaine Maxwell also asked the court to disclose the names of three of her accusers. The court denied her request. 

Special treatment

While the request wasn’t granted, some argue that Ghislaine Maxwell is receiving special treatment due to her case. In solitary confinement, Maxwell’s time to research her case was extended to thirteen hours per day. 

Ghislaine Maxwell was also among the first to be able to meet with her lawyers after COVID-19 restrictions were lifted. A federal attorney clarified she wasn’t the first after The New York Daily News reported she was the first prisoner to see her attorneys in-person. First or second, Ghislaine Maxwell meeting with her attorneys this quickly troubles prison activists. 

They claim higher-priority inmates, like death row offenders, have yet to meet with their legal team. Sean Hecker, an attorney involved in a lawsuit against the MDC, is “troubled” that Ghislaine Maxwell could meet with her attorneys so quickly when he reports that these inmates couldn’t meet with their counsel since the pandemic began. 

Ghislaine Maxwell isn’t the one naming names

The lawsuits keep coming and they don’t stop coming. The New York Post reported that Jennifer Araoz, a victim of Jeffrey Epstein who sued him under the NY Child Victims Act is now going after Ghislaine Maxwell. Araoz claims that Epstein raped her in his Manhattan townhouse when she was fifteen. 

Araoz claims that a “mystery woman” to The New York Post approached her outside her high school. The “recruiter” brought Araoz to Epstein, where he sexually assaulted her over the course of multiple visits. It’s possible that the recruiter in question was Ghislaine Maxwell herself. 

Another civil suit, brought on by a “Jane Doe,” is similar to the criminal case against Ghislaine Maxwell. For this reason, the federal government is trying to delay it until after Maxwell’s trial. 

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From the way things are going, it’s most likely that Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell’s victims will continue to be the ones naming names. However, that could change after discovery, depending on the evidence the prosecution can bring to negotiate a deal with Ghislaine Maxwell. 

What do you think? Will the prosecution be able to negotiate with Maxwell to “name names,” or will she continue to remain silent on Epstein’s accomplices? Here’s our article shedding some light on Maxwell’s time in custody.