The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday reportedly declined to hear Ghislaine Maxwell’s appeal, leaving intact her 20-year prison sentence for sex trafficking and upholding a federal appeals court ruling that affirmed her conviction.
The justices offered no explanation for the decision, which effectively closes another chapter in the long-running saga surrounding Jeffrey Epstein, the disgraced financier whose death in federal custody in 2019 continues to spark controversy.
Maxwell, 63, has remained a central and deeply polarizing figure in what some critics see as the Biden administration’s opaque handling of records related to Epstein’s activities and his ties to powerful figures. The Justice Department has resisted calls to release grand jury materials connected to Epstein and Maxwell, citing procedural barriers, even as public skepticism mounts.
A senior Justice Department official interviewed Maxwell earlier this summer while she was serving time in Florida. Shortly after that meeting, she was transferred to a lower-security facility in Texas, fueling speculation about her cooperation with federal authorities.
Her attorney, David Markus, expressed disappointment at the Supreme Court’s refusal to review the case, saying the decision did not end their efforts. “But this fight isn’t over,” Markus said. “Serious legal and factual issues remain, and we will continue to pursue every avenue available to ensure that justice is done.”
Maxwell’s petition to the high court centered on whether her prosecution in New York violated a 2008 plea agreement struck between Epstein and federal prosecutors in Florida. Under that deal, Epstein pleaded guilty to two prostitution charges in state court, while federal prosecutors agreed not to charge his potential co-conspirators. Maxwell’s lawyers argued that promise should have shielded her from later prosecution.
“This case presents a straightforward and important question about the government’s obligation to honor its promises in plea and non-prosecution agreements,” Maxwell’s legal team wrote in their filing.
The Justice Department countered that the 2008 deal applied only to the Southern District of Florida, not to the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s Office, which ultimately brought charges against Maxwell in 2020.
At trial, prosecutors painted Maxwell as Epstein’s indispensable accomplice — a woman who recruited and groomed young girls for the financier’s sexual abuse. Four women testified in vivid detail about how Maxwell befriended them as teenagers, arranged meetings with Epstein, and, at times, joined in the assaults. Her defense team insisted she was being scapegoated for Epstein’s crimes.
In her interview this summer with DOJ official Todd Blanche, Maxwell sought to dispel lingering speculation about Epstein’s circle. She denied the existence of any “secret list” of clients or efforts to blackmail powerful individuals. Maxwell also defended President Donald Trump, who had socialized with Epstein in the 1990s.
“The President was never inappropriate with anybody,” she said. “In the times that I was with him, he was a gentleman in all respects.”
According to the Bureau of Prisons, Maxwell’s expected release date is July 17, 2037. With the Supreme Court’s rejection, her remaining options are limited — short of an unlikely presidential pardon.
When previously asked about the idea, Trump said simply: “I’m allowed to do it, but it’s something I haven’t thought about.”
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