Judge rejects Ghislaine Maxwell's bid to overturn sex trafficking conviction

A federal judge in New York has rejected Ghislaine Maxwell's petition to overturn her sex trafficking conviction and 20-year prison sentence, calling her claims of constitutional violations and new exculpatory evidence "frivolous" and "demonstrably unfounded." Source: AP via Clarín

The ruling

Judge Paul Engelmayer, in a 67-page decision, said the evidence of Maxwell's guilt presented at her 2021 trial was "overwhelming" and that her habeas corpus petition, filed in December 2025, was "extensive and rambling." Source: El Mundo He noted that most of her arguments were barred because she had already raised them on direct appeal or could have but chose not to. Source: El Mundo

New evidence

Maxwell argued that thousands of documents released under the Epstein Files Transparency Act supported her claims of prosecutorial misconduct and selective prosecution. However, Engelmayer found the material "largely irrelevant" to her charges and, where relevant, "far from exculpating her, it incriminates her or reaffirms the correctness of the legal rulings she challenges." Source: AP via Clarín

Context

Maxwell, 64, is the only person convicted in connection with Epstein, who died by suicide in 2019 while awaiting trial. Source: Euronews She was convicted in 2021 of recruiting underage girls for Epstein. Source: Infobae In February, she was subpoenaed by a House committee but refused to answer questions, with her lawyer saying she would only speak if President Trump granted her a pardon. Source: Diario Libre The Supreme Court declined to hear her earlier appeal in October. Source: Listín Diario