Ghislaine Maxwell: Trial begins in New York, judge to question ‘hundreds’ of jurors

Socialite Ghislaine Maxwell has emerged from her cell for a pre-trial hearing on sex trafficking charges with a radically different look.

Ghislaine Maxwell has emerged from her prison cell to face a pre-trial hearing in New York.

The British socialite, her lawyers and prosecutors were appearing before Judge Alison Nathan to discuss the logistics of questioning potential jurors.

Unlike her previous court appearance, Maxwell was not handcuffed or shackled this time.

She wore grey pants, a black jumper and black boots for her court appearance.

Maxwell’s hair appeared to be freshly dyed black and was noticeably longer than her previous signature pixie cut.

Ghislaine Maxwell stands before US. District Judge Alison Nathan with her defence team of Bobbi Sternheim, Christian Everdell, Laura Menninger, Jeffrey Pagliuca. Picture: Reuters

She appeared relaxed during the proceedings and shared a laugh with her legal team at one point.

One of her lawyers, Jeffrey Pagliuca, also stroked her hair and wiped it out of her face as they exchanged words, the New York Post reports.

The judge overseeing the trial of Maxwell on charges of sexual abuse said on Monday local time she planned to question 231 potential jurors.

US District Judge Alison Nathan will start questioning the candidates on Tuesday (local time). Judge Nathan plans to ask jurors whether they know any of the people who say they were victims of the abuse and will testify, as well as whether they have opinions about “people who are wealthy or have luxurious lifestyles.”

Twelve jurors and six alternates will be selected from the pool.

Lawyers for Maxwell have argued that extensive media coverage of her arrest and ties to Epstein have tainted the jury pool. More than 600 potential jurors filled out questionnaires this month asking them what they have heard about Epstein and Maxwell, and about their own experiences with sexual abuse.

Maxwell is accused of grooming underage girls for the late financier Jeffrey Epstein to abuse. She has pleaded not guilty to six counts of sex trafficking and other crimes.

It’s been 15 months since the British socialite was charged with recruiting a network of underage girls for Epstein.

Ghislaine Maxwell is accused of procuring underage girls for multi-millionaire Jeffrey Epstein, who died in prison in 2019. Picture: Getty Images

The 59-year-old daughter of late newspaper baron Robert Maxwell faces an effective life sentence if convicted in New York of sex trafficking minors for Epstein, her former lover, who killed himself in prison more than two years ago.

Following Epstein’s death — a multimillion-dollar money manager who befriended countless celebrities, including Prince Andrew — prosecutors vowed to pursue co-conspirators, resulting in Maxwell’s arrest in July 2020.

She has since been held at the Metropolitan Detention Centre in Brooklyn where she has repeatedly complained of unsanitary and inhumane conditions.

“I have been assaulted and abused for almost a year and a half,” she said in comments carried by Britain’s Mail on Sunday, adding that guards interrupt her sleep and shine bright lights in her eyes.

Ghislaine Maxwell lived a life of wealth and privilege.

“I am weak, I am frail. I have no stamina. I am tired. I don’t even have shoes which fit properly. They feed me rotten food. One apple had maggots in it. I have not been allowed to exercise,” she said, also complaining of rats in her cell.

Maxwell’s alleged crimes occurred between 1994 and 2004, and relate to four unnamed women, including two who say they were just 14 and 15 years old when they were sexually abused.

A courtroom sketch shows Ghislaine Maxwell in shackles at a pre-trial hearing ahead of jury selection in early November. Picture: Reuters/Jane Rosenberg

Prosecutors say Maxwell befriended girls with shopping and movie trips, later coaxing them into giving Epstein nude massages at his various residences, during which he would engage in sex acts before giving them money.

US government lawyers say she sometimes participated in the alleged abuse, at her London home and at Epstein’s properties in Manhattan, Palm Beach and New Mexico.

Epstein, 66, died in a Manhattan jail in August 2019 while awaiting trial on child sex trafficking charges, in what New York’s official coroner ruled a suicide.

Ghislaine Maxwell speaking at an ocean preservation conference in 2014.

Ghislaine Maxwell in her days as a New York socialite. Picture: Getty Images

In-person jury selection in Maxwell’s trial starts Tuesday with opening arguments on November 29. The trial, taking place in a federal court in Manhattan, is expected to last six weeks.

She has pleaded not guilty to all six counts, which include sex trafficking of a minor, and faces up to 80 years in prison if convicted on all charges.

French-born Maxwell has also been charged with two counts of perjury, which are due to be tried after her sex crimes trial.

The perjury counts relate to testimony she gave in 2016 in a defamation case filed against her by long-time Epstein accuser Virginia Roberts Giuffre.

Ghislaine Maxwell is the daughter of late newspaper tycoon Robert Maxwell. Picture: AFP

Ghislaine Maxwell has claimed she is being ‘abused’ in jail. Picture: Bobbi Sternheim

Giuffre alleges that Epstein used to lend her out for sex with his wealthy and powerful associates, including Prince Andrew.

Maxwell, a long-time friend of the royal, is known to have introduced the prince to Epstein.

Giuffre has sued the royal in New York, alleging he had sex with her more than 20 years ago when she was 17 and a minor under American law.

The civil lawsuit is expected to be heard before a jury in late 2022. Andrew, Queen Elizabeth’s second son, has not been criminally charged and has repeatedly and strenuously denied the allegations.

Giuffre, now 38, is not part of the criminal case against Maxwell. The indictment centres on four women referred to as minor victims one, two, three and four.

Ghislaine Maxwell has been held at the Metropolitan Detention Centrein New York since her arrest last year. Picture: Getty Images

They are expected to testify that Maxwell operated a ring of young females, who were taken across state lines to provide sexual massages for Epstein, for which they received hundreds of dollars.

The defence argue that Maxwell is only being tried because Epstein escaped justice.

They intend to challenge the accusers’ memories of the decades-old events. Epstein was convicted in Florida in 2008 of paying young girls for massages, but served just 13 months in jail under a secret plea deal struck with the then-state prosecutor.

His suicide deprived dozens of his accusers their day in court and launched countless conspiracy theories, including that he was killed to protect powerful friends.

Maxwell has been denied bail six times since her arrest in New Hampshire, with judges deeming her a flight risk.

She is unlikely to testify.

— with Reuters

Originally published as Ghislaine Maxwell: Trial begins in New York, judge to question ‘hundreds’ of jurors