BREAKING: Ghislaine Maxwell appeals to Supreme Court to overturn 2021 sex trafficking conviction

"We are appealing not only to the Supreme Court, but to the president himself, to recognize how unjust it is to scapegoat Ghislaine Maxwell for Epstein's crimes, especially when the government promised she would not be prosecuted," a representative for Maxwell said, according to CNN.

Maxwell’s lawyers argue that Maxwell’s conviction violates an agreement Epstein made in 2008 that shielded coconspirators from prosecution.

According to trial evidence and court documents, Maxwell helped Epstein recruit and groom young girls—some as young as 14—for sexual abuse between 1994 and 2004. Prosecutors said she used gifts, outings, and emotional manipulation to gain the girls’ trust, gradually desensitizing them to inappropriate conduct. Maxwell was often present for the abuse and in some cases participated directly, including in group sexualized massages. Victims were abused at Epstein’s homes in New York, Florida, and New Mexico, as well as at Maxwell’s London residence.

US Attorney Damian Williams said at the time that the sentence sent a strong message: “No one is above the law and it is never too late for justice.” He thanked the victims for their bravery in testifying against both Epstein and Maxwell.

The prosecution also alleged that Maxwell and Epstein built a network of underage victims, sometimes paying them to recruit others—expanding what prosecutors described as a system of serial abuse.

Despite Maxwell’s appeal, federal prosecutors have consistently rejected claims that the Epstein plea deal should apply to her, arguing that the evidence of her own role in the abuse was clear, deliberate, and prolonged.

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