Ghislaine Maxwell’s lawyer says right to fair trial has been ‘violated’ in new letter to court
Maxwell juror ‘corrupted’ the pre-trial selection process known as voir dire, attorneys claim
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Ghislaine Maxwell’s attorneys claim a juror who went public with his history of sexual abuse has “violated” her right to a fair trial.
Maxwell’s lawyer Christian Everdell argued the juror had “corrupted” the voir dire process by not truthfully answering questions posed during pre-trial selection, in a new letter to Judge Alison Nathan.
Last month, the socialite’s legal team called for a mistrial after the juror known as Scotty David revealed in an interview with The Independent that he had been sexually abused as a child.
He shared his own experience with other jury members during deliberations and claimed it had an impact on how they assessed the credibility of the four victims who testified against Maxwell.
In a separate interview with Reuters he said did not recall being asked about sexual abuse during pre-trial selection and that he “flew through” a survey given to all prospective jurors.
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Scotty David has since hired a lawyer and filed a formal request with the court for a copy of his pre-trial survey answers.
Maxwell’s team is arguing their motion for a retrial should remain sealed until the court makes its ruling.
They argue that making their motion publicly available would give Scotty David and his attorney access to “an improper preview of information he does not have and should never have”, Mr Everdell said.
“As set forth in the Motion, the defence believes that the existing record is clear and more than sufficient for the Court to grant Ms Maxwell a new trial without the need for further factual development.
“Should the Court agree with the defense, the Motion could be unsealed and publicly docketed at the same time the Court issues its ruling with no additional delay.”
Maxwell, 60, was found guilty of five counts related to the grooming and recruiting of teenage girls for her former boyfriend Jeffrey Epstein in late December. She is facing up to 65 years in prison.
Judge Nathan has set a sentencing date of 28 June as she waits to resolve defence claims that a new trial should be ordered.