London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Aug 22, 2026

Jury in Ghislaine Maxwell's sex abuse trial seeks details of accuser's testimony

Jury in Ghislaine Maxwell's sex abuse trial seeks details of accuser's testimony

The jury in Ghislaine Maxwell's sex abuse trial on Tuesday asked for more details about the testimony of Carolyn, the first name of a woman who said the British socialite set her up for sexual abuse by Jeffrey Epstein when she was 14 years old.

Maxwell, 59, is accused of recruiting and grooming four teenage girls for Epstein to abuse between 1994 and 2004. She has pleaded not guilty to six counts of sex trafficking and other crimes.

The jury in federal court in Manhattan began deliberations late Monday afternoon after three weeks of emotional testimony from the four accusers.

Carolyn's case underlies the sex trafficking charge against Maxwell, since she said Maxwell sometimes handed her cash after she gave Epstein erotic massages and sent her gifts from out of state. The sex trafficking charge carries a maximum prison sentence of 40 years, the heaviest of the six counts.

Federal law bars recruiting or transporting anyone under 18 to participate in a "commercial sex act." The trafficking charge does not require the child to be transported across state lines.

In a note to U.S. District Judge Alison Nathan on Tuesday afternoon, jurors asked for a portion of a deposition that Carolyn gave to the FBI. Maxwell defense attorney Jeffrey Pagliuca questioned Carolyn about the deposition on cross-examination, asking why her testimony in some instances differed from what she had earlier told law enforcement.

The deposition itself was never entered into evidence as part of the trial, so Nathan said she could not provide them with it. She said they can review the transcript of Carolyn's testimony about the deposition.

Maxwell's attorneys have focused their defense largely on undermining the credibility of the accusers, arguing that their memories have faded over time and they are motivated by money to cooperate with prosecutors. All four women received million-dollar payouts from a victims' compensation fund run by Epstein's estate.

"They all changed their stories when the Epstein victims' compensation fund was opened up," Maxwell attorney Laura Menninger told the jury during her closing argument on Monday. "That should make you hesitate."

Maxwell's attorneys have also argued that she is being scapegoated for Epstein's crimes because the globetrotting investor - Maxwell's former boyfriend and employer - killed himself in a Manhattan jail cell in 2019 at the age of 66 while awaiting trial on sex abuse charges.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Lara Pomerantz points at Ghislaine Maxwell during opening statements at the start of her trial on charges of sex trafficking, in a courtroom sketch in New York City, U.S., November 29, 2021.


A photo of Ghislaine Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein is shown as FBI analyst Kimberly Meder testifies during the trial of Maxwell, the Jeffrey Epstein associate accused of sex trafficking, in a courtroom sketch in New York City, U.S., December 7, 2021.


Ghislaine Maxwell speaks with her attorneys as she decides whether or not to testify during the trial of Maxwell, the Jeffrey Epstein associate accused of sex trafficking, in a courtroom sketch in New York City, U.S., December 17, 2021.


Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell attends her trial for sex trafficking next to defense attorney Christian Everdell in a courtroom sketch in New York City, U.S., December 20, 2021.


Maurene Comey (not seen) points at Ghislaine Maxwell as she delivers the rebuttal argument for the government during the trial of Maxwell, the Jeffrey Epstein associate accused of sex trafficking, in a courtroom sketch in New York City, U.S., December 20, 2021.


Defense attorney Christian Everdell arrives at the court as jury deliberations continue in the trial of Ghislaine Maxwell, the Jeffrey Epstein associate accused of sex trafficking, in New York City, U.S., December 21, 2021


Defense attorney Jeffrey S. Pagliuca arrives at the court as jury deliberations continue in the trial of Ghislaine Maxwell, the Jeffrey Epstein associate accused of sex trafficking, in New York City, U.S., December 21, 2021


Defense attorney Laura A. Menninger arrives at the court as jury deliberations continue in the trial of Ghislaine Maxwell, the Jeffrey Epstein associate accused of sex trafficking, in New York City, U.S., December 21, 2021


Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell embraces her defense attorney Bobbi Sternheim as she enters the courtroom to hear a note from the jury in a courtroom sketch in New York City, U.S., December 21, 2021.


Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell embraces her defense attorney Bobbi Sternheim as she enters the courtroom to hear a note from the jury in a courtroom sketch in New York City, U.S., December 21, 2021.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
The rise and fall of Hui Ka Yan, China’s richest man
Woke: Britain Considers Plain Packaging for Cigars as Specialist Shops Warn of Industry Collapse
Britain's Public-Service Productivity Remains Below 2019 as £80 Billion Output Gap Fuels WFH Debate
Mandelson Epstein Case in Jeopardy as U.S. Files Stay Out of Reach
Prince Harry and Six Others Ordered to Pay £9.5 Million After High Court Defeat
Bank of England Holds Interest Rate at 3.75% as Inflation and Energy Risks Persist
UK AI Security Tests Find Autonomous Agent Attempting Malicious Code Injection
UK Economy Grows 0.4% in Second Quarter Amid Global Pressures
UK Joins European Allies in Condemning Israeli Settlement Plans in West Bank E1 Area
Multiple People Killed in A66 Collision Near Middlesbrough Involving Police Vehicle
UK Government Holds First National Day for Victims and Survivors of Terrorism
UK Met Office Warns of Severe Autumn Storms as Strong El Niño Follows Historic Drought
Petrol Bombs Set Luxury Cars Alight Outside Birmingham Wedding as Police Hunt Three Men
Bitcoin Surges Toward $80,000 as Short Squeeze and ETF Inflows Ignite Crypto Rally
Prince Harry and Co-Claimants Ordered to Pay £9.5 Million Toward Daily Mail Publisher’s Legal Costs
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Reportedly Plan Return to Britain With Their Children
UK Court Ruling Threatens Deportation Plans for Potential Trafficking Victims to Albania
Kemi Badenoch Presses UK Government for Decisions on Rosebank and Jackdaw Oil Fields
UK Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Calls for Ban on Goods from Occupied West Bank
Andy Burnham Government to Place Civil Servants Directly in English Mayoral Offices
Met Office Warns Major El Niño Could Bring Stormier, Wetter Autumn to UK
UK Economy Gains Unexpected Momentum Ahead of Andy Burnham Government’s First Budget
Twenty-Nine US States Take Meta to Trial Over Alleged Child Addiction on Instagram and Facebook
Former Scottish National Party Executive Peter Murrell Jailed for Five Years Over £400,000 Embezzlement
Moderna and Merck's Personalized Cancer Vaccine Succeeds in Historic Late-Stage Melanoma Trial
Prince Harry and Meghan to Move Back to Britain With Their Children
England and Wales Have Fewer Than 1,800 Prison Places Left for Men
Royal Navy to Accelerate DragonFire Laser Deployment Against Growing Drone Threat
Northern Ireland Approves Five Hundred Million Pound Belfast Harbour Expansion
Great British Railways Takes Full Control of Avanti West Coast as Rail Nationalisation Reaches Final Stage
UK AI Safety Institute Calls for Mandatory Security Audits of Advanced AI Models
Scotland Secures Three Billion Pounds for Floating Offshore Wind Hub in Aberdeen
Government Overrides Local Councils to Approve Green Belt Housing Across Southern England
UK and EU Move Toward Mutual Recognition of Food Standards to Ease Cross-Channel Trade
Government Plans Multibillion-Pound Private Healthcare Expansion to Cut NHS Surgical Backlogs
Bank of England Signals Faster Rate Cuts as Inflation Falls Below the Two Percent Target
Suspected People Smuggler Arrested After Investigation Identified Him
Children's Doctors Warn That Vaping Can Lead Young People to Smoking
Hundreds of Thousands of Students Receive GCSE and Vocational Results Across England, Wales and Northern Ireland
Here Is What Can Never Happen in Your Country: Taiwan Is Giving Money to All Its People Because It Collected Too Much Tax
UK Inflation Rises to 2.9% as Energy Bills Jump
UK Issues New Conduct Guide for Asylum Seekers on Consent and Respect
Moderna Shares Surge After Positive Personalized Skin Cancer Trial Results
UK Markets Watch US National Debt Surpass Forty Trillion Dollars
UK Broadcasters Urge Government to Invest in Digital Participation and Broadband
CVC Capital Partners and Standard Life Launch Two Billion Pound Pension Risk Transfer Venture
UK Private Sector Productivity Growth Accelerates in Second Quarter
UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband Condemns Israeli E1 Settlement Tender
UK Watchdog Investigates Trainline, Virgin Atlantic and RED Driving School Over Hidden Fees
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Plan Move to Private Home Outside London
×