London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Jul 30, 2025

Whether One Likes Prince Andrew or Not, He's Innocent Until Proven Guilty, Royal Expert Says

Whether One Likes Prince Andrew or Not, He's Innocent Until Proven Guilty, Royal Expert Says

With Ghislaine Maxwell's trial having wrapped up, the spotlight has fallen on Prince Andrew, the Duke of York, who used to maintain ties both with Maxwell and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. How could alleged Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre's civil action against Prince Andrew pan out for the embattled British royal?

The next stage of a civil action brought by Virginia Giuffre (nee Roberts) against Prince Andrew is expected to take place in a federal court in New York on 4 January 2022.

Giuffre on 9 August filed a lawsuit alleging that the Duke of York sexually abused her, then a 17-year old girl, when she was brought by Maxwell and Epstein to London, New York, and the US Virgin Islands. Andrew's legal team is trying to convince US District Judge Lewis Kaplan to throw the case out.

Initially, they insisted that Giuffre was suing Andrew "to achieve another payday at his expense and at the expense of those closest to him". Last week, the prince's lawyers alleged that the lawsuit should be thrown out because Andrew's accuser no longer lives in the US. Next Tuesday, Judge Kaplan is due to hear oral arguments on whether to dismiss the lawsuit.

According to the Associated Press, Maxwell's verdict may pose a challenge to the prince, given an apparent overlap of evidence in his and Maxwell's cases. "You have a criminal court finding now in the US supporting that there was trafficking going on", Chris Scott of Slateford, a London law firm, told the newspaper. "In a sense, it becomes much harder for people to run the angle that this is all made up when you do have that credibility building up".

Furthermore, unlike a criminal case which requires "proof beyond a reasonable doubt", civil defendants "can be ordered to pay financial damages if they are found responsible based on a preponderance of the evidence", the outlet explains.

Mace-Archer-Mills emphasises that no guilt can be presumed until the charge has been proved. He suggests that the inclusion of a witness named "Kate" in Maxwell's trial helped Prince Andrew by illustrating that "the prosecution was unable to substantiate the fact that Maxwell provided a young woman for not only Epstein himself, but his friends".

"Without being able to prove that Maxwell provided young women for Epstein's friends, no link could be, or was made, that Maxwell procured young women for any of Epstein's friends which would include Prince Andrew", the royal expert says.


Giuffre-Epstein Settlement May Shield Prince Andrew


Mace-Archer-Mills has also drawn attention to the fact that US District Judges Lewis Kaplan and Loretta Preska on 29 December ordered that a 2009 settlement agreement between Epstein and Virginia Giuffre be released on or around 3 January.

According to Reuters, the prince's attorney, Andrew Brettler, insists that the agreement shields the Duke of York from her lawsuit because it covered "royalty" and was meant to cover all future claims she made about the financier's alleged sex trafficking scheme. For its part, Giuffre's lawyers claim that Andrew's attempt to use the 2009 release shows "how desperate he is to dodge and duck the facts of what he did".

If the sealed papers from the settlement do in fact contain this provision, it would release Prince Andrew from any and all legal jeopardy, according to Mace-Archer-Mills.


Andrew Suffers Huge Reputational Damage


Accusations against the prince started to emerge in March 2011, when the Daily Mail published a photo featuring Andrew with his hand around Virginia's waist.

In 2014, Giuffre made a court filing in Florida claiming that Epstein had offered her to his influential peers, including the Duke of York. However, in April 2015 a federal judge ruled that Giuffre could not join the federal Crime Victims' Rights Act lawsuit, and her affidavit was removed from the case, according to the Miami Herald. In 2021, US prosecutors decided not to bring charges in connection with Virginia Giuffre during the Maxwell trial either.

he allegations coupled with Andrew's ties to Epstein and an ill-fated November 2019 interview have inflicted huge reputational damage on him. The Duke of York was forced to retire from his royal duties, while in February 2020 his name was removed from "Pitch at the Palace", a startup-mentoring platform founded by him in 2014.

"Despite being a serving member of Her Majesty's Armed Forces, who saw combat in the Falklands, creating a positive scheme for young people with 'Pitch at the Palace', and all of his other positive attributes, be they charitable or philanthropic, all trace of public confidence and trust has been eroded, supported by the actions of the palace which have helped to cement the public view that he was guilty, despite there being no evidence, or guilty verdict from a trial against him", the royal expert says.

The fact that the public chose to convict and banish Prince Andrew without the facts and without trial speaks volumes about their attitude to the truth, according to the founder of the monarchist society.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Former Judge Charged After Drunk Driving Crash Kills Comedian in Brazil
Jeff Bezos hasn’t paid a dollar in taxes for decades. He makes billions and pays $0 in taxes, LEGALLY
China Increases Use of Exit Bans Amid Rising U.S. Tensions
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Procter & Gamble to Raise U.S. Prices to Offset One‑Billion‑Dollar Tariff Cost
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
Botswana Seeks Controlling Stake in De Beers as Anglo American Prepares Exit
Trump Administration Proposes Repeal of Obama‑Era Endangerment Finding, Dismantling Regulatory Basis for CO₂ Emissions Limits
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
A family has been arrested in the UK for displaying the British flag
Mel Gibson refuses to work with Robert De Niro, saying, "Keep that woke clown away from me."
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
The British propaganda channel BBC News lies again.
Deputy attorney general's second day of meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell has concluded
Controversial March in Switzerland Features Men Dressed in Nazi Uniforms
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
×