Ghislaine Maxwell’s lawyers request retrial

Defense attorneys asked for a mistrial in Ghislaine Maxwell’s case on Thursday after jurors revealed they discussed their own memories of sexual abuse during deliberation. Maxwell was convicted on five federal counts on Dec. 29, including conspiracy and sex trafficking of the alleged victims of the late financier Jeffrey Epstein. Scotty David, a juror identified only by his first and middle name, told media he discussed his experience of sexual abuse when jurors questioned witnesses’ memories. He admitted he was not the only juror to share a personal abuse story.

Could this overturn the verdict? U.S. District Judge Alison Nathan said the defense must file for a new trial by Jan. 19, and the prosecution has until Feb. 2 to respond. The judge must decide whether the jurors lied about being sexual abuse victims in pre-trial questioning and whether their testimony harmed the ability of the jury to deliver an impartial verdict. If it is ruled as an unfair trial, the verdict could be vacated and the case retried.

Dig Deeper: Read Daniel James Devine’s report in The Sift on the Maxwell trial.