Judge rejects Ghislaine Maxwell’s sex-trafficking appeal, calling claims ‘demonstrably meritless’

Published August 25, 2026 · Category: News

Overview

Maxwell sought to vacate Epstein-related conviction, alleging hidden trial evidence and juror’s abuse history

• Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email

A federal judge has rejected Ghislaine Maxwell’s legal effort to throw out her 2021 conviction on sex-trafficking charges and 20-year prison sentence, calling her claims “demonstrably meritless, and generally based on speculation, distortions, and/or outright falsehoods”.

Details

In a 67-page decision filed on Tuesday, US district judge Paul Engelmayer for New York’s southern district denied the former British socialite’s petition for relief, finding that Maxwell had failed to make a substantial showing that her constitutional rights were denied when she was convicted for her role in crimes linked to late sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.

Source

Originally published at www.theguardian.com.

Related Articles

• Man Utd's midfield spending is done - now for a left-back?
• Baleba completes £70m Man Utd move from Brighton
• Nevada wildfire contained to 27 percent as thousands still displaced