Ghislaine Maxwell moved to prison camp; Trump says no plea for pardon
By Andrew Goudsward and Luc Cohen
Ghislaine Maxwell has been transferred from a Florida prison to a lower-security facility in Texas to continue serving her 20-year sentence for helping the late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein sexually abuse underage girls, the U.S. Bureau of Prisons said on Friday.
Maxwell's move from FCI Tallahassee, a low-security prison, to the Federal Prison Camp in Bryan, Texas, comes a week after she met with Deputy U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche, who said he wanted to speak with her about anyone else who may have been involved in Epstein's crimes.
Maxwell's lawyer, David Markus, confirmed she was moved but said he had no other comment. Spokespeople for the U.S. Department of Justice did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Asked during a White House interview with Newsmax on Friday about the possibility of pardoning Maxwell, President Donald Trump said, "I'm allowed to do it, but nobody's asked me to do it." He added, "I know nothing about the case."
Asked about what was discussed between Maxwell and the deputy attorney general last week, Trump said he believed Blanche "just wants to make sure that innocent people aren't hurt" should documents in the Epstein probe be released.
The BOP classifies prison camps such as Bryan as minimum-security institutions, the lowest of five security levels in the federal system. Such facilities have limited or no perimeter fencing. Low-security facilities such as FCI Tallahassee have double-fenced perimeters and higher staff-to-inmate ratios than prison camps, according to the bureau.
Asked why Maxwell was transferred, BOP spokesperson Donald Murphy said he could not comment on the specifics of any incarcerated individual's prison assignment, but that the BOP determines where inmates are sent based on such factors as "the level of security and supervision the inmate requires."
Blanche's meeting with Maxwell came as Trump faces pressure from both his base of conservative supporters and congressional Democrats to release more information from the Justice Department's investigations of Maxwell and Epstein.
The department is seeking court approval to release transcripts of law enforcement officers' testimony before the grand juries that indicted Maxwell and Epstein. Such transcripts are usually kept secret. Two federal judges in Manhattan are weighing the government's requests.
Lawyers for Maxwell, Epstein, and their alleged victims are due to share their positions on the potential unsealing with the judges in filings on Tuesday.
Epstein died by suicide in a Manhattan jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. He had pleaded not guilty.
Neither Markus nor Blanche has provided detailed accounts of what they discussed. Markus has said Maxwell would welcome relief from Trump.
Maxwell was found guilty at a 2021 trial of recruiting and grooming girls for Epstein to abuse. She had pleaded not guilty and is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn her conviction.
© Thomson Reuters 2025.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Japan Today
15 hours ago
- Japan Today
Ghislaine Maxwell moved to prison camp; Trump says no plea for pardon
FILE PHOTO: Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell sits at the defense table as juror number 50 answers questions from Judge Alison Nathan about his answers on the juror questionnaire in a courtroom sketch in New York City, U.S., March 8, 2022. REUTERS/Jane Rosenberg/File Photo By Andrew Goudsward and Luc Cohen Ghislaine Maxwell has been transferred from a Florida prison to a lower-security facility in Texas to continue serving her 20-year sentence for helping the late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein sexually abuse underage girls, the U.S. Bureau of Prisons said on Friday. Maxwell's move from FCI Tallahassee, a low-security prison, to the Federal Prison Camp in Bryan, Texas, comes a week after she met with Deputy U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche, who said he wanted to speak with her about anyone else who may have been involved in Epstein's crimes. Maxwell's lawyer, David Markus, confirmed she was moved but said he had no other comment. Spokespeople for the U.S. Department of Justice did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Asked during a White House interview with Newsmax on Friday about the possibility of pardoning Maxwell, President Donald Trump said, "I'm allowed to do it, but nobody's asked me to do it." He added, "I know nothing about the case." Asked about what was discussed between Maxwell and the deputy attorney general last week, Trump said he believed Blanche "just wants to make sure that innocent people aren't hurt" should documents in the Epstein probe be released. The BOP classifies prison camps such as Bryan as minimum-security institutions, the lowest of five security levels in the federal system. Such facilities have limited or no perimeter fencing. Low-security facilities such as FCI Tallahassee have double-fenced perimeters and higher staff-to-inmate ratios than prison camps, according to the bureau. Asked why Maxwell was transferred, BOP spokesperson Donald Murphy said he could not comment on the specifics of any incarcerated individual's prison assignment, but that the BOP determines where inmates are sent based on such factors as "the level of security and supervision the inmate requires." Blanche's meeting with Maxwell came as Trump faces pressure from both his base of conservative supporters and congressional Democrats to release more information from the Justice Department's investigations of Maxwell and Epstein. The department is seeking court approval to release transcripts of law enforcement officers' testimony before the grand juries that indicted Maxwell and Epstein. Such transcripts are usually kept secret. Two federal judges in Manhattan are weighing the government's requests. Lawyers for Maxwell, Epstein, and their alleged victims are due to share their positions on the potential unsealing with the judges in filings on Tuesday. Epstein died by suicide in a Manhattan jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. He had pleaded not guilty. Neither Markus nor Blanche has provided detailed accounts of what they discussed. Markus has said Maxwell would welcome relief from Trump. Maxwell was found guilty at a 2021 trial of recruiting and grooming girls for Epstein to abuse. She had pleaded not guilty and is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn her conviction. © Thomson Reuters 2025.
Yomiuri Shimbun
16 hours ago
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Trump Orders Nuclear Submarines Moved after Russian ‘Provocative Statements'
WASHINGTON, Aug 1 (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday said he had ordered two nuclear submarines to be positioned in 'the appropriate regions' in response to remarks from former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev about the risk of war between the nuclear-armed adversaries. Security analysts called Trump's move a rhetorical escalation with Moscow, but not necessarily a military one, given that the United States already has nuclear-powered submarines that are deployed and capable of striking Russia. Medvedev on Thursday said Trump should remember that Moscow possessed Soviet-era nuclear strike capabilities of last resort, after Trump had told Medvedev to 'watch his words.' 'Based on the highly provocative statements of the Former President of Russia, Dmitry Medvedev … I have ordered two Nuclear Submarines to be positioned in the appropriate regions, just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that,' Trump said in Friday's social media post. He added: 'Words are very important, and can often lead to unintended consequences, I hope this will not be one of those instances.' Asked later by reporters why he ordered the submarine movement, Trump said: 'A threat was made by a former president of Russia, and we're going to protect our people.' The U.S. Navy and the Pentagon declined to comment about Trump's remarks or on whether submarines had been moved. It is extremely rare for the U.S. military to discuss the deployment and location of U.S. submarines given their sensitive mission in nuclear deterrence. Trump's comments came at a time of mounting tension between Washington and Moscow as Trump grows frustrated with what he sees as President Vladimir Putin's failure to negotiate an end to his more than three-year-old invasion of Ukraine. He did not specify what he meant by 'nuclear submarines.' U.S. military submarines are nuclear-powered and can be armed with nuclear-tipped missiles, although not all are. But any talk by a U.S. president about potential nuclear military capabilities raises concerns, the security experts said, noting that the United States has historically refrained from matching Russia's nuclear-saber rattling given the risks surrounding the world's most devastating weaponry. 'This is irresponsible and inadvisable,' said Daryl Kimball, executive director of the Arms Control Association advocacy group. 'No leader or deputy leader should be threatening nuclear war, let alone in a juvenile manner on social media.' Hans Kristensen of the Federation of American Scientists noted that U.S. nuclear submarines – part of the so-called nuclear triad with bombers and land-based missiles – were always positioned to launch nuclear-armed missiles at targets in Russia. 'The subs are always there all the time and don't need to be moved into position,' he said. 'He grants Medvedev a response to these crazy statements.' The United States has a total of 14 Ohio Class nuclear-powered submarines, each capable of carrying up to 24 Trident II D5 ballistic missiles that can deliver multiple thermonuclear warheads up to 4,600 miles. Between 8 and 10 Ohio Class submarines are deployed at any one time, according to the Nuclear Threat Initiative arms control group. 'COMMITMENT TRAP' Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, has emerged as one of the Kremlin's most outspoken anti-Western hawks since Russia sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine in 2022. Kremlin critics deride him as an irresponsible loose cannon, though some Western diplomats say his statements illustrate the thinking in senior Kremlin policy-making circles. U.S. officials had told Reuters prior to Trump's latest remarks that Medvedev's comments were not being taken as a serious threat, and it is unclear what drove Trump's latest announcement beyond the public clash between the two on social media. Trump and Medvedev have traded taunts in recent days after Trump on Tuesday said Russia had '10 days from today' to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine or be hit with tariffs. Kristensen said that Trump was creating a 'commitment trap' by fueling expectations that he could resort to nuclear weapons if tensions escalated further with Russia. Still, Evelyn Farkas, executive director of the McCain Institute and a former senior Pentagon official, played down the idea that this could lead to nuclear conflict. 'It's really signaling. It's not the beginning of some nuclear confrontation and nobody reads it as such. And I would imagine the Russians don't either,' she said. She added that Trump's actions, however, were unlikely to get Russia to change course in Ukraine. Moscow, which has set out its own terms for peace in Ukraine, has given no indication that it will comply with Trump's 10-day deadline of August 8. Putin said on Friday that Moscow hoped for more peace talks but that the momentum of the war was in its favor. He made no reference to the deadline. Trump, who in the past touted good relations with Putin, has expressed mounting frustration with the Russian leader, accusing him of 'bullshit' and describing Russia's latest attacks on Ukraine as disgusting.
Yomiuri Shimbun
16 hours ago
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Corporation for Public Broadcasting to Close after Funding Cut, in Blow to Local Media
Aug 1 (Reuters) – The Corporation for Public Broadcasting will shut down its operations after the loss of federal funding, the nonprofit said on Friday, in a blow to local TV and radio stations that have relied on its grants for nearly six decades. The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives passed a $9 billion funding cut to public media and foreign aid last month. This included the elimination of $1.1 billion earmarked for the CPB — which distributes funding to news outlets National Public Radio and Public Broadcasting Service — over the next two years. 'Despite the extraordinary efforts of millions of Americans who called, wrote, and petitioned Congress to preserve federal funding for CPB, we now face the difficult reality of closing our operations,' CPB President and CEO Patricia Harrison said. CPB informed its employees that the majority of its staff will be let go as of September end, except a small transition team that will remain through January 2026 to ensure closeout of operations. Created by the U.S. Congress in 1967, the CPB distributed more than $500 million annually to the PBS, NPR and more than 1,500 locally operated public radio and television stations. U.S. President Donald Trump and many of his fellow Republicans argue that financing public broadcasting is an unnecessary expense and that its news coverage suffers from an anti-right bias. The Trump administration has also filed a lawsuit against three board members of the CPB who have not left their posts despite Trump's attempt to fire them.
