Ghislaine Maxwell's Prison Conditions Come Under Scrutiny
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
Ghislaine Maxwell's transfer to a minimum security prison "reeks of a coordinated protection racket run at taxpayer expense to shield the president," a senator said.
Maxwell was jailed for 20 years in 2022 for various crimes related to sex trafficking over her role in grooming girls for Jeffrey Epstein to abuse.
Questions have been asked after she was moved to a minimum security prison in Texas shortly after meetings with the Deputy U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche over two days in July.
Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, former Rhode Island attorney general, asked for all documents relating to the transfer as he raised concerns about Maxwell's potential "access to the community" from a minimum security facility despite being a convicted sex offender.
Whitehouse is a prominent Democrat who has leveled a range of accusations at President Donald Trump before, including in May when he told MSNBC that the president's tariff policies opened the door to potential corruption.
The Bureau of Prisons told Newsweek in an email: "The Bureau of Prisons responds directly to Members of Congress and their staff. Out of respect and deference to Members, we do not comment on our Congressional briefings or share our Congressional correspondence with the media.
"Additionally, for privacy, safety, and security reasons, we do not discuss the conditions of confinement for any incarcerated individual."
Newsweek contacted the Bureau of Prisons, Department of Justice (DOJ) and White House as well as Maxwell's lawyer for comment.
Ghislaine Maxwell attends the ETM 2014 Children's Benefit Gala at Capitale, in New York City, on May 6, 2014. President Donald Trump takes questions from reporters at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington on...
Ghislaine Maxwell attends the ETM 2014 Children's Benefit Gala at Capitale, in New York City, on May 6, 2014. President Donald Trump takes questions from reporters at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington on August 5, 2025. More
Paul Zimmerman/WireImage/Why It Matters
Trump has been under pressure from his own base over a review he ordered into the Epstein files, with many MAGA supporters feeling they were led to believe bombshell new information was coming, including an "Epstein client list."
The backlash began after a DOJ and FBI memo in July indicated no new charges against Epstein's associates and said there was no evidence of Epstein blackmailing rich and powerful men, as alleged by victims. It added: "This systematic review revealed no incriminating 'client list.'"
Trump then faced greater scrutiny over his own friendship with Epstein, though Trump said in 2019: "I had a falling out with him. I haven't spoken to him in 15 years. I was not a fan of his, that I can tell you."
What To Know
Polling by YouGov between August 9-11 also showed 47 percent of Americans believe Maxwell should not have been moved to a minimum security prison compared to 14 percent who backed the transfer and 38 percent who said they were not sure.
It comes as Allison Gill, host of the Mueller She Wrote podcast, reported she had been given some of Maxwell's prison information by an anonymous source.
Gill said Maxwell was eligible to leave the prison for work which, if true, echoed Epstein being "allowed to leave prison as part of the sweetheart deal he got from Alex Acosta," who as then U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida brokered Epstein's heavily criticized plea deal in 2008.
Maxwell's lawyer, David Oscar Markus, replied to the suggestion on X: "Another day, another false rumor about Ghislaine meant to unnecessarily inflame folks."
Another day, another false rumor about Ghislaine meant to unnecessarily inflame folks. https://t.co/Bm44i1wiWX — David Oscar Markus (@domarkus) August 12, 2025
Whitehouse, a Senate Judiciary Committee member, told Newsweek: "Ghislaine Maxwell's quiet transfer to a 'Club Fed' prison does not comport with the seriousness of the sex crimes she was found guilty of. It just so happens that the transfer was facilitated one week after Maxwell's highly unusual meeting with the deputy attorney general.
"This whole thing reeks of a coordinated protection racket run at taxpayer expense to shield the president from the fallout from his years-long friendship with a notorious sex trafficker. The American people deserve real answers on this sordid saga."
Trump was recently asked at a press conference about the transfer and said: "I didn't know about it at all. I read about it just like you did. It's not a very uncommon thing."
What People Are Saying
Whitehouse wrote to Federal Bureau of Prisons Director William K. Marshall asking for a plethora of documents, including documents related to: "Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, any member of the Office of the Deputy Attorney General, or any other Department of Justice official not employed by the Bureau of Prisons."
In his letter, published on his website, he wrote: "Roughly one week after Mr. Blanche's meetings, Ms. Maxwell was suddenly transferred from a low-security facility in Tallahassee, Florida, to a minimum-security prison camp in Bryan, Texas.
"Ms. Maxwell is serving a 20-year sentence for participation in a scheme with Epstein to traffic and sexually exploit minors.
"By default, Bureau policy requires individuals like Ms. Maxwell, whose criminal history involves sex offenses, to be placed, at a minimum, at low-security facilities because they 'are not appropriate for placement at an institution which would permit inmate access to the community (i.e., MINIMUM security).'
"Ordinarily, Bureau officials in Tallahassee would need to request waiver of this policy as part of their request to transfer Ms. Maxwell to a minimum-security facility, subject to approval by Bureau officials in Grand Prairie, Texas."
Gill reported that Maxwell was granted a sex-offender waiver allowing her to move to a minimum security prison.
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