Epstein accomplice Maxwell opposes unsealing grand jury transcripts
"Whatever interest the public may have in Epstein, that interest cannot justify a broad intrusion into grand jury secrecy in a case where the defendant is alive, her legal options are viable, and her due process rights remain," the attorneys said.
Maxwell, 63, is serving a 20-year sentence after being convicted in 2021 of recruiting underage girls for Epstein, who died in a New York jail in 2019 while awaiting trial for sex trafficking.
President Donald Trump's supporters have been obsessed with the Epstein case for years and have been up in arms since the FBI and Justice Department said last month that the wealthy financier had committed suicide while in jail, did not blackmail any prominent figures, and did not keep a "client list."
In a bid to calm the furor, the Justice Department is seeking the release of the grand jury transcripts from the cases against Epstein and Maxwell.
US Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, President Donald Trump's former personal lawyer, also met recently with Maxwell but has not revealed what was discussed.
Trump was asked on Tuesday about the meeting and said it was "not an uncommon thing" and was "totally above board."
"I think (Blanche) probably wants to make sure that, you know, people that should not be involved, or aren't involved, are not hurt by something that would be very, very unfortunate, very unfair to a lot of people," he said.
Trump also told reporters that he was not aware of Maxwell's recent move from a prison in Florida to a minimum security facility in Texas until after it happened.
'Firestorm of false reporting'
Trump, 79, was once a close friend of Epstein, and The Wall Street Journal reported last month that the president's name was among hundreds found during a Justice Department review of the so-called "Epstein files," though there has not been evidence of wrongdoing.
Trump filed a $10 billion defamation suit against the newspaper after it reported that he had penned a sexually suggestive letter to Epstein for his 50th birthday in 2003.
Maxwell is the only former Epstein associate convicted in connection with his activities, which right-wing conspiracy theorists allege included trafficking young girls for VIPs and other elites.
In their filing with Judge Paul Engelmayer, Maxwell's lawyers said she was "convicted in a media firestorm of false reporting" and noted that she has appealed her conviction to the Supreme Court.
"The government seeks to unseal the grand jury transcripts, citing 'historical interest' without regard for how that release will affect Maxwell's privacy interests, her pending (Supreme Court) Petition, and any future litigation," they said.
Her lawyers also said Maxwell has not been been allowed to review the transcripts even though the government has not opposed her request to do so.
© 2025 AFP
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
France 24
34 minutes ago
- France 24
Mexican president backs threatened female football referee
Katia Itzel Garcia has said she was the target of insults and death threats following Monterrey's 2-3 defeat to Cincinnati in a match of the Leagues Cup, a North American competition, last Thursday. Her decision to award a goal to the US team that some claimed appeared to have been scored from an offside position sparked anger among Mexican supporters. "In Mexico, in a country where ten women die every day and where 91 women and men die every day, violence should not be normalized. Violence should not exist anywhere," the 32-year-old referee wrote on Instagram. She said netizens had threatened to kill her and her family. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum expressed her support for Garcia on Wednesday, calling her "extraordinary... she has to be three times better than a man to be recognized." Sheinbaum said the government would contact Garcia "to see if she needs help." In a message on Instagram, FIFA President Gianni Infantino said Monday he was "shocked and saddened by the threats made against referee Katia Itzel." The Mexican Football Federation also condemned "acts of intimidation and threats" directed at the referee. Mexico, the United States and Canada will host the next FIFA World Cup in 2026. According to the UN, ten femicides are reported in Mexico on average each day.
France 24
2 hours ago
- France 24
Brazil seeks WTO relief against Trump tariffs
The 50-percent tariff on several Brazilian goods went into force Wednesday over what Trump has termed a "witch hunt" against his far-right ally Jair Bolsonaro, the former president on trial for plotting a coup. Sources in the government of incumbent President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva told AFP Brasilia had filed a request for consultations with the US mission to the WTO -- the first formal step in the trade body's dispute settlement process. Trump's latest tariff salvo raised duties on Brazil from 10 percent to 50 percent for key exports including coffee, beef and sugar. Exempt were nearly 700 other exports including civilian planes, orange juice and pulp, Brazil nuts, and some iron, steel and aluminum products. Brazil's Vice President Geraldo Alckmin previously told journalists the new tariff would apply to about 36 percent of the country's exports to the United States, equal to trade of about $14.5 billion last year. Trump's Brazil tariff is among the highest imposed on US trading partners and was framed in openly political terms, sweeping aside centuries-old trade ties and a surplus Brasilia put at $284 million last year. 'Judge and jury' In an executive order last week, the Trump administration lashed out at Brazilian officials for "unjustified criminal charges" against Bolsonaro, on trial for allegedly plotting to wrest back power after losing the 2022 presidential election to Lula. Trump's order also charged that the Lula government's recent policies and actions threatened the US economy, national security, and foreign policy. US tensions with Brazil are not likely to dissipate soon, with a Brazilian judge on Monday placing Bolsonaro under house arrest pending the outcome of his trial for contravening a social media ban. The judge, Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, presides over Bolsonaro's trial and was himself hit with financial sanctions this week as Washington claimed he had "taken it upon himself to be judge and jury in an unlawful witch hunt." Moraes has clashed repeatedly with the far-right in Brazil, and with tech titan Elon Musk over the spread of online misinformation. Bolsonaro risks decades in prison if found guilty on the coup charges that had allegedly also included discussions to assassinate Lula and other senior officials. The tariff hike on Brazilian goods came a day before a separate wave of higher duties on dozens of economies ranging from the European Union to Taiwan. Analysts at Pantheon Macroeconomics estimate the pending increases would boost the average effective tariff rate for US imports to nearly 20 percent. This marks the highest level since at least the 1930s, according to the Budget Lab at Yale University. burs-mlr/bjt © 2025 AFP
Euronews
3 hours ago
- Euronews
Trump cranks up India tariffs to 50% in an attempt to pressure Russia
President Donald Trump on Wednesday hit India with an extra 25% tariff over its Russian oil deals, bringing total US tariffs on the ally to a steep 50%. Currently, Brazil is the only other country to face a 50% import tax on all its products across the board. This does not include the steel, aluminium and copper tariffs, also at 50%, levied on every single country in the world apart from the UK. The tariffs would go into effect 21 days after the signing of the order, meaning that both India and Russia could still have time to negotiate with the administration on a more favourable deal. Trump's moves could scramble the economic trajectory of India, a major Asian economy, which until recently was seen as an alternative to China by US companies looking to relocate their manufacturing. China, which also buys oil from Russia, is currently experiencing a stay on the full tariff measure — currently all Chinese products face a 30% levy — as it negotiates more favourable tariff measures with the US administration. Trump had previewed for reporters on Tuesday that the tariffs would be coming, saying the US had a meeting with Russia on Wednesday as the Trump administration tries to end Moscow's all-out war in Ukraine. 'We're going to see what happens," Trump said about his tariff plans. "We'll make that determination at that time.' The Indian government on Wednesday called the additional tariffs 'unfortunate". 'We reiterate that these actions are unfair, unjustified and unreasonable,' Foreign Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a statement, adding that India would take all actions necessary to protect its interests. Jaiswal said India has already made its stance clear that the country's imports were based on market factors and were part of an overall objective of ensuring energy security for its 1.4 billion people. Ajay Srivastava, a former Indian trade official, said the latest tariff places the country among the most heavily taxed US trading partners and far above rivals such as China, Vietnam and Bangladesh. India is widely regarded as an ally, with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi having visited the US in February of this year. 'The tariffs are expected to make Indian goods far costlier with the potential to cut exports by around 40%-50% to the US,' he said. Srivastava said Trump's decision was 'hypocritical' because China bought more Russian oil than India did last year. 'Washington avoids targeting Beijing because of China's leverage over critical minerals which are vital for US defence and technology,' he said. Coming to terms with the deficit In 2024, the US ran a $45.8 billion or €52.5 billion trade deficit in goods with India, meaning America imported more from India than it exported, according to the US Census Bureau. US consumers and businesses buy pharmaceutical drugs, precious stones, textiles and apparel from India, among other products. India has not supported the Ukraine-related sanctions by the US and its allies on Moscow even as its leaders maintain that they want peace. Ostensibly, the steep tariff is a means to deprive the Kremlin of revenue to fund its ongoing war in Ukraine, forcing Trump's goal of bringing the Russian government to the negotiating table and possibly agreeing to a ceasefire followed by long-term peace in Ukraine. But oil prices have fallen, with a barrel trading on Wednesday morning at $65.84 or €75.53, up by 1% on the day new tariffs were announced.
