Can Trump pardon Ghislaine Maxwell? When does Jeffrey Epstein co-conspirator get out?

USA Today

2 days ago

Officials want to talk to Gislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein's co-conspirator serving 20 years in a prison in Florida. Here's what to know.
Amid increased outrage over how the Trump administration is handling the case of disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, his co-conspirator is also back in the news.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said July 22 that Justice Department prosecutors asked to meet with Ghislaine Maxwell, an associate and former girlfriend of Epstein. She was convicted of conspiring to sexually abuse minors over a ten-year period and is currently serving 20 years in a federal prison in Tallahassee, Florida.
Hours later, the House Oversight Committee said it will subpoena Maxwell to testify before Congress "as expeditiously as possible," Axios reported. House Democrats attempted to vote to compel the release of the so-called "Epstein Files" but House Speaker Mike Johnson shut down House operations early to avoid "political games" even though he himself called for the files' release on July 15.
Trump struggling with fallout from Epstein case
President Donald Trump is facing unprecedented resistance from his base over the Epstein files and has lashed out at supporters and critics alike over what he called the "Jeffrey Epstein hoax."
Before their falling out, Trump was friends with Epstein — who died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex-trafficking charges — and rumors of his potential involvement in Epstein's grooming and sexual assault of minors have dogged him since. During his presidential campaign, Trump and his allies fired up his base by vowing to release Epstein's alleged client list.
After Attorney General Pam Bondi's Justice Department on July 17 released a memo stating that there was no client list, there was no evidence he was murdered while in custody, and there would be no more disclosures despite months of promises of new information, backlash was swift.
Many of Trump's previously loyal followers have accused his administration of covering up powerful names and called for a full release of the files. "No one believes there is not a client list," U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Georgia, a close Trump ally, posted on X July 8.
Trump opposed appointing a special prosecutor in the Epstein case, but in reaction to the backlash said on social media that he asked Bondi to "produce any and all pertinent grand jury testimony, subject to Court approval.' However, this could take months and would not include witness interviews, texts, photographs, videos or other evidence, said Democratic Rep. Daniel Goldman, a former prosecutor.
Meantime, Maxwell's family is fighting to have her released, saying "she did not receive a fair trial."
Trump, who has discouraged questions about the Epstein investigation, told reporters at the White House July 22 that the request to interview Maxwell 'sounds appropriate to do.'
Where is Ghislaine Maxwell being held?
Maxwell is being held at Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) Tallahassee, a low-security federal prison in north Florida.
When will Ghislaine Maxwell get out?
Maxwell, 63, was sentenced to 20 years. Barring an early release or pardon, Maxwell will be released on July 17, 2037.
She was also sentenced to five years of supervised release and ordered to pay a $750,000 fine.
What was Ghislaine Maxwell charged with?
Maxwell, a British socialite and daughter of publisher Robert Maxwell, was found guilty in December 2021 of conspiracy to entice minors to travel to engage in illegal sex acts, conspiracy to transport minors to participate in illegal sex acts, transporting a minor to participate in illegal sex acts, sex trafficking conspiracy, and sex trafficking of a minor.
From at least 1994 to around 2004, Maxwell helped Epstein "recruit, groom, and ultimately abuse victims" that both of them knew to be under the age of 18, with some as young as 14, prosecutors said.
She identified vulnerable girls, often from single-mother households in difficult financial circumstances, befriended them, remained present during some of their interactions with Epstein, caused some to cross state lines to Epstein's residences, and "normalized and facilitated sexual abuse," the Justice Department said.
Jeffrey Epstein case: Read the 2006 Florida grand jury transcripts
Can Trump pardon Ghislaine Maxwell?
She was charged in a federal court, so the president could commute her sentence or issue a full pardon.
Maxwell's family petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court in April to overturn her conviction, saying that Epstein had a non-prosecution and plea agreement with the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida in 2008 that protected him and any co-conspirators. The Justice Department, however, has argued the agreement didn't protect co-conspirators from prosecution in other jurisdictions and Maxwell was prosecuted on other charges in Manhattan.
Lower courts have rejected her attorney's arguments. Her conviction was upheld by a three-judge panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York in 2024.
According to journalist and Trump biographer Michael Wolff, Trump considered pardoning Maxwell during his first term but was concerned over what she might say.
Trump was a longtime friend of Epstein's, calling him a "terrific guy" and once saying, "It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side." Trump later said he hadn't talked to Epstein for 10 or 15 years.
Trump has sued the Wall Street Journal's publisher and its owner, Rupert Murdoch, after a recent bombshell article revealed that Trump sent Epstein a suggestive drawing with a message in which Trump reportedly alluded to their friendship and shared interests.
"We have certain things in common, Jeffrey," he reportedly wrote. The letter was in response to a request from Maxwell for Epstein's family and friends to contribute to a 50th birthday album.
According to TMZ, a senior Trump official said there had been no new discussions of a pardon for Maxwell, and there wouldn't be.
What happens to Ghislaine Maxwell when she gets released?
After she is released, unless she is pardoned, Maxwell will have all the usual sex offender restrictions and a few more.
She'll have to participate in a sex-offense evaluation, outpatient sex offender treatment and/or an outpatient mental health program, according to federal court documents detailing her supervised release.
She'll also have to submit to polygraph tests and probation officers will be able to search her property, computers, cloud storage, person and more, if they believe she is violating her conditions. Along with that, according to court documents:
Contributors: Maureen Groppe, Bart Jansen