Republican-led House committee postpones Ghislaine Maxwell deposition
Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., said in the letter obtained by NBC News that the committee would consider next steps after the Supreme Court in late September decides whether it will review Maxwell's conviction as a sex offender.
The committee subpoenaed Maxwell for a deposition last month and scheduled it for Aug. 11, citing the "immense public interest and scrutiny" surrounding her case and Epstein's.
In Friday's letter, Comer reiterated his desire to interview Maxwell, calling her testimony "vital to the Committee's efforts regarding Mr. Jeffrey Epstein, including the 2007 non-prosecution agreement and the circumstances surrounding Mr. Epstein's death."
"These investigative efforts may be used to inform potential legislation to improve federal efforts to combat sex trafficking and reform the use of non-prosecution agreements and/or plea agreements in sex-crime investigations," he wrote.
Maxwell's lawyers, David Oscar Markus and Melissa Madrigal, said in a statement they "appreciate the Committee's willingness to delay" the deposition and "will continue to engage with Congress in good faith to find a way for Ms. Maxwell to share her information without compromising her constitutional rights."
Maxwell's attorneys previously indicated that she planned to invoke her Fifth Amendment rights during the deposition unless the committee granted her immunity, telling Comer in a letter on Tuesday that absent the legal protection Maxwell's testimony "could compromise her constitutional rights, prejudice her legal claims, and potentially taint a future jury pool."
The Oversight Committee in its letter Friday said it remains "unwilling" to grant Maxwell congressional immunity, but will "continue to engage in good faith negotiations" regarding the particulars of the deposition.
Maxwell for months has been pleading with the Supreme Court to overturn her 2021 conviction on federal sex trafficking charges and subsequent 20-year prison sentence, arguing that her conviction violated a non-prosecution agreement prosecutors in Florida made with Epstein in 2007 that extended to several of his co-conspirators.
Federal prosecutors have argued that the 2007 agreement applies only in Florida, where it was reached, and not New York, where Maxwell's 2021 trial took place. The federal judge who oversaw that trial, Judge Alison Nathan, agreed. The Supreme Court indicated Wednesday it would consider whether to review Maxwell's case during a private conference on Sept. 29.
The Oversight Committee's subpoena for Maxwell was sent when the Trump administration was coming under increasing pressure to disclose more information related to Epstein, who died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges. His death by suicide has sparked conspiracy theories for years, some of which have been promoted by administration officials and Trump allies.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche met with Maxwell and her attorney last week for an interview that spanned nine hours across two days. The Justice Department official has made no public statements about what Maxwell said during their meeting.
On Friday, Maxwell was moved to a minimum-security federal prison camp in Texas that only houses women, unlike the Florida facility where she was previously held, which houses both men and women.
Trump, alongside Attorney General Pam Bondi, had pledged to release all files pertaining to the investigation, including a purported "client list" of people who benefited from Epstein's crimes. In a stunning about-face last month, the Justice Department released a memo outlining its decision to cease additional disclosures while dismissing several conspiracy theories related to the case.
The memo roiled Trump's base and proved to be a rare point of contention between the president and his supporters, particularly as additional news reports emerged highlighting Trump and Epstein's past relationship.
Hours after the Wall Street Journal reported last month that Trump wrote a letter to Epstein in 2003 with a drawing of a naked woman, Trump directed Bondi to seek the release of "pertinent" grand jury testimony from Epstein and Maxwell's cases.
A federal judge in Florida denied the request, while another in New York has sought additional information from the government before making a ruling.
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