GHISLAINE’S JAIL GRIPES

Socialite claims she is ‘spied on 24 hours a day’ in isolated cell

GHISLAINE Maxwell has complained about her conditions in a New York prison as she awaits trial on child sex charges.

The alleged ‘madam’ for Jeffrey Epstein is being woken up every few hours at night and has to wear special clothing because she has been deemed a suicide risk, her lawyers said.

The British socialite claims she is spied on 24 hours a day by prison guards and is kept apart from other inmates, despite wanting to join them.

Bemoaning her ‘uniquely onerous conditions’, her attorneys said in a court filing: ‘Ms Maxwell has been treated less favourably than a typical pretrial detainee.’

Maxwell, who is accused of helping Epstein run his sex trafficking operation, is being held at the notorious Metropolitan Detention Centre (MDC) in Brooklyn.

A former warden at the facility has called it arguably the most ‘troubled’ in the entire federal prison system. Maxwell, 58, faces six federal charges, and up to 35 years behind bars if convicted. She has pleaded not guilty on all counts and will remain in jail until her trial next July.

Her lawyer Christian Everdell said that without changes to her confinement, Maxwell cannot ‘meaningfully’ participate in her defence. Mr Everdell claims her conditions are a ‘reaction’ to the fact that Epstein hanged himself in his cell last August while awaiting trial.

He writes: ‘As a result of what occurred with Mr Epstein, Ms Maxwell is being treated worse than other similarly situated pretrial detainees, which significantly impacts her ability to prepare a defence and be ready for trial on the schedule set by the court.

‘Since arriving at the MDC over a month ago... Ms Maxwell has been held under uniquely onerous conditions.

‘She continues to be surveilled 24 hours a day by security cameras and by multiple prison guards, many of whom do not appear to be regular MDC personnel. These prison guards constantly observe Ms Maxwell and take notes on her every activity, including her phone conversations with defence counsel.

‘Until recently, Ms Maxwell was subjected to suicide watch protocols, including being woken up every few hours during the night and being forced to wear special clothing, despite the fact that she, unlike Mr Epstein, has never been suicidal and was never diagnosed as exhibiting risk factors for suicide.’

Mr Everdell said Maxwell’s cell is searched ‘multiple times a day’ and that she has been subjected to ‘numerous body scans’ by guards. He complained that Maxwell has been in isolation for the entire time she has been at the MDC, longer than the 14-day quarantine period or the coronavirus.

Her lawyers have also previously complained about her treatment in the MDC, claiming the lights are on in her cell 24 hours a day.

They said in court filings she has not been allowed to shower for 72 hours and has had her legal materials taken away from her. However, a report in the New York

Daily News last month claimed other inmates had to clean and polish the floor before she was brought in. Female prisoners said Maxwell had a cell on an otherwise empty floor and has security outside her cell 24 hours a day. She is also being given three hours of exercise time a day compared to two hours for other inmates.

As the daughter of disgraced newspaper tycoon Robert Maxwell, Maxwell has spent her life living in luxury.

She was arrested at an €890,000 mansion in New Hampshire she brought using cash through a private company to keep her identity private. In other court filings Maxwell’s lawyers demanded the identities of the three women who are accusing her in the criminal indictment.

Maxwell is facing a separate defamation case brought by Virginia Roberts, the Epstein victim who says she was forced to have sex with Prince Andrew, allegations the duke denies.

In a filing on this matter, Maxwell’s lawyers claimed they have ‘critical new information’ that has an impact on these proceedings and the criminal case.

They do not reveal what the information is but are requesting a stay on the unsealing of any more documents including a deposition by Maxwell about her sex life.

‘Numerous body scans’

Spent her life living in luxury