Ghislaine ‘will take stand to save her life’
GHISLAINE MAXWELL is prepared to take the witness stand in an effort ‘to save her own life’, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.
The 59-year-old says she ‘will do whatever it takes’ to clear her name at her trial, which begins in New York tomorrow.
A source close to Ms Maxwell, who faces life in prison if convicted of child sex and trafficking charges, said: ‘Ghislaine is absolutely prepared to take the stand. She is prepared to do whatever it takes to save her own life.
‘She has never shied away from the truth and she is looking forward to her day in court.’ Defendants in high-profile sex abuse trials often decide not to give evidence and instead put pressure on prosecutors to prove their case.
But Ms Maxwell, whose designer wardrobe has been tailored to accommodate her severe weight loss while on remand, fears being scapegoated for the crimes of her ex-boyfriend, serial paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
She will make her case to the jury if her defence team think it necessary when the prosecution rests.
‘Ghislaine is not over-confident by any means but she knows she is telling the truth,’ said the source.
‘She has no fear about getting in the witness box.’
Four women will claim they were abused by Ms Maxwell, one when she was just 14. However, the judge has ruled that testimony from two of the women cannot be used in court because they were not underage at the time and in the place where the attacks are alleged to have occurred.
The source explained: ‘One is a British accuser who was 17 when the alleged activities took place but that is above the legal age in the UK.’
Another woman, Annie Farmer, was 16 when she says she was sexually assaulted in New Mexico, where the legal age of consent is 16.
‘This is a huge blow to the prosecution,’ the source said. ‘They cannot prove two of their witnesses were underage so the judge will instruct the jury that their testimony cannot be used to convict Ghislaine.’
Ms Maxwell has pleaded not guilty to all charges and has told The Mail on Sunday: ‘I am innocent.’