Ghislaine retrial bid over ‘rogue’ juror
GHISLAINE Maxwell will launch her bid for a retrial this week.
Maxwell, 60, who faces up to 65 years in jail after being convicted on child sex trafficking charges, is set to attend a court hearing on Tuesday, where her lawyers will argue a ‘rogue’ juror jeopardised her chances of a fair trial.
Scotty David – Juror 50 in the trial – told reporters he helped ‘influence’ jurors with tales of sex abuse he suffered as a child.
Maxwell’s lawyers say they would have used their right to strike him from the jury during the selection process had he ‘honestly’ filled out a juror selection form, which specifically asked if potential jurors had been victims of child sex abuse.
Maxwell was convicted in December on five counts of trafficking after a three-week trial during which she was described as a ‘madam’ for sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Scotty David told some news outlets that he ‘flew through’ the questionnaire, but also claimed that he did not recall that question and believed he had answered all the questions honestly.
But last night a source close to Maxwell told the MoS:’ We believe we have a strong case for a retrial.’
Maxwell remains on suicide watch in New York’s Metropolitan Detention Center. She told the MoS she was being held in ‘appalling’ conditions.