A jury in charge of the trial of Ghislaine Maxwell, the former girlfriend of disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, began deliberations on Monday and will consider whether or not the suspect was involved in the convicted sexual predator's crimes.
During the case, the suspect refused to testify in her own defense, citing that there was not enough evidence. It was shortly before 5:00 p.m. when the jury received the case after two prosecutors and defense delivered their closing arguments in the trial over a six-hour period.
Ghislaine Maxwell Deliberation
On that day, the jury deliberated for less than an hour and was later allowed to go home after authorities told them to go back on Tuesday at 9:00 a.m. The 59-year-old suspect appeared to be composed throughout the first three weeks of the trial while interacting with her lawyers and family members.
However, Maxwell suddenly turned emotional when Assistant U.S. Attorney Maurene Comey rebutted defense arguments and asserted that the British socialite believed her four trial accusers were simply beneath her. Comey said that in the suspect's eyes, they were "trash", as Maxwell could be seen shaking her head slightly, the Associated Press reported.
Prosecutor Alison Moe said that Maxwell and Epstein were a wealthy couple who took advantage of minors by preying on children who came from struggling families. She said that the way the suspects were targeting their victims showed how they were prioritizing vulnerable young girls.
She argued that it was no mere coincidence that Jane, Kate, Annie, and Carolyn, who were victims of the couple, were all from single-mother households. But in Maxwell's defense, her representatives attacked the motivations of the women who testified against the defendant. They argued that their client's association with Epstein was not criminal.
In a statement, attorney Laura Menninger told the jury of the trial that Maxwell was being tried for being close to the deceased financier when he was alive. The defendant also pleaded not guilty to six federal counts, including sex trafficking of minors, enticing a minor to travel to engage in illegal sex acts, transporting a minor with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, and three related counts of conspiracy, CNN reported.
Defense Witness
The only time that Maxwell spoke during her trial was when she stood up after conferring with her lawyer Bobbi Sternheim. The defendant said that there was no need for her to testify because, as she told the judge, the government has not proven its case beyond a reasonable doubt.
Earlier in the day, Eva Andersson-Dubin, a physician and former model, who is married to Glenn Dubin, a hedge fund billionaire, took the stand as a defense witness. She was the first witness called in the trial who is believed to have occupied the same social strata as Epstein and Maxwell.
However, despite Andersson-Dubin's proximity to the couple, she testified on Friday that her three children used to call Epstein "Uncle F," which was short for "Jeff." The witness's testimony offered a little contribution to the trial, Vanity Fair reported.
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