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Epstein Chronicles Host (1:16)
What's up everyone? And welcome back to the Epstein Chronicles. In this episode, we're going to keep it rolling with our exploration of the underbelly of of the Jeffrey Epstein criminal enterprise by taking a look at Ghislaine Maxwell and her attempt to get bail. So let's dive in. Preliminary Statement Ghislaine Maxwell respectfully submits this memorandum in opposition to the government's July 2, 2020 memorandum in support of detention. It's difficult to recall a recent case that has garnered more public attention than than the government's prosecution of Jeffrey Epstein. In July of 2019, Epstein was indicted for offenses relating to sexual misconduct amid overwhelming media attention focused on the nature of the charges and Epstein's wealth and lifestyle. On August 10, 2019, Epstein died in federal custody and the media focus quickly shifted to our client wrongly trying to substitute her for Epstein even though she had no contact with Epstein for more than a decade, had never been charged with a crime or been found liable in any civil litigation, and has always denied any allegation of claim misconduct. Many of these stories and online posts were threatening and harassing to our client and those close to her, but sometimes the simplest point is the most critical one. Ghislaine Maxwell is not Jeffrey Epstein. She was not named in the government's indictment of Epstein in 2019, despite the fact the government has been investigating this case for years. Instead, the current indictment is based on allegations of conduct that allegedly occurred roughly 25 years ago. Ms. Maxwell vigorously denies the charges, intends to fight them, and is entitled to the presumption of innocence. Far from hiding, she has lived in the United States since 1991 and has litigated civil cases arising from her supposed ties to Epstein and has not left the country even once. Epstein was arrested years ago, even though she was aware of the pending and highly publicized criminal investigation. She should be treated like any other defendant who comes before the court, including as to bail. Under the Bail Reform act case law in this circuit and other circuits, as well as decisions of this court, Ms. Maxwell should be released on bond subject to the strict conditions proposed below. Ms. Maxwell, 58, is a naturalized U.S. citizen who has resided in the United States since 1991. She is also a citizen of France, where she was born, and of the United Kingdom, where she was educated and spent her childhood and formative years. Ms. Maxwell graduated from Oxford University. She moved to the United States in 1991 and has lived in this country ever since. Ms. Maxwell has maintained extremely close relationships with her six siblings and her nephews and nieces. Oh, you mean the nephew that Hillary Clinton got a job at the State Department? That nephew? They all stood by her in the aftermath of the July 2019 indictment of Epstein and continue to stand by her. Now. She especially is close to two of her sisters and their children, all of whom reside in the United States. Ms. Maxwell also has numerous friends in the United States who themselves have children, and she is a godmother to many of them. Imagine being a parent and having Ghislaine Maxwell as the godmother to your kid. I know, I know. Nobody had any idea what she was up to. Ms. Maxwell's family and friends have remained committed to her because they do not believe the allegations against her, which do not match the person that they have known for decades. The Government's Position the government has the burden of persuasion in showing that detention is warranted and that there is no condition or combination of conditions that will secure a defendant's appearance in court. In seeking to carry this burden, the government relies on the Presumption of Detention, U.S. code 18, Section 3142E, 3 and E, and argues that Ms. Maxwell poses a flight risk because she supposedly lacks ties to the United States, is a citizen of the United Kingdom and France, as well as a citizen of the United States, and has passports for each country, has traveled Internationally in the past and has financial means. And echoing recent media stories, the government speculates that Ms. Maxwell was hiding from law enforcement and during the pendency of the investigation, even though she has been in regular contact with the government through counsel since Epstein's first arrest. Yeah, how come the government couldn't find her when they had the lawsuit against her? They had to file via email. Nobody could find the lady. But no, she wasn't hiding. Finally, the government argues that the nature and circumstances of the offense and the weight of the evidence warrant detention. Importantly, it contrasts with the bail position it took with Epstein. The government does not and cannot assert that Ms. Maxwell presents a danger to the community under section 3142. Ms. Maxwell's. The court should exercise its discretion to grant bail to Ms. Maxwell on the strict conditions proposed below or modified by the court for two compelling reasons. Oh, this is a doozy right here, folks. First, the COVID 19 crisis. Boy, how many people tried to use the COVID 19 crisis for their own purposes? And its impact on detained defendants warrants release. As the Court noted, The COVID 19 pandemic represents an unprecedented health risk to incarcerated individuals. And COVID 19 related restrictions on attorney communications with free trial detainees significantly impairs a defendant's ability to prepare a defense. Literally, everybody in prison was under the same exact strict standards, not just Maxwell. Second, the court should grant bail because the government has not met its burden under the Bail Reform act and controlling case law. The presumption relied on by the government may be rebutted, and is so here. Ms. Maxwell has strong ties to the community. She is a US Citizen and. And has lived in the country for almost 30 years. She ran a non profit company based in the United States until the recent media frenzy about this case forced her to wind it down to protect her professional colleagues and their organizations. Well, here's an idea. Don't hang out with Ghislaine Maxwell. I know, I know. Novel idea. And she also has very close ties with family members and friends in New York and the rest of the country. Nor does her conduct indicate that she is a flight risk. She has no prior criminal record, has spent years contesting civil litigation arising from her supposed ties to Epstein, and has remained in the United States from the time of Epstein's arrest until the present. With her counsel in regular contact with the government. She did not flee, but rather left the public eye for the entirely understandable purpose of protecting herself and those close to her from. From the crush of media and online attention and its very real harms. Those close to her have suffered the loss of jobs, work opportunities, and reputational damage simply for knowing her. The government's remaining arguments about Ms. Maxwell's passports, citizenship, travel and financial means also fell because they would require that every defendant with multiple citizenships and financial means be denied bail, which is simply not the law. Finally, as discussed below, the government's position regarding the nature and circumstances of the offense and the weight of its evidence which relates to alleged conduct that is roughly 25 years old is not persuasive and does not alter the bail Analysis Proposed Bail Conditions in light of the above, we propose the following bail conditions which are consistent with with those that the court in this circuit have Imposed in other situations 1. A $5 million personal recognizance bond co signed by six financially responsible people, all of whom have strong ties to Ms. Maxwell and secured by real property in the United kingdom worth over $3.75 million. 2. Travel restricted to the Southern and Eastern districts of New York. 3. Surrender of all travel documents with no new applications. 4. Strict supervision by pretrial services. 5. Home confinement at a residence in the Southern District of New York with electronic GPS monitoring. 6. Visitors limited to Ms. Maxwell's immediate family, close friends and counsel. 7. Travel limited to court appearances and to counsel's office except upon application to pretrial services and the government and such other terms as the court may deem appropriate under section 3142. The bail reform act does not discard the presumption of innocence. Ms. Maxwell is entitled to the presumption here, as she is in all aspects of this case. See U.S. code 18, section 3142J. Nothing in this section 3142 shall be construed as modifying or limiting the presumption of innocence. The government has failed to meet its burden of establishing that Ms. Maxwell presents an actual risk of flight and must be detained under section 3142. The strict bail conditions outlined above are appropriate under the circumstances and are the least restrictive set of conditions that will reasonably assure Ms. Maxwell's appearance in court without the health and access to counsel risks inherent in the government request that Ms. Maxwell be detained pending trial. See U.S. code 18, Section 3142 c.1 and b. Under the controlling legal standards, Ms. Maxwell should be released on bail. The argument There are two compelling reasons why the court should order Ms. Maxwell's release on bail pursuant to the strict conditions she has proposed. First, Ms. Maxwell will be a significant risk of contracting COVID 19 if she is detained, and she will not be able to meaningfully participate in the preparation of her defense due to the restrictions that have been placed on attorney visits and phone calls in light of the pandemic. Second, the government has failed to carry its burden under US Code 18, Section 3142 that no combination of conditions can be imposed that will reasonably assure Ms. Maxwell's presence in court. Alright folks, we're gonna wrap up with part one there and in the next episode we're gonna pick up with Part two. All of the information that goes with this episode can be found in the description box. What's up everyone? And welcome back to the Epstein Chronicles. In this episode, we're gonna pick up where we left off with with a Ghislaine Maxwell mail application. 1 the conditions created by COVID 19 pandemic mandate the release of Ms. Maxwell