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Supreme Court declines to take up Ghislaine Maxwell’s sex trafficking appeal
By Ashley Oliver
Published October 06, 2025
The Supreme Court declined to take up Ghislaine Maxwell’s appeal in her sex trafficking case, quashing the last hope the former girlfriend and associate of Jeffrey Epstein had of fighting her 2021 conviction.
The high court revealed in an order list on Monday that it would not hear her case this term, leaving in place a denial by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit.
Maxwell, 63, was convicted by a jury in New York of five counts involving sex trafficking of a minor and conspiracy. She was sentenced to 20 years in prison.
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Ghislaine Maxwell, holding an umbrella, goes to and from her prison job, Bryan, Texas, Sept. 20, 2025. (Matthew Symons/Mirrorpix/Mega)
In her appeal, Maxwell argued her conviction should be tossed out for several reasons, including that a plea deal Epstein reached with the federal government in 2007 immunized her and that statutes of limitations had run out.
In the deal in question, Epstein pleaded guilty to charges in Florida of soliciting prostitution from a minor, and he registered as a sex offender as part of the agreement. Epstein later faced federal charges but died before he could stand trial. Authorities have said he died by suicide.
The plea deal included a clause about co-conspirators, which Maxwell argued protected her from prosecution. The 2nd Circuit disagreed, and that finding will now remain in place.
The Supreme Court's denial comes as the Epstein case continues to roil the Trump administration. The DOJ has faced pressure from MAGA loyalists to publish new information about the matter after Trump and top officials at the DOJ, prior to them taking office, had promoted the idea that the government was hiding undisclosed information about sexual predators tied to Epstein.
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Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell were both indicted on federal sex trafficking charges stemming from Epstein's years of abuse of underage girls. (Joe Schildhorn/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images)
The president has since brushed off the Epstein case files as unimportant, angering a faction of his base, while the DOJ has made futile attempts to release more information on Epstein.
Maxwell, for her part, had been serving out her sentence in a federal prison in Tallahassee, Florida, but was transferred to an all-women minimum-security facility in Bryan, Texas, days after meeting with DOJ Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche. Blanche had interviewed Maxwell as part of the department's broader attempt to extract more information about Epstein from untapped sources. The DOJ has denied extending Maxwell any preferential treatment.
Maxwell's legal team has also expressed hope of receiving a presidential pardon. Over the summer, her attorney said she had not asked Trump for one but would welcome any relief. Asked in July about pardoning Maxwell, Trump said it was not on his radar.
"I'm allowed to do it, but it's something I have not thought about," Trump said.
Members of the Supreme Court sit for a group photo following the addition of Associate Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, at the Supreme Court building on Capitol Hill on Friday, Oct 07, 2022, in Washington, D.C. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
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In a statement provided to Fox News Digital, Maxwell's attorney, David Markus, suggested his client still has other options to fight her conviction.
"We’re, of course, deeply disappointed that the Supreme Court declined to hear Ghislaine Maxwell’s case," Markus said. "But this fight isn’t over. Serious legal and factual issues remain, and we will continue to pursue every avenue available to ensure that justice is done."
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/supreme-court-declines-take-ghislaine-maxwells-sex-trafficking-appeal