“You have no memory of Ghislaine being present when you claim Epstein engaged in any sexual contact with you, correct?” Menninger questioned “Jane,” a woman who testified last week under a pseudonym that she had been sexually abused by Epstein from the age of 14. The defense has tried hard to portray the accusers’ testimony as tainted by faulty memories, drug abuse and the millions of dollars they’ve received from Epstein’s estate. Her accusers say she lured and groomed underage girls for sexual abuse by Epstein, her former boyfriend and employer. Maxwell, 59, faces as much as 40 years in prison if convicted on the most serious sex-trafficking count. Jeffrey Pagliuca, a law partner of Menninger’s at Denver law firm Haddon, Morgan & Foreman, and former Manhattan federal prosecutor Christian Everdell round out the team. analyst who has represented Maxwell in civil lawsuits since 2015. “Ever since Eve was tempting Adam with the apple, women have been blamed for the bad behavior of men, and women are often villainized and punished more than the men ever are,” she said.Īs is frequently the case in high-profile sex-crimes trials, the defense team is fronted by women: Sternheim, a veteran New York defense lawyer, and Laura Menninger, a onetime Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Defense lawyer Bobbi Sternheim hit that theme hard in her Nov. If so, Maxwell’s team can be expected to urge jurors to see their client as a scapegoat for Epstein, who died in 2019 while awaiting his own sex-trafficking trial.
The defense said on Thursday it had not yet decided whether it would put on any witnesses, raising the possibility that the case could move directly to closing arguments as soon as next week. But with the prosecution expected to rest its case soon, the spotlight now falls on the defense to offer the jury an alternative narrative of her relationship with Jeffrey Epstein and also determine whether she should take the stand herself. (Bloomberg) - For the lawyers representing Ghislaine Maxwell, the best defense so far has been a scorching attack.ĭuring the first two weeks of her trial, they’ve repeatedly challenged her accusers’ motives and their memories of events that may have occurred decades ago.
0 kommentar(er)
