Celebrity socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, convicted with 20 years for helping Jeffrey Epstein sexually exploit and abuse underage girls, will reportedly outline in her upcoming appeal that she was held "under inhumane conditions" while in custody at Brooklyn Detention Center during the investigation.
The appeal is to be filed Tuesday with the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. It is said the appeal will reportedly include the following points:
Sleep deprivation
Malnutrition
Living with vermin in her cell
Inability to gain proper access to her lawyer
Overall deplorable conditions
Her lawyer, Arthur L. Aidala, reportedly said that "by the time of trial, she was so disoriented and diminished that she was unable meaningfully to assist in her own defense, much less to testify."
In an exclusive statement previously given to Page Six, Aidala said: "[Maxwell] was so mistreated during her period of incarceration that it violated so many of her constitutional rights to defend herself... she's supposed to sit for a trial [with her] life on the line... In the United States of America, anyone who's accused of any crime should not be abused by the US government the way she was abused."
24 January 2023, 17:20 GMT
Aidala also indicated that the appeal would also be based on what he said were investigative errors, including how:
One juror failed to disclose his own history of child abuse during jury selection
Government was "barred by a five-year statute of limitations from bringing the charges"
Prosecutors "breached a non-prosecution agreement that immunized Maxwell for these offenses."
Maxwell's previous attempt for a new trial was shot down by the same judge overseeing her current case, as such, reports suggest the appeal may be rejected, effectively staying her 20-year sentence.