ABC
After 12 days of testimony over three weeks, jurors heard from the final witnesses Friday in the sex trafficking trial of British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, who told the judge she wouldn’t testify because she was confident prosecutors hadn’t proved their case.
Closing arguments are now set for Monday in the trial, in which Maxwell is accused of helping the wealthy financier Jeffrey Epstein sexually abuse four teenage girls.
The defense rested its case after a tight two days of presenting witnesses who attested to Maxwell’s character or said they hadn’t witnessed any wrongdoing.
U.S. District Judge Alison J. Nathan asked Maxwell, 59, to stand up, and explained she had the right to testify, if she wished.
“Your Honor, the government has not proven its case beyond a reasonable doubt so there is no reason for me to testify,” Maxwell responded. As she spoke, her lawyer, Bobbi Sternheim, stood at her side, her arm wrapped around her lower back.
Maxwell has been accused by multiple women in civil lawsuits of running a yearslong operation to recruit teenage girls and young women to give sexualized massages to Epstein. One woman has said she was also coerced by the pair into sexual encounters with numerous famous men, including Britain’s Prince Andrew.
