US judge authorizes release of previously-sealed documents in case of Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell

A Manhattan judge has ruled in favor of releasing material related to a years-old civil lawsuit against Ghislaine Maxwell, to be used in her current trial where she is facing charges of conspiring to sexually abuse minors.

The sealed material is said to contain the names of influential people who had contact with – and traveled with – the late Jeffrey Epstein, a convicted sexual predator whom Ghislaine worked with for years, and is accused of abusing women and minors with.

Maxwell, who has been held without bail in a New York jail since being arrested earlier this month, argued through her lawyers that information contained in the material stemming from the civil case, which was settled three years ago, could influence “potential witnesses or alleged victims.”

The previous lawsuit was brought by Virginia Roberts Giuffre, who has accused Epstein, Britain’s Prince Andrew, and American lawyer Alan Dershowitz of sex crimes. Her deposition will be one of many that will be unsealed. However, it is not clear what prominent names could be identified through the documents though, as US District Judge Loretta Preska said that the personal identifying information of people mentioned in the material, as well as the names of non-parties, will be redacted.

Maxwell's attorney asked for a two-week emergency stay to appeal the decision by the court, but was given only a week. The unsealing of documents will continue, however, with some expected to be released to the public in at least a week’s time.

Other documents related to the 2015 defamation suit include flight logs for Epstein's private jet, which has been dubbed the ‘Lolita Express’, police reports from Palm Beach where Epstein had a home, and a deposition from Maxwell where her lawyers say she was asked “intrusive” and personal questions.

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