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Maxwell, 59, has pleaded not guilty to eight counts of sex
trafficking and other crimes. Her attorneys argue she is being
scapegoated for the late financier Epstein's alleged conduct
because he is dead. Epstein killed himself in 2019 in a
Manhattan jail cell while awaiting trial on sex abuse charges.
In its case, which is expected to last two to four days,
Maxwell's lawyers are likely to continue attempting to undermine
her accusers' credibility by asserting that the women's memories
have faded over the years and that they are motivated by money
to implicate Maxwell.
Maxwell is accused of setting the girls up for abuse between
1994 and 2004. The defense plans to call psychologist Elizabeth
Loftus, who studies how people's memories can become corrupted
over time, as an expert witness. Loftus has testified or
consulted in hundreds of trials, including O.J. Simpson's.
The defense is also seeking testimony from lawyers who helped
the women submit claims to a victims' compensation fund managed
by Epstein's estate. Maxwell's lawyers said the women cooperated
with prosecutors because they thought it would benefit their
civil claims.
Prosecutors on Wednesday urged U.S. District Judge Alison Nathan
to preclude the lawyers from testifying, citing attorney-client
privilege.
The prosecution rested its case last Friday.
The trial's resumption follows a three-day break as Nathan
attended her U.S. Senate confirmation hearing for a spot on the
New York-based 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. After she was
nominated by President Joe Biden, Nathan said she would see the
Maxwell trial through to completion.
(Reporting by Luc Cohen in New York; Editing by Peter Cooney)
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