Three judges at a federal appeals court in Manhattan, New York, have refused a fourth request for bail from Ghislaine Maxwell, the disgraced British socialite and ex-girlfriend of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Maxwell is currently jailed in Brooklyn as she awaits a trial in July for allegedly grooming underage girls for the late US financier Epstein to abuse in the 1990s and early 2000s.
Two more trafficking charges were added to the indictment against Maxwell in March, bringing to eight the number of charges against her. She is also accused of committing perjury during two civil depositions in 2016.
Attorney David Markus, representing Maxwell, told reporters that her legal team is considering the next steps following Tuesday’s decision.
Markus had raised serious concerns during a hearing on Monday about Maxwell’s jail conditions, including her complaints that guards wake her up every 15 minutes by shining flashlights in her cell. Responding to the claims, Assistant US Attorney Lara Pomerantz said that frequent checks are “routine”, which Markus denied and said Maxwell does not have an eye mask.
In its ruling on Tuesday, the 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals said Maxwell should seek relief on the sleep deprivation issue from the judge assigned to oversee the criminal case.
Maxwell was arrested in July last year, 11 months after Epstein died in a Manhattan jail cell as he awaited trial on sex trafficking charges. His death was ruled to be suicide.
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