In a court filing on Saturday, attorneys for convicted child sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell said she had been placed on suicide watch just days before her scheduled sentencing and hinted at a motion to delay the hearing.
Maxwell, former Jeffery Epstein lover and manager of his child trafficking ring, was found guilty of sex trafficking and conspiracy late last year after a jury trial. She is scheduled for sentencing on June 28. But, it appears that the date could change.
Prosecutors have requested she spend a minimum of 30 years in prison.
Maxwell’s attorney, Bobbi Sternheim, submitted a letter to US District Judge Alison Nathan on Saturday stating that she would seek to delay Maxwell’s sentencing if her client remained on suicide watch until the scheduled hearing.
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Sternheim highlighted that Maxwell “is not suicidal” in the letter. The attorney said employees at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York, placed her client on suicide watch on Friday.
She noted that the action was taken “without having conducted a psychological evaluation and without justification.”
The facility staff also “abruptly removed” Maxwell from the general population and placed her in solitary confinement, Sternheim wrote. The attorney also noted that Maxwell was in solitary “this time without any clothing, toothpaste, soap, legal papers, etc.”
She added that jail staff provided Maxwell with a few sheets of toilet paper and a “suicide smock.” The smock is a piece of thick, tough fabric that can’t be cut, torn, twisted, or otherwise fashioned into a noose.
Sternheim stated Maxwell was also not allowed to possess or review legal documents, nor was she even permitted to have paper or a pen.
“This has prevented her from preparing for sentencing,” Sternheim wrote.
Sternheim went on to tell the judge, in her letter, that a psychologist had evaluated Maxwell on Saturday and determined Maxwell was not suicidal.
“If Ms. Maxwell remains on suicide watch, is prohibited from reviewing legal materials prior to sentencing, becomes sleep deprived, and is denied sufficient time to meet with and confer with counsel, we will be formally moving on Monday for an adjournment,” Sternheim wrote.
There is a public concern for Maxwell’s safety as the circumstances of her move to suicide watch are similar to those that preceded Epstein’s death. The billionaire’s death has sparked much controversy, a source of many conspiracy theories.
Still, many believe that Maxwell has become the “fall guy” for a larger group of wealthy socialites, public figures, and elected officials who engaged in the sex trafficking ring with Epstein. They have called for the records and alleged client lists to be released.