Ghislaine Maxwell, the convicted accomplice of deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, is signaling a willingness to testify before Congress about her role in Epstein’s network — so long as House Republicans meet a list of extraordinary conditions first.
In a letter dated July 29 and obtained on Tuesday by the Washington Examiner, Maxwell’s legal team said she would consider cooperating with the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee under specific terms, including advance access to congressional questions, relocation of the interview outside her prison, and immunity from further prosecution. She also requested that any testimony be delayed until after her legal appeals are resolved.
Maxwell’s offer comes days after Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY) issued a subpoena compelling her to appear for a deposition on Aug. 11, following a vote by the Oversight Committee amid mounting pressure from House Republicans to unearth more details about Epstein’s ties to elite political and business circles.
“The Oversight Committee will respond to Ms. Maxwell’s attorney soon, but it will not consider granting congressional immunity for her testimony,” a spokesperson for the panel told the Washington Examiner on Tuesday.
In the letter, Maxwell’s lawyer David Oscar Markus warned that without such protections, she would invoke her Fifth Amendment rights.
“We remain open to working with the Committee to find a path forward that respects her constitutional rights and enables her to assist the American people and the Committee in its important oversight mission,” the letter said. “Surprise questions would be inappropriate and unproductive.”
Maxwell’s team also described conditions at her Brooklyn detention facility as “torturous,” blaming pretrial confinement and limited legal access for her decision not to testify during her 2021 trial. She is serving a 20-year sentence for conspiring with Epstein to sexually exploit minors.
The lawyers also renewed claims that Maxwell’s prosecution was unjust, arguing that she was promised nonprosecution by the federal government in 2008 and became a “convenient scapegoat” after Epstein’s death in 2019.
“She was, at the time of her trial, physically and mentally broken,” the letter continued, citing sleep deprivation, 24/7 surveillance, and abuse during detention. “She merits relief.”
Among the most notable demands is that Maxwell be given the committee’s full line of questioning in advance, which her lawyers say is necessary to locate corroborating documentation from “millions of pages” and avoid what they called a “cat-and-mouse” exercise.
She also floated an alternate proposal for full public testimony in Washington, D.C., if she were granted clemency.
“Ms. Maxwell would be willing—and eager—to testify openly and honestly,” the attorneys wrote, adding that such an appearance would help “dispel the many misconceptions and misstatements that have plagued this case from the beginning.”
Some Republicans in Congress have expressed concern that private interviews or any concessions to Maxwell could backfire, questioning whether she can be trusted due to her prior conviction. In 2021, a jury found Maxwell guilty on five of six federal counts, including sex trafficking of a minor, conspiracy to entice underage girls to travel for illegal sex acts, and conspiracy to transport them across state lines, a verdict that cemented her role as Epstein’s chief enabler.
Meanwhile, she is fighting to have that conviction overturned at the Supreme Court.
On Monday, she told the justices that her dispute over whether she is covered by a nonprosecution agreement warrants review due to a split between federal appeals courts on the issue.
According to her lawyers, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit has historically been more open to broad interpretations of such agreements, even nonsignatories, if the government’s attempt to bind itself was clear. Conversely, the 2nd Circuit has taken a narrower view and has required defendants to be signatories, or at least explicitly named, for any apparent agreement to apply.
GHISLAINE MAXWELL FILES SUPREME COURT BRIEF AMID DOJ TALKS
The Justice Department has urged the high court not to take the case for review on the merits, while Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche last week held private meetings with her representatives at the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Tallahassee, where she was granted limited immunity and asked about over 100 different people, according to her attorney.
Lauren Green contributed to this report.