On Monday, October 6, 2025, the United States Supreme Court denied Ghislaine Maxwell’s petition for writ of certiorari.
Maxwell sought review of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit’s decision to deny en banc review of her sex trafficking conviction. Maxwell’s petition for writ of certiorari claimed that there existed “a non-prosecution agreement promising in plain language that the United States would not prosecute any co-conspirator of Jeffrey Epstein.” The United States presented Maxwell as a co-conspirator in the Second Circuit. Her motion to dismiss the indictment was denied, resulting in the sex trafficking conviction. The petition for writ of certiorari argued that her “motion to dismiss would have been granted if she had been charged in at least four other circuits (plus the Eleventh, where Epstein’s agreement was entered into).” Maxwell thus sought review to address the “inconsistency in the law by which the same promise by the United States means different things in different places.”
The United States Supreme Court rejected Maxwell’s petition for writ of certiorari in its order list. Over thirty pages of denied petitions were included on said order list. President Donald J. Trump was asked on Monday whether he would pardon Maxwell, to which he replied, “I haven’t heard the name in so long. I can say this, that I’d have to take a look at it. I would have to take a look. . . I will speak to the DOJ.”
Additional Reading
Supreme Court will not address Ghislaine Maxwell’s appeal, SCOTUSblog (October 6, 2025)
Trump says he will talk to DOJ about Maxwell pardon, says Diddy asked for one, Reuters (October 6, 2025)
Order List, Supreme Court of the United States (October 6, 2025)
Petition for a Writ of Certiorari in Maxwell v. United States of America
United States of America v. Maxwell (Case No. 22-1426)
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