Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein's former associate serving a 20-year sentence for sex trafficking, repeatedly invoked her Fifth Amendment rights during a Monday deposition with the House Oversight Committee. Her attorney David Oscar Markus stated she is "prepared to speak fully and honestly if granted clemency by President Trump."
Maxwell appeared via video call from a federal prison camp in Texas, where she is serving her sentence after being convicted in December 2021 on charges including sex trafficking of a minor and conspiracy to transport minors for criminal sexual activity. Dressed in prison-issued clothing, she declined to answer questions about her associations, finances, and potential co-conspirators in Epstein's abuse operation.
What the Right Is Saying
Republican lawmakers quickly rejected Maxwell's clemency appeal. Representative Anna Paulina Luna wrote on social media, "NO CLEMENCY. You comply or face punishment. You deserve JUSTICE for what you did you monster."
Representative James Comer, the Republican chair of the House Oversight Committee, had subpoenaed Maxwell as part of a broader investigation into Epstein's network. The committee is examining how Epstein, a well-connected financier, was able to sexually abuse underage girls for years and who may have facilitated his crimes.
Markus stated during the deposition that both Trump and former President Bill Clinton "are innocent of any wrongdoing," adding that "Ms. Maxwell alone can explain why, and the public is entitled to that explanation." He cited Maxwell's pending petition to overturn her conviction, which describes "substantial new evidence" of constitutional violations at trial, as justification for invoking Fifth Amendment protections.
Representative Thomas Massie, a Kentucky Republican who sponsored legislation forcing release of Epstein files, said after reviewing unredacted documents for several hours that he had found the names of six men "that are likely incriminated by their inclusion." He called on the Justice Department to pursue accountability.
What the Right Is Saying
Republican lawmakers quickly rejected Maxwell's clemency appeal. Representative Anna Paulina Luna wrote on social media, "NO CLEMENCY. You comply or face punishment. You deserve JUSTICE for what you did you monster."
Representative James Comer, the Republican chair of the House Oversight Committee, had subpoenaed Maxwell as part of a broader investigation into Epstein's network. The committee is examining how Epstein, a well-connected financier, was able to sexually abuse underage girls for years and who may have facilitated his crimes.
Markus stated during the deposition that both Trump and former President Bill Clinton "are innocent of any wrongdoing," adding that "Ms. Maxwell alone can explain why, and the public is entitled to that explanation." He cited Maxwell's pending petition to overturn her conviction, which describes "substantial new evidence" of constitutional violations at trial, as justification for invoking Fifth Amendment protections.
Representative Thomas Massie, a Kentucky Republican who sponsored legislation forcing release of Epstein files, said after reviewing unredacted documents for several hours that he had found the names of six men "that are likely incriminated by their inclusion." He called on the Justice Department to pursue accountability.
What the Left Is Saying
Democratic lawmakers characterized Maxwell's clemency request as a calculated attempt to escape accountability. "It's very clear she's campaigning for clemency," said Representative Melanie Stansbury, a New Mexico Democrat.
Representative Jamie Raskin, the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, expressed concern that U.S. political figures connected to Epstein appear to be "escaping unscathed" despite the international fallout. "I'm just afraid that the general worsening and degradation of American life has somehow conditioned people not to take this as seriously as we should be taking it," Raskin stated.
Democrats are preparing to sharply question Attorney General Pam Bondi at a Wednesday hearing about the Justice Department's handling of Epstein file releases. The department failed to redact personal information of many victims, including inadvertently releasing nude photos. "Over and over we begged them, please be careful, please be more careful," said Jennifer Freeman, an attorney representing survivors. "It feels incompetent, it feels intimidating and it feels intentional."
Family members of the late Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein's most outspoken victims, released a letter to Maxwell stating they did not consider her "a bystander" to the abuse. "You were a central, deliberate actor in a system built to find children, isolate them, groom them, and deliver them to abuse," Sky and Amanda Roberts wrote.
What the Numbers Show
Maxwell was convicted on five counts in December 2021 and sentenced to 20 years in federal prison in June 2022. Prosecutors presented testimony from four women who said Maxwell recruited and groomed them as teenagers for abuse by Epstein between 1994 and 2004.
The House Oversight Committee gained access to over 3 million pages of unredacted Epstein files released by the Justice Department in compliance with legislation passed by Congress in 2025. Lawmakers can review the documents in a reading room with four computers, making only handwritten notes, with no staff access permitted.
Representative Raskin noted that "even if all the House members who triggered the vote on releasing the files spent every waking hour over at the Department of Justice, it would still take us months to get through all of those documents."
Maxwell was moved from a Florida federal prison to a low-security Texas prison camp in summer 2025 after participating in two days of interviews with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche. Her projected release date is in the 2030s unless her appeal succeeds or she receives clemency.
The Bottom Line
Trump has not definitively stated his position on pardoning Maxwell. When asked Monday about her clemency appeal, the White House pointed to previous remarks from November 2025 when Trump said he hadn't "even thought about it" and didn't "rule it in or out." In July 2025, he told reporters he "hasn't thought about" pardoning Maxwell but added he's "allowed to do it."
The president has a history of ambiguous statements about Maxwell. In July 2020, he told reporters "I just wish her well, frankly" and noted he'd "met her numerous times over the years." In August 2020, after Epstein's death, Trump again expressed that he wished Maxwell well.
Comer has also subpoenaed Bill and Hillary Clinton for depositions later this month after threatening contempt of Congress charges. He plans to hold closed-door depositions and later release transcripts and video, despite pressure for public hearings.
Maxwell's Supreme Court appeal was rejected in 2024, but in December 2025 she requested a federal judge in New York consider new evidence that her trial was spoiled by constitutional violations. Her legal team argues she is being punished for Epstein's crimes and that publicity, procedural errors, and juror issues tainted the trial.