Judge denies Ghislaine Maxwell bid for mistrial over juror failure to disclose he is a victim of sexual assault

A federal judge on Friday rejected a bid by Ghislaine Maxwell to toss out her conviction on sex trafficking charges over the failure of a juror to disclose that he was a victim of sexual assault.

The juror admitted that he had failed to disclose the information on a jury questionnaire form, but he said that it was accidental and that he had been distracted when he filled it out.

Maxwell, a British socialite, was convicted in December for sex trafficking a 14-year-old girl during her time as a close confidante to disgraced billionaire financier Jeffrey Epstein. He was found dead in a Manhattan jail cell in Aug. 2019 while awaiting trial for the same crimes.

The judge interviewed the juror last month and said that he found him to be responsive and forthright and believed that his experience with being a victim of sexual abuse did not interfere with his duty to be a fair and impartial juror.

The jury deliberated for about 40 hours before handing down a guilty verdict for Maxwell on one count of sex trafficking a minor, three counts of conspiracy, and one count of transporting a minor with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity.

Prosecutors alleged that Maxwell had helped Epstein to lure young girls into sexual relationships with him. Four women testified that they had been sexually assaulted by Epstein through the facilitation of Maxwell.

Prior to Epstein's suicide, prosecutors were getting closer to publicly releasing a trove of documents that would reveal many of the wealthy and famous celebrities who were involved in child trafficking.

Maxwell could face up to 65 years in prison when she is scheduled to be sentenced in June.

Here's more about the conviction of Maxwell:

Ghislaine Maxwell prepares for life behind barswww.youtube.com