Assessment of Ghislaine Maxwell’s Credibility
Jonathan Turley, a law professor at George Washington University, discussed Ghislaine Maxwell’s motivations and their importance in evaluating her credibility during a Friday appearance on Fox News.
The Justice Department shared an interview with Maxwell on the same day, following a directive from Attorney General Merrick Garland to Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche regarding Jeffrey Epstein. During his segment on “Jesse Watters Primetime,” Watters inquired about Turley’s opinion on Maxwell’s truthfulness. Turley, with years of experience as a defense attorney, offered a nuanced view.
“As a criminal defense lawyer for much of my career, I’ve found that even dishonest witnesses might speak some truths. It’s essential to be skeptical and to consider why they’re saying what they are,” Turley noted. He referenced Maxwell’s claim about a lack of manipulation from the postal mail, suggesting that’s something to consider.
Turley acknowledged existing speculation that Epstein had wired his New York home, but he maintained that Maxwell’s interview didn’t definitively clarify that issue.
“Epstein was a pedophile who surrounded himself with dubious individuals by luring young girls. That alone is terribly concerning. Some argue he might have set up an insurance scheme, especially given rumors about his home being wired,” he added.
Turley emphasized the unusual nature of the Justice Department’s release of Maxwell’s interview, indicating that such disclosures rarely occur.
“This is quite an unusual release. Typically, these types of interviews don’t get made public, let alone be accompanied by transcripts or recordings. There’s a clear effort for transparency here. When she claims there’s no list, you can almost sense the collective disappointment in Washington,” he said. Turley speculated that he understood the origin of some rumors and suggested that Maxwell had motives tied to her past and her current push for clemency.
While agreeing that her denial about a list might be genuine, Turley raised doubts about her motivations given her background in human trafficking and her apparent desire for leniency.
“It’s plausible she may not possess a list at all, but it’s evident this release didn’t satisfy many in the political sphere. Maybe she’s trying to outsmart the system. After all, she’s been involved in serious crimes against vulnerable girls, which doesn’t paint her as a sympathetic figure. Clearly, she has something she wants from President Trump, likely a commutation,” he remarked.
During her interview, Maxwell characterized Donald Trump as a “gentleman in every respect” and claimed she never witnessed him in compromising situations. She rejected rumors about Trump behaving inappropriately and dismissed allegations regarding former President Bill Clinton receiving a massage aboard Epstein’s aircraft.
Maxwell also mentioned she did not remember Trump sending Epstein a birthday card in 2003, adding that she’d never encountered such a document during trial preparations. In response to a report by the Wall Street Journal claiming Epstein sent out a birthday note concerning hair removal, Trump filed a lawsuit in July. On that same day, it was revealed that the House Oversight Committee commenced the release of records related to Epstein.
