Latest / The Moscow Murders and More / Dual Sovereignty: The Legal Sledgehammer Waiting for Ghislaine Maxwell If Pardoned (Part 1)

Transcript

Dual Sovereignty: The Legal Sledgehammer Waiting for Ghislaine Maxwell If Pardoned (Part 1) · The Moscow Murders and More

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: What's up everyone and welcome to another episode of the
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: Epstein Chronicles. Imagine this. You wake up one morning and
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: check your phone, your laptop, the TV, doesn't matter, it's everywhere.
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: The headlines are blazing. Ghislaine Maxwell has been pardoned. Not
• 0:16
  Speaker 1: released early, not exonerated, pardoned. As in, forgiven. As in
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: the crime she was convicted of in open court, crimes
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: involving the trafficking and abuse of underage girls, with and
• 0:27
  Speaker 1: on behalf of a billionaire predator, wiped away with the
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: flick of a pen, not by a jury, not by
• 0:32
  Speaker 1: a judge, but by a politician. And just like that,
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: the woman who helped orchestrate one of the most vile,
• 0:39
  Speaker 1: elite-fueled sex trafficking rings in modern history walks out of
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: prison with her chin high, her sentence vanished, her record wiped.
• 0:48
  Speaker 1: Not because she deserved mercy, but because someone with power
• 0:51
  Speaker 1: decided she was useful, or inconvenient, or owed. Now picture
• 0:57
  Speaker 1: the reaction. The talking heads jump to their scripts. The
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: legal pundits shrug and sigh, calling it controversial but constitutional.
• 1:06
  Speaker 1: The social media war starts spinning its wheels again, one
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: side screaming that it's a travesty, the other saying it's
• 1:12
  Speaker 1: all overblown ancient history. And through it all, the survivors,
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: they're forced to watch helpless as a woman who recruited them,
• 1:20
  Speaker 1: groomed them, gaslit them, abused them, is treated like some
• 1:24
  Speaker 1: misunderstood socialite who got a little too close to the fire. But,
• 1:28
  Speaker 1: Here's the thing, and it's why we're here today. It's
• 1:31
  Speaker 1: why this episode has to exist. Because that pardon, it
• 1:35
  Speaker 1: might close the door on the federal case, but it
• 1:37
  Speaker 1: doesn't seal the tomb. Not in New York. Because Ghislaine
• 1:41
  Speaker 1: Maxwell didn't just traffic girls through private jets and hidden islands.
• 1:45
  Speaker 1: She did it in broad daylight, in a mansion in Manhattan,
• 1:49
  Speaker 1: in a jurisdiction that still has the power, the tools,
• 1:52
  Speaker 1: and the legal standing to hold her accountable, right here,
• 1:55
  Speaker 1: right now. And that's what this episode's about. Today we're
• 1:59
  Speaker 1: going to talk about New York state law, the timeline
• 2:01
  Speaker 1: of her crimes, and the very real path prosecutors could
• 2:04
  Speaker 1: take to charge her again. And we'll show you that
• 2:08
  Speaker 1: this isn't just legally possible, but morally necessary. Because if
• 2:12
  Speaker 1: New York doesn't act, if they sit back and let
• 2:15
  Speaker 1: that pardon become the last word, then the message is clear.
• 2:18
  Speaker 1: Justice in America is negotiable. Survivors are expendable. And the powerful,
• 2:24
  Speaker 1: no matter how monstrous their crimes, always find a back door.
• 2:28
  Speaker 1: But if New York does act, if the district attorney
• 2:30
  Speaker 1: and attorney general and so-called defenders of justice actually stand
• 2:34
  Speaker 1: up and file charges, then maybe, just maybe, there's still
• 2:38
  Speaker 1: a reason to believe in accountability. In consequence, in law
• 2:41
  Speaker 1: that applies upward, not just downward. Because if the Maxwell
• 2:45
  Speaker 1: case is allowed to end with a shrug, a signature,
• 2:48
  Speaker 1: and a smile, then it's not just her walking free.
• 2:51
  Speaker 1: It's the whole damn system telling us who it really protects. So,
• 2:56
  Speaker 1: let's talk about it. If Donald Trump issues a pardon
• 2:58
  Speaker 1: for Ghislaine Maxwell, clearing her of her federal sex trafficking conviction,
• 3:02
  Speaker 1: that act would not place her beyond the reach of justice.
• 3:06
  Speaker 1: A presidential pardon only applies to violations of federal law,
• 3:10
  Speaker 1: not to state statutes. In the United States, under the
• 3:13
  Speaker 1: doctrine of dual sovereignty, state governments and the federal government
• 3:17
  Speaker 1: operate as separate legal entities. This means that New York State,
• 3:22
  Speaker 1: if it had sufficient jurisdiction and legal grounds, could still
• 3:25
  Speaker 1: bring its own charges against Maxwell independent of any presidential intervention.
• 3:31
  Speaker 1: Glenn Maxwell's crimes were not confined to an anonymous international
• 3:35
  Speaker 1: hotel or secluded offshore islands. According to victim testimony and
• 3:39
  Speaker 1: trial documents, some of the most egregious abuse took place
• 3:43
  Speaker 1: in Epstein's Manhattan townhouse at 9 East 71st Street. This location,
• 3:48
  Speaker 1: deep within the heart of New York City, puts much
• 3:51
  Speaker 1: of Maxwell's conduct squarely under the jurisdiction of New York
• 3:54
  Speaker 1: state criminal law. Victims testified that they were recruited, groomed,
• 3:59
  Speaker 1: and sexually abused at that location, often while underage. These
• 4:04
  Speaker 1: acts weren't just morally reprehensible, they constituted potential violations of
• 4:08
  Speaker 1: multiple New York criminal statutes. The New York Penal Law
• 4:12
  Speaker 1: includes provisions that directly overlap with Maxwell's known behavior. For example,
• 4:17
  Speaker 1: Section 230.34 covers sex trafficking of a child and does
• 4:21
  Speaker 1: not require physical sexual contact with by the trafficker, only
• 4:26
  Speaker 1: that they caused or facilitated the exploitation of a minor.
• 4:30
  Speaker 1: Maxwell arranged travel, paid victims, and normalized the abuse, and
• 4:34
  Speaker 1: took part of it herself, all of which could be
• 4:37
  Speaker 1: construed as facilitation. Moreover, under 260.10, the endangering the welfare
• 4:43
  Speaker 1: of a child statute could be invoked, particularly given the
• 4:46
  Speaker 1: age of some victims and the repeated exposure to sexually
• 4:50
  Speaker 1: abusive environments. Additionally, Maxwell could face prosecution under Section 130,
• 4:56
  Speaker 1: which addresses criminal sexual acts. Even if Maxwell herself didn't
• 5:00
  Speaker 1: commit every act of abuse, New York law allows for
• 5:04
  Speaker 1: charges when someone aids or abets a sexual offense against
• 5:08
  Speaker 1: a minor. Her coordination of travel, coaching of victims on
• 5:12
  Speaker 1: how to please Epstein, and normalization of abusive behavior could
• 5:15
  Speaker 1: easily meet the state's legal threshold. And because many of
• 5:18
  Speaker 1: these crimes happen repeatedly at a single location in Manhattan,
• 5:22
  Speaker 1: Jurisdiction isn't vague. It's crystal clear. One of the major
• 5:27
  Speaker 1: concerns in a case like this is the statute of limitations.
• 5:31
  Speaker 1: How long prosecutors have to bring charges. In New York, however,
• 5:35
  Speaker 1: the legislature has carved out specific exceptions for crimes involving minors.
• 5:40
  Speaker 1: For instance, Class A felonies, which include major sex crimes,
• 5:43
  Speaker 1: have no statute of limitation. And even for lower-level offenses,
• 5:47
  Speaker 1: New York has extended the window through reforms like Child
• 5:50
  Speaker 1: Victims Act 2019 and Adult Survivors Act, which reflected a
• 5:55
  Speaker 1: broader effort by the state to correct historic injustices that
• 5:59
  Speaker 1: were previously shielded by outdated laws. Maxwell's known history is
• 6:04
  Speaker 1: intertwined with conduct that would be prosecutable at the state level.
• 6:08
  Speaker 1: The grooming of girls sometimes as young as 14 for
• 6:11
  Speaker 1: sexual abuse in Epstein's New York home involved extensive logistical coordination, payments, transportation,
• 6:18
  Speaker 1: threats of retaliation, and psychological coercion. That conduct doesn't need
• 6:23
  Speaker 1: to meet a federal threshold to be criminal. State prosecutors,
• 6:26
  Speaker 1: especially in Manhattan, where the abuse occurred, would have standing
• 6:30
  Speaker 1: to charge her independently based on those acts alone. A
• 6:33
  Speaker 1: federal pardon wouldn't obstruct the process in the slightest. Politically,
• 6:38
  Speaker 1: there is precedent and appetite in New York for pursuing
• 6:41
  Speaker 1: justice in the Epstein orbit. The Manhattan District Attorney's Office
• 6:45
  Speaker 1: has prosecuted other high-profile sex crimes in recent years, including
• 6:49
  Speaker 1: those related to Harvey Weinstein. In the wake of Maxwell's conviction,
• 6:53
  Speaker 1: multiple state-level entities, including New York State Attorney General's Office,
• 6:57
  Speaker 1: have expressed continued interest in reviewing Epstein's enablers. If Maxwell
• 7:03
  Speaker 1: were suddenly freed from federal custody via a pardon, it's
• 7:06
  Speaker 1: highly likely that New York could come under immense public
• 7:09
  Speaker 1: pressure to step in. There is also the issue of
• 7:13
  Speaker 1: new evidence and cooperation. Maxwell's federal trial may have unearthed witnesses, documents,
• 7:18
  Speaker 1: and forensic proof that can now be leveraged in a
• 7:20
  Speaker 1: state case. The evidentiary record doesn't reset with a pardon.
• 7:24
  Speaker 1: It's still usable. Prosecutors could re-interview survivors and potentially secure
• 7:29
  Speaker 1: additional charges based on previously unprosecuted acts. The victims, many
• 7:35
  Speaker 1: of whom are New York residents or were abused in
• 7:37
  Speaker 1: New York, would still have standing and a clear path
• 7:40
  Speaker 1: to support a new round of charges at the state level.
• 7:43
  Speaker 1: It's important to remember that a pardon is not exoneration.
• 7:46
  Speaker 1: It's a political mercy. Maxwell would remain guilty in the
• 7:50
  Speaker 1: eyes of survivors, the public, and the facts, and a
• 7:53
  Speaker 1: federal pardon would not erase the trauma inflicted in New
• 7:55
  Speaker 1: York nor shield her from her accountability under New York
• 7:59
  Speaker 1: state law. In fact, a pardon might even provoke a
• 8:02
  Speaker 1: harder push for state charges as public outrage would demand
• 8:06
  Speaker 1: some form of continued justice. In this way, a pardon
• 8:10
  Speaker 1: might paradoxically open the door to state-level prosecution. Glenn Maxwell
• 8:15
  Speaker 1: is not immune to state prosecution just because she was
• 8:18
  Speaker 1: convicted federally, and certainly not if she was pardoned by
• 8:21
  Speaker 1: a president with political motives. New York State has the jurisdiction,
• 8:26
  Speaker 1: the statutory tools, and the evidentiary trail to bring charges
• 8:29
  Speaker 1: against her. The conduct occurred in Manhattan. Victims were trafficked
• 8:33
  Speaker 1: and abused there. The law was violated there. If justice
• 8:37
  Speaker 1: still matters in any corner of this country, New York
• 8:40
  Speaker 1: must be prepared to act if the federal system fails
• 8:42
  Speaker 1: to finish the job. A pardon may spare her from
• 8:45
  Speaker 1: one court, but not from all. And if such a
• 8:49
  Speaker 1: prosecution were to move forward in New York, one of
• 8:52
  Speaker 1: the first hurdles would be the willingness of survivors to
• 8:54
  Speaker 1: testify again. Many of the survivors have already endured the
• 8:58
  Speaker 1: agony of facing Maxwell in court, recounting the horrors they
• 9:02
  Speaker 1: experienced as teenagers. Asking them to relive that trauma in
• 9:06
  Speaker 1: a second courtroom under a new cross-examination would be an
• 9:09
  Speaker 1: enormous burden. But if a federal pardon were granted, especially
• 9:14
  Speaker 1: under suspicious or politically motivated circumstances, it's highly likely that
• 9:19
  Speaker 1: outrage and a sense of unfinished justice would compel some
• 9:23
  Speaker 1: of them to step forward again. They've already proven their
• 9:25
  Speaker 1: courage once, and this time, they'd have the moral weight
• 9:28
  Speaker 1: of the public hungry for real accountability on their side.
• 9:32
  Speaker 1: Another key element that would come into play is a
• 9:35
  Speaker 1: vast record of evidence compiled during the federal investigation. The
• 9:39
  Speaker 1: Southern District of New York SDNY developed thousands of documents,
• 9:43
  Speaker 1: flight logs, financial records, photographs, and recorded statements, many of
• 9:48
  Speaker 1: which are admissible in any criminal proceeding. These materials could
• 9:52
  Speaker 1: provide New York state prosecutors with a near turnkey case.
• 9:56
  Speaker 1: They wouldn't need to reinvent the wheel. They could simply
• 9:59
  Speaker 1: repurpose much of what was already established beyond a reasonable
• 10:02
  Speaker 1: doubt in federal court. If anything, the trial of Maxwell
• 10:05
  Speaker 1: has already done the heavy lifting. Now it would just
• 10:08
  Speaker 1: be a matter of repackaging the case under state statute.
• 10:13
  Speaker 1: Maxwell's alleged role in recruiting and grooming girls for Epstein
• 10:17
  Speaker 1: also overlaps with state definitions of conspiracy and accomplice liability.
• 10:22
  Speaker 1: Even if Maxwell herself did not personally commit each act
• 10:25
  Speaker 1: of abuse, New York law allows for prosecution of those
• 10:28
  Speaker 1: who facilitate, organize, or aid and abet the commission of
• 10:32
  Speaker 1: a sex crime. Her coordination of travel, coaching of victims
• 10:36
  Speaker 1: on how to please Epstein, and normalization of abuse behavior
• 10:41
  Speaker 1: easily meet the state's legal threshold, and because many of
• 10:43
  Speaker 1: the crimes happened repeatedly in a single location in Manhattan,
• 10:47
  Speaker 1: jurisdiction isn't vague. It's crystal clear. There's also a growing
• 10:52
  Speaker 1: movement at the state level to reclaim jurisdiction in cases
• 10:56
  Speaker 1: where the federal system has failed. This is especially true
• 10:59
  Speaker 1: in sex trafficking cases involving high-profile defenders, with the federal
• 11:03
  Speaker 1: system increasingly viewed by the public as corrupt, co-opted, or
• 11:07
  Speaker 1: politically compromised. States like New York are under pressure to
• 11:11
  Speaker 1: become the backstop. If President Trump were to pardon Maxwell,
• 11:15
  Speaker 1: New York would immediately become ground zero for public expectation.
• 11:19
  Speaker 1: Failure to act would be interpreted as complicity or worse,
• 11:23
  Speaker 1: as cowardice. All right, we're going to wrap up episode
• 11:25
  Speaker 1: one right here. And in the next episode, we're going
• 11:27
  Speaker 1: to pick up where we left off. All of the
• 11:30
  Speaker 1: information that goes with this episode can be found in
• 11:33
  Speaker 1: the description box.