Latest / The Vault: The Epstein Files / Judge Engelmayer Denies Ghislaine Maxwell's Attempt To Overturn Her Conviction (Part 10) (9/30/26)

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Judge Engelmayer Denies Ghislaine Maxwell's Attempt To Overturn Her Conviction (Part 10) (9/30/26) · The Vault: The Epstein Files

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  Speaker 1: What's up, everyone, and welcome to another episode of the
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: Epstein Chronicles. In this episode, we're going to pick up
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  Speaker 1: where we left off with Judge Engelmeyer's order denying Ghislaine
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: Maxwell's attempt for a new trial. Maxwell's Section 2255 claim,
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  Speaker 1: based on an ostensible breach of the SDNY's prosecution team
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  Speaker 1: disclosure obligation, fails for multiple reasons. First, neither Detective Parkinson
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  Speaker 1: nor any other person involved in the 2005-2010 investigation PBPD
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  Speaker 1: investigation into Epstein was part of the SDNY prosecution team.
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  Speaker 1: USAO-SDNY opened its investigation into Epstein and later Maxwell in 2018,
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  Speaker 1: at least eight years after PBPD's investigation concluded. Notwithstanding the
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  Speaker 1: lack of an obligation to do so, USAO-SDNY requested, reviewed,
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  Speaker 1: and disclosed to Maxwell discoverable material from the investigative file
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  Speaker 1: for the investigation. and that held by the Palm Beach
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  Speaker 1: State's Attorney's Office. See Docket 63 at 5-7. And it
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  Speaker 1: contacted the clerk of court in Palm Beach, who through
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  Speaker 1: no apparent fault of USAO-SDNY, provided errant information that USAO-SDNY
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  Speaker 1: relayed to Maxwell's defense team. The prosecution team did not
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  Speaker 1: violate Brady or any other disclosure obligation by conveying to
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  Speaker 1: the defense the information it was given. It acted with
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  Speaker 1: appropriate solicitude, for Maxwell's rights and interests. Second, Detective Parkinson's
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  Speaker 1: grand jury testimony is neither material nor exculpatory as to Maxwell.
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  Speaker 1: Maxwell claims that Detective Parkinson perjured himself by testifying at
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  Speaker 1: her trial that he found the massage table in the
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  Speaker 1: south bathroom with a shower. Maxwell portrays his earlier testimony
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  Speaker 1: before the Palm Beach grand jury as stating that he
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  Speaker 1: found the massage table in the north bathroom with a bathtub. That, however,
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  Speaker 1: mischaracterizes his grand jury testimony. There, Detective Parkinson stated that
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  Speaker 1: there was a massage table in this bathroom, but the
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  Speaker 1: transcript does not reflect which bathroom he was referring to. Parkinson, G.J.,
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  Speaker 1: transcript at 110 and 11. Maxwell has thus not shown
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  Speaker 1: an inconsistency with his later trial testimony. Third, even assuming
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  Speaker 1: that Detective Parkinson had testified unequivocally before the grand jury
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  Speaker 1: that he had found the massage table in the north
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  Speaker 1: bathroom with the tub and not the south bathroom, Maxwell's
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  Speaker 1: claim would still fail. She has not shown that testimony
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  Speaker 1: errantly identifying the particular bathroom would have been perjurous as
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  Speaker 1: opposed to inadvertently incorrect. See United States v. Gonzalez, FRD 280-282,
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  Speaker 1: SDNY 1960. A bare allegation of perjury does not entitle
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  Speaker 1: an applicant to relief under Section 2255. United States v. Light,
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  Speaker 1: 2nd Circuit, 1986. Perjury requires that a witness believe that
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  Speaker 1: a testimony he gives is false. See also Salazar Espinoza,
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  Speaker 1: First United States, SDNY July 11, 2011. When false testimony
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  Speaker 1: is provided by a government witness without the prosecution's knowledge,
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  Speaker 1: due process is violated only if the testimony was material
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  Speaker 1: and the court is left with a firm belief that,
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  Speaker 1: but for the perjured testimony, the defendant would most likely
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  Speaker 1: not have been convicted. And had there been such an
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  Speaker 1: inconsistency between Detective Parkinson's 2006 and 2021 testimony, as to
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  Speaker 1: this particular, such would have been highly unlikely to impeach
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  Speaker 1: Detective Parkinson's credibility, given that the search had occurred more
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  Speaker 1: than 16 years before his trial testimony. And his testimony
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  Speaker 1: in general about finding the massage table in the house,
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  Speaker 1: in particular, was corroborated by other testimonial, documentary, and video evidence. C.E.G.G.X.296R
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  Speaker 1: at 23, 11, 2315 through 18. Search video showing massage
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  Speaker 1: table laid against a wall with photographs outside the door
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  Speaker 1: of the south bathroom with a shower. Carolyn's testimony that
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  Speaker 1: she went with Virginia to Epstein's bedroom into his bathroom
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  Speaker 1: area with a shower from which Virginia pulled out the
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  Speaker 1: massage table while Carolyn looked at all the photos that
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  Speaker 1: were on the wall. The massage table would still assuredly
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  Speaker 1: have been admitted at trial as it would still easily
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  Speaker 1: clear the relatively low bar for authentication. Rule 901 does
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  Speaker 1: not require a proponent of evidence to rule out all
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  Speaker 1: possibilities inconsistent with authenticity or to prove beyond any doubt
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  Speaker 1: that the evidence is what it reports to be. United
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  Speaker 1: States v. Gagliardi, 2nd Circuit, 2007. Standard for authentication is
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  Speaker 1: one of reasonable likelihood and is minimal testimony of a
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  Speaker 1: witness with knowledge that a matter is what it is
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  Speaker 1: claimed to be is sufficient to satisfy this standard. And
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  Speaker 1: had the massage table been found in the North bathroom
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  Speaker 1: with a bathtub as Maxwell claims Detective Parkinson's 2006 grand
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  Speaker 1: jury reflects, that fact would have further inculpated her, because
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  Speaker 1: that bathroom was the one containing Maxwell's photo, portrait, and
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  Speaker 1: personalized stationery. Fourth, contrary to Maxwell's claim, the massage table
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  Speaker 1: was far from the only evidence of interstate commerce adduced
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  Speaker 1: at trial. FedEx records and victim testimonies independently established that
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  Speaker 1: Epstein caused packages to be sent from New York to
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  Speaker 1: Carolyn in Florida. Carolyn's testimony that Epstein sent lingerie and
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  Speaker 1: other items from Manhattan to her home in West Palm Beach.
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  Speaker 1: Carolyn's testimony that she gave her home address to Maxwell
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  Speaker 1: because Maxwell had asked for it because Jeffrey Epstein wanted
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  Speaker 1: to send me some items. GX 801 through 803. FedEx
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  Speaker 1: records reflecting packages sent to Carolyn when she was 15
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  Speaker 1: years old. And the FedEx records show that Maxwell had
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  Speaker 1: used the same account to send packages from Epstein's office
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  Speaker 1: during the same time period. GX801 at 8, 802 at 405,
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  Speaker 1: 803 at 7. FedEx account invoices with Maxwell's name. And
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  Speaker 1: as the government argued in summation, these records severally establish
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  Speaker 1: the use of interstate commerce in connection with the charged defenses.
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  Speaker 1: Transcript at 2894 and 95. For all the reasons, This
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  Speaker 1: claim is meritless. D. Remaining claims including related to EFTA documents.
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  Speaker 1: Maxwell makes dozens of other claims that are conclusory and unsupported,
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  Speaker 1: mainly citing documents disclosed pursuant to the EFTA. Many of
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  Speaker 1: these documents were produced to Maxwell in discovery. Others reflect
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  Speaker 1: internal USAO-SDNY memoranda that summarize what certain individuals told the government,
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  Speaker 1: the contents of which were produced to Maxwell and its
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  Speaker 1: production of Jenksack material, which the government produced both as
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  Speaker 1: to testifying and non-testifying witnesses. And the remaining documents are
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  Speaker 1: at best irrelevant to and many under minor claims. See
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  Speaker 1: example 39-49-55. Maxwell's remaining claims are all meritless. E. Maxwell's
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  Speaker 1: request for a hearing. Maxwell seeks an evidentiary hearing on
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  Speaker 1: her claims. She is not entitled to one. Maxwell argues
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  Speaker 1: that but for the admission of the massage table that
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  Speaker 1: she would not have been convicted. She bases this claim
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  Speaker 1: on Juror 50's statement during a post-trial interview that the
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  Speaker 1: table had been crucial in interstate commerce. But for the
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  Speaker 1: reasons above, the massage table would have been admitted regardless
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  Speaker 1: of whether Maxwell had access to Detective Parkinson's 2006 grand
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  Speaker 1: jury transcript. Even had it not been, that reported comment
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  Speaker 1: by a single juror does not come close to showing
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  Speaker 1: that Maxwell... otherwise likely would have been acquitted. See United
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  Speaker 1: States v. Siddiqui, 2nd Circuit, 1992. As to the arguments
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  Speaker 1: not addressed in full in this decision, the Court adopts
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  Speaker 1: by reference the arguments by the government in its opposition,
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  Speaker 1: which comprehensively dispatches these. See E.G., Opposition at 49 and 52,
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  Speaker 1: arguing that other miscellaneous arguments by Maxwell likewise fail. See
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  Speaker 1: also Miranda v. Bennett, 2nd Circuit, 2003. Where a habeas
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  Speaker 1: petition is fashly inadequate, district court may deny it with
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  Speaker 1: the tersest of orders. STNY, November 12, 1993. Appropriate for
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  Speaker 1: district court not to discuss each of petitioners' frivolous claims.
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  Speaker 1: To warrant a hearing, the motion must set forth specific
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  Speaker 1: facts supported by competent evidence, raising detailed and controverted issues
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  Speaker 1: of fact that, if proved at a hearing, would entitle
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  Speaker 1: the defendant to relief. Gonzales v. United States, 2nd Circuit, 2013.
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  Speaker 1: Airy generalities, conclusory assertions, and hearsay statements will not suffice,
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  Speaker 1: because none of these would be admissible. Evidence out of hearing. U.S. v. Aiello,
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  Speaker 1: 2nd Circuit, 1987. Nor will vague, conclusory, or palpably incredible assertions,
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  Speaker 1: Gonzales 722, see also Puglisi v. U.S., 2nd Circuit, 2009.
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  Speaker 1: Bald allegations unsupported by evidentiary facts do not warrant a hearing.
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  Speaker 1: If it plainly appears from the motion, exhibits, and record
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  Speaker 1: of prior proceedings that the move-in is not entitled to relief,
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  Speaker 1: the judge must dismiss the motion without a hearing. For
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  Speaker 1: the reasons reviewed in depth above, Maxwell's petition falls very
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  Speaker 1: far from the mark. Nearly all its claims are procedurally barred.
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  Speaker 1: The overwhelming testimonial and documentary evidence adduced at trial conclusively
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  Speaker 1: established her guilt, and her petition claims are demonstrably meritless
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  Speaker 1: and generally based on speculation, distortion, and outright falsehoods. There's
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  Speaker 1: no fact that Maxwell fairly puts in dispute that has
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  Speaker 1: any potential to disturb the outcome of her trial. In
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  Speaker 1: these circumstances, there is no requirement to hold an evidentiary hearing. U.S. v.
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  Speaker 1: Lopez Cabrera, SDNY, March 23, 2023 No hearing where a
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  Speaker 1: defendant did not identify any issue of fact, let alone
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  Speaker 1: a controverted issue of consequential fact, of the sort that
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  Speaker 1: an evidentiary hearing would assist the court to resolve. U.S.
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  Speaker 1: 1st Robinson, SDNY, June 6, 2025. Conclusion. For the reasons above,
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  Speaker 1: the court denies Maxwell's petition for relief pursuant to U.S.
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  Speaker 1: Code 28, Section 2255. Maxwell has not made a substantial
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  Speaker 1: showing of denial of constitutional right. An appellate review is
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  Speaker 1: therefore not warranted. See U.S. 28, Section 2253, Love v. McRae,
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  Speaker 1: 2nd Circuit, 2005. The court certifies that any appeal from
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  Speaker 1: this order would not be taken in good faith. Informa
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  Speaker 1: pauperis status is thus denied for purposes of appeal. The
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  Speaker 1: clerk of court is respectfully directed to mail a copy
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  Speaker 1: of this decision to Maxwell at the address on file.
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  Speaker 1: terminate all pending motions and close case 25-SIV-10468. So ordered
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  Speaker 1: by Paul Engelmeyer and dated August 25th, 2026. All the
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  Speaker 1: information that goes with this episode can be found in
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  Speaker 1: the description box.