Ghislaine Maxwell, the convicted sex trafficker and associate of Jeffrey Epstein, has indicated she is willing to testify before Congress but only under certain conditions, including being granted immunity. In a letter sent to the House oversight committee on Tuesday, her lawyer David Markus outlined a series of demands that must be met for her to cooperate.
The House committee on oversight and government subpoenaed Maxwell last week to give a deposition at the federal prison in Tallahassee, Florida, where she is serving a 20-year sentence. However, Markus stated that testifying “from prison and without a grant of immunity” were “non-starters”. He added that Maxwell is actively pursuing post-conviction relief and feared her testimony could compromise her constitutional rights.
In the letter, Maxwell’s lawyer proposed several conditions: a grant of formal immunity, the interview not taking place at the correctional facility, advance notice of the committee’s questions, and the deposition being delayed until after the resolution of her Supreme Court petition and a forthcoming habeas petition. Markus wrote: “Ms Maxwell cannot risk further criminal exposure in a politically charged environment without formal immunity.”
A spokesperson for the oversight committee responded on Tuesday that the committee will not consider granting congressional immunity for her testimony. The committee said it will reply to Maxwell’s attorney soon but made clear it would not meet that demand.
In a separate plea, Maxwell’s lawyer also requested clemency, stating that if she were granted clemency, she would be “willing – and eager – to testify openly and honestly, in public, before Congress in Washington, DC”. The letter claims she welcomes the opportunity to “share the truth” and dispel misconceptions about her case.
The development comes amid ongoing pressure on the Trump administration to release more details about the Epstein case. Earlier this month, the Department of Justice faced bipartisan backlash for deciding not to release further documents despite prior promises by President Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi.
