Acting US attorney general Todd Blanche has told lawmakers he would not recommend a pardon for Ghislaine Maxwell, the British socialite and longtime associate of Jeffrey Epstein who is serving a 20-year sentence for sex-trafficking crimes. Blanche made the comments during a Senate appropriations subcommittee hearing on Tuesday, responding to a question from Senator Chris Van Hollen.
Van Hollen, a Democrat from Maryland, asked Blanche whether the justice department could commit to not recommending a pardon for Maxwell. “Yes, I can commit to that, of course,” Blanche replied. The statement comes after Maxwell exhausted her appeals, with the US Supreme Court declining to hear her petition in October.
Earlier this year, Maxwell appeared before the House oversight committee but invoked her Fifth Amendment right, refusing to answer questions unless granted clemency. Reports in April suggested committee members were divided over whether President Trump should consider a pardon in exchange for her cooperation in the Epstein investigation.
Blanche, a former personal lawyer for Trump, denied that the president personally sent him to interview Maxwell last year, and said he did not know whether she was receiving favourable treatment after being transferred to a minimum-security prison in Texas. Experts described the transfer as “unprecedented”.
Survivors of Epstein’s abuse have expressed outrage at any suggestion of clemency. Spencer Kuvin, a lawyer for several survivors, said: “Any talk of clemency for Ghislaine Maxwell in exchange for testimony turns justice on its head.” During the hearing, Van Hollen challenged Blanche to meet with survivors, which Blanche agreed to do, though a group of 17 survivors later issued a statement saying he had not met with any of them.
