Judge Blocks Lawyers From Identifying Epstein’s Sex Abuse Accusers

The written ruling by U.S. District Judge Alison J. Nathan, the presiding judge in a criminal case against Maxwell, came as a trove of court records from a settled defamation lawsuit against Maxwell by alleged victim Virginia Giuffre were released, repeating an allegation from one alleged victim—Jane Doe #3—that former Harvard Law professor Alan Dershowitz is one of the men to whom she was trafficked, an allegation Dershowitz denies.

The non-disclosure ruling applies even to women who have publicly come forward as Epstein’s victims, according to the Associated Press, going a step further than the prosecutor’s request to block Maxwell’s lawyers from publicly identifying anonymous witnesses, to protect them against harassment and intimidation that could make them reluctant to cooperate in the government’s case.

Noting that “not all accusations or public statements are equal,” Judge Nathan wrote, adding that “deciding to participate in or contribute to a criminal investigation or prosecution is a far different matter than simply making a public statement ‘relating to’ Ms. Maxwell or Jeffrey Epstein, particularly since such a statement might have occurred decades ago and have no relevance to the charges in this case.”

Maxwell is being held without bail in a Brooklyn federal prison on charges of enticing and transporting minors as part of Epstein’s alleged sex ring, along with committing perjury during 2016 depositions that are part of the Giuffre defamation case; Giuffre is not one of the three alleged victims in the current criminal case against Maxwell.

Epstein died by suicide while in custody awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges last year; Maxwell has entered a not guilty plea to sex trafficking charges and has denied all previous allegations.

Held back from the trove of court records released Thursday were Maxwell’s 2016 depositions from Giuffre’s civil lawsuit, as Maxwell’s lawyers appeal to keep the documents, which already are under a protective order and classified as confidential, under wraps.