Jeffrey Epstein kept many secrets from ex-girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell, a defence lawyer said at the close of the British socialite's sex abuse trial on Monday, arguing prosecutors did not prove she knew about his activities with teenage girls.
Maxwell (59) is accused of recruiting and grooming four teenage girls for the late financier to abuse between 1994 and 2004.
On trial for three weeks, she has pleaded not guilty to charges of sex trafficking and other crimes. Epstein killed himself in a Manhattan jail cell in 2019 at the age of 66 while awaiting trial on sex abuse charges.
Lawyer Laura Menninger said Maxwell was an "innocent woman."
She said Maxwell was unaware Epstein was seeing other women when they dated in the 1990s, part of an effort to argue that no matter how much time she spent with him, the government did not have evidence that she knew Epstein was abusing teenagers.
"Everyone knew Jeffrey was keeping secrets from Ghislaine, except Ghislaine," Menninger said, in her closing arguments.
She said prosecutors were trying to blame Maxwell for Epstein's "sins."
'Partner in crime'
Earlier on Monday, prosecutor Alison Moe said Maxwell was Epstein's "partner in crime." Maxwell's presence assuaged teenagers who otherwise would have found Epstein "creepy" to think that touching him was normal behavior, Moe said.
Moe argued that Maxwell's presence made young girls feel comfortable spending time with Epstein. Otherwise, receiving an invitation to spend time with a middle-aged man would have "set off alarm bells," Moe said.
"Epstein could not have done this alone," Moe said. "When that man is accompanied by a posh, smiling, respectable, age-appropriate woman, that's when everything starts to seem legitimate."
Menninger countered that the accusers did not mention Maxwell's role during initial interviews with law enforcement, and said they were motivated to implicate Maxwell by the prospect of a payout from Epstein's estate.
"They all changed their stories when the Epstein victims' compensation fund was opened up," Menninger told the jury. "That should make you hesitate.
Menninger said that after Epstein died, prosecutors "pivoted" to accusing Maxwell, part of the defense's argument that she is being scapegoated for Epstein's actions.
"We are not here to defend Jeffrey Epstein," Menninger said. "The government in this case has now pivoted because Epstein's not here and they said her too, her too."
Prosecutors will present a rebuttal before the jury begins deliberations.
