Ghislaine Maxwell, feds request proposed jury questionnaire be sealed from public in sex crimes case

Federal prosecutors and Jeffrey Epstein's one-time girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell requested that the judge overseeing her case keep a proposed questionnaire for finding potential jurors sealed from public viewing before her upcoming trial in November.

In a letter filed in court Tuesday, prosecutors said Maxwell's lawyers requested they keep the questionnaire and oral questions for potential jurors hidden "to avoid media coverage that may prejudice the jury selection process," according to CNBC.

"The Government consents to the defense's request," prosecutors from the US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York wrote to Manhattan federal Judge Alison Nathan. Nathan will reportedly preside over Maxwell's trial next month.

The letter also noted objections that Maxwell's lawyers and prosecutors had with specific questions in the questionnaires. "Jury questionnaires, as a rule, include queries about whether a potential juror has prior knowledge of a criminal case, from news articles or other sources, whether they know people connected to the case, and whether they or people they know have been victims of crimes," wrote CNBC.

Maxwell was arrested in July of 2020 and faces charged that include helping Epstein recruit underage girls for sexual acts. She pleaded not guilty in the case and has been held in a Brooklyn federal jail without bail since last year. Her November trial will be related only to the sex-related charges. At later date, she will be tried at a later date for a perjury case.