Jane Doe Victim Impact Statement — Maxwell Sentencing

VICTIM IMPACT STATEMENT — JANE DOE SENTENCING HEARING OF GHISLAINE MAXWELL UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. GHISLAINE MAXWELL Case No. 1:20-cr-00330 (AJN) UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT, SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK June 28, 2022 The following is a victim impact statement read at the sentencing hearing of Ghislaine Maxwell before Judge Alison J. Nathan in the Southern District of New York. The statement was delivered by a victim identified as Jane Doe, whose identity was protected under the court's standing order regarding victim anonymity. Your Honor, I submit this statement to describe the impact that the crimes committed by Ghislaine Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein have had on my life. I was a child when I was first introduced to Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. What followed was a period of sustained sexual abuse that has shaped every aspect of my existence in the decades since. Ghislaine Maxwell was not a passive bystander. She was an active participant in the grooming, manipulation, and abuse of young girls. She used her position, her charm, and her sophistication to gain our trust and then systematically betrayed that trust in the most devastating way imaginable. She made the abuse seem normal. She scheduled encounters. She instructed us on how to behave and what to expect. Without Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein's operation could not have functioned as it did. I have spent years in therapy attempting to process the trauma inflicted upon me. I have struggled with post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression, and an inability to trust others. My relationships have suffered. My career has been affected. There are days when the memories are so overwhelming that basic functioning becomes a challenge. The abuse did not end when the physical contact stopped. It has followed me every day of my life. I watched as Jeffrey Epstein received a lenient sentence under the 2008 non-prosecution agreement in Florida. I watched as he continued to live freely, with access to wealth and influence, while I and other survivors carried the weight of what he had done. When Epstein was arrested again in July 2019 on federal sex trafficking charges brought by the Southern District of New York, I felt a moment of hope. His death on August 10, 2019, at the Metropolitan Correctional Center denied us the justice of a trial. The conviction of Ghislaine Maxwell on December 29, 2021, on five of six counts provided some measure of accountability. But accountability is not healing. The sentence imposed by this Court will not undo the damage that was done. It will, however, send a message that those who facilitate and participate in the sexual exploitation of children will face consequences, regardless of their wealth or social standing. I ask this Court to impose the maximum sentence permitted by law. Ghislaine Maxwell showed no mercy to the children she helped abuse. She deserves no leniency now. Respectfully submitted, Jane Doe Sentencing Hearing: June 28, 2022 Judge Alison J. Nathan presiding Sentence imposed: 240 months (20 years) imprisonment