Arthur Aidala Claims Ghislaine Maxwell’s Trial Was Flawed, Seeks to Overturn Conviction

Arthur L.’ Artie’ Aidala is the managing partner of the law firm Aidala, Bertuna & Kamins in New York City. 

His clients include Rudolph Giuliani, Harvey Weinstein, Roger Ailes, Alan Dershowitz, and Lawrence Taylor, a former NFL linebacker.

The New York Times called him “The Nice-Guy Lawyer For America’s Tabloid Villains.”

Aidala also represented FR writer Richard Luthmann in Federal and New York State criminal cases.

Ghislaine Maxwell retained Aidala to represent her in an appeal before The US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

Maxwell, 61, was convicted of sex trafficking four minors in conspiracy with the late Jeffrey Epstein when she was in her thirties, alleging crimes between 1995-2001.

The DOJ also charged her with perjury, based on statements she made in a civil case where she denied “recruiting” girls for Epstein.

A federal judge sentenced Maxwell to 20 years in prison in June 2022.

Aidala accused the Department of Justice of prosecuting Maxwell “as a proxy” for Epstein, whose death in federal custody eliminated the opportunity to prosecute him and potentially others he might have named.

Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell

In the appeal, Aidala and his law partner Diana Fabi Samson claim “several errors” were made at Maxwell’s trial.

The lawyers said in a statement:

“In its zeal to pin the blame for its own incompetence and for Epstein’s crimes on Ms. Maxwell, the Government breached its promise not to prosecute her, charged her with time-barred offenses, resurrected and recast decades-old allegations for conduct previously ascribed to Epstein and other named assistants, and joined forces with plaintiffs’ attorneys, whose interests were financial, to develop new allegations out of faded, distorted, and motivated memories. “

Aidala’s papers indicate that Maxwell entered into a non-prosecution agreement with the federal government and Epstein on Sept. 24, 2007, after being named a “potential co-conspirator.”

The case should be thrown out, he argues, since the Court is obliged to hold the executive branch to its solemn and written promises.

The attorneys’ papers claim that the 5-year statute of limitations barred the DOJ from bringing charges against Maxwell. The defense attorneys argue the government’s attempts at expanding the statute of limitations back to the late 20th century failed as a matter of law.
Aidala claims the government committed a fatal error by retroactively applying statutory charges based on decades-old conduct alleged to have occurred before the statutes were enacted.

There were other problems with the case. One juror, “#50,” chose not to reveal to the judge or attorneys before his selection that he was once a victim of sexual abuse. He did not fail to share that information to his fellow jurors when, during deliberations, he claimed he experienced the “exact same thing” as Epstein and Maxwell’s victims during his childhood and in effect used Maxwell as a proxy to prosecute his own abuser.

He used his undisclosed experience to convince other jurors that Maxwell was guilty. The juror lied or lied by omission to serve on a jury he surely would have been excluded from.

Aidala claims the juror’s situation and actions tainted the jury, denying Maxwell a right to a “fair and impartial” trial. Many people feel that this is irrelevant because due process only applies to popular defendants.

Aidala also claims Maxwell was convicted on counts not charged in her indictment.
He claims the District Court failed to explain all the elements of two charges, violating the Fifth Amendment’s Grand Jury Clause and the Sixth Amendment’s notice requirements.
When a judge does not tell a jury all the elements of a crime needed to convict, they are ripe for a false conviction.

The papers argue that the judge’s jury instructions led to a “constructive amendment of the indictment.”

Aidala also argues that the court “made several errors in sentencing.” Maxwell requests re-sentencing or a “substantial” reduction in her sentence.
In support of their arguments, Aidala made an interesting statement about the harsh pre-trial conditions Maxwell faced:

From the time of her arrest, Ms. Maxwell was held in solitary confinement in the Brooklyn [Metropolitan Detention] Center, under inhumane conditions.  The District Court denied four bail applications and dozens of applications to ameliorate her conditions of confinement ranging from sleep deprivation to lack of access to legal counsel and discovery to prepare for trial.  By the time of trial, she was so disoriented and diminished that she was unable meaningfully to assist in her own defense, much less to testify.”

Frank Report wrote several articles about the conditions she experienced, which virtually assured her of being unable to prepare for her trial.

For about one year, she was housed in a 6’x9′ isolation cell in a unit with no other inmates — in the East Tower at MDC — which the BOP shut down because of HVAC and electrical problems.

She was detained in Brooklyn, in the Eastern District of New York, though she was tried in the Southern District. This was because her alleged coconspirator, Epstein, was held at the SDNY’s detention center, the Metropolitan Correctional Center, where he was permanently corrected.

Inside MDC. Photo published in Daily Mirror

The Frank Report previously wrote about the conditions at the Brooklyn MDC and how Maxwell was treated there:

In addition to keeping her in solitary confinement, the prosecutors enjoyed telling scandalous stories about her in prison. One of them was that corrections officers had to force Maxwell to flush her toilet and clean her cell.

Prosecutors wrote while she was awaiting trial, “MDC staff directed the defendant to clean her cell because it had become very dirty. Among other things, MDC staff noted that the defendant frequently did not flush her toilet after using it, which caused the cell to smell,” they wrote.

Her attorney disputed this narrative, writing that Maxwell flushed her toilet frequently, just like people who do not have the convenience of having their toilet inches from their bed.

The smell seems to have been caused by overflowing toilets in the cellblock above.

Her siblings, who created a website to support Maxwell,  described conditions writing at the time: “She is under round-the-clock surveillance by multiple guards and cameras, including one mobile camera that captures her every move.”

To hear prosecutors tell it, conditions were reasonable for Maxwell. They say she did not face harassment by guards. And she was provided with a Bible and a computer to work on her case. 

Her family painted a different picture.

They write, “Ghislaine is daily subjected to a range of invasive procedures. These include multiple physical searches a day, including having guards looking inside in her mouth… and the pointing of a flashlight into her isolation cell – where she is held approximately 12 hours every day – every 15 minutes during the night, making sleep impossible for her.

“Her cell consists of a 6ft x 9ft space, with a concrete bed and toilet… There is no flat surface in her cell for her to work on the legal documentation… The drinking water is full of contaminants… Food has been fed to her on plastic trays that have melted when exposed to microwaved heating, making the food inedible and unsafe.  There is no natural light in the cell, only fluorescent lights so bright that they hurt her eyes.” ‘

Maxwell Family Starts Website to Show Ghislaine’s Innocence – As Questions About Due Process Arise

Was Toilet Flushing Failure a Lie By Federal Prosecutors to ‘Dirty up’ Ghislaine Maxwell?- Judge Nathan Might Want to find Out

DOJ Uses Brooklyn MDC to Torture Defendants Into Plea Deals

For Raniere, Hardest Part of 6-Week Trial Was Prison-to-Court Abusive Protocol

Luthmann: At Brooklyn MDC, I Was a ‘Jailhouse Lawyer’ For Gangsters Paid in Fish

The US Attorney’s Office has 90 days to respond to the appeal. After that, Aidala’s office will have an opportunity to submit a reply. A hearing is expected as early as late summer.

Ghislane Maxwell remains in the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons as an inmate at FCI-Tallahassee, a facility in Florida. She has been teaching yoga and etiquette classes there.

Some believe that Aidala may help Maxwell not spend the next decade and a half in prison.

Frank Report writer, Luthmann said, “I used Arthur. So did Alan Dershowitz. We both know plenty of lawyers. Dershowitz taught at Harvard forever. He chose Arthur Aidala, which speaks volumes.”

NFL player Lawrence Taylor said, “Arthur Aidala saved my life.”

Aidala has a weekday radio show on AM 970 in New York City. The show’s website states, “The Arthur Aidala Power Hour radio show blends Arthur’s courtroom experiences with his perspective as a lifetime New Yorker.”

Aidala hosts guests from sports, stage and screen, politics, and current events.

At one time, Maxwell led a glamorous life, replete with association with celebrities and   

If any lawyer could help Maxwell, it will be one who has a combination of brains, legal skill, connections, and media savvy. The latter probably trumps all.

Aidala might be Maxwell’s best chance.