Judge won’t bar public from Ghislaine Maxwell jury selection

By MICHAEL R. SISAK
Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — A judge has rejected British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell’s bid to block the public and news media from jury selection in her New York City trial on charges she recruited teenage girls for financier Jeffrey Epstein to sexually abuse. U.S. District Judge Alison J. Nathan said Thursday that the press and public will be allowed to view the selection proceedings next month via video feeds to an overflow courtroom and a courthouse press room. She said two pool reporters will be let into the courtroom as she questions prospective jurors. Nathan says she strove to balance the public’s right to access court proceedings with COVID-19 safety.