Former Jeffrey Epstein confidante and convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell was placed on suicide watch Friday and remained there Monday ahead of her scheduled sentencing in the federal case.
Maxwell’s attorney wrote to the court Saturday that Maxwell had been removed from the general population at Brooklyn's Metropolitan Detention Center, along with her normal clothing and legal papers, and put on suicide watch.
Bobbi Sternheim wrote that Maxwell had been provided a “suicide smock” to wear and asserted, in bold type in her letter, that Maxwell "is not suicidal."
Sternheim told the court that she was considering asking for a delay in the sentencing because Maxwell couldn’t review necessary legal documents, according to the legal filings.
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In response, prosecutors wrote to the court Sunday saying Maxwell herself e-mailed the Bureau of Prison’s Inspect General (IG) on Friday saying she was in fear for her safety. They wrote, "apparently the defendant claimed to the IG that she feared MDC staff members were threatening her safety."
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Prosecutors say that it is the policy of the jail that when inmates are at a heightened risk of self-harm and raise a safety concern, they are put on suicide watch. At least two other inmates recently experienced the same protocol, they added.
"Although the defendant has claimed to psychology staff that she is not suicidal, she has refused to answer psychology staff’s questions regarding the threat she reported to the IG," prosecutors wrote, according to the filings.
"Given the defendant’s inconsistent accounts to the IG and to psychology staff, the Chief Psychologist assesses the defendant to be at additional risk of self-harm, as it appears she may be attempting to be transferred to a single cell where she can engage in self-harm," they continued.
Judge Alison Nathan says that she called the jail and spoke directly to the warden, who confirmed that Maxwell had access to her legal documents and a “writing implement."
Epstein was charged before Maxwell in July 2019 and died by suicide on Aug. 10, 2019, while awaiting trial at a different federal jail facility in Manhattan.
Maxwell’s sentencing is scheduled for Tuesday morning in federal court.
