Ghislaine Maxwell’s prison experience ‘torture’

I think she is a flight risk - she has said she will place her money under the control of US authorities, but that doesn't mean she doesn't have money stashed away in other countries - and I am sure there are many influential friends who could spirit her away.

As for the conditions she is living in - do we have any proof of what her brother is saying? Are her conditions worse than any other prisoner? I am sure she is finding the meals inedible because she no longer has a personal chef.

Well, for starters, she is not on her yacht any more with staff at her beck & call. How notorious have fallen... She can pass the time penning "Autobiography". It will make a fascinating reading not only to the public, but to the prosecutors & judges, too.

...... she could have left America in the year before she was arrested, but did not....
eazybee, this is probably because she thought she would not be found in her isolated hideaway

Maybe there is no appetite for improving prison conditions because most people reserve their sympathies for the victims of crime rather than the perpetrators, despite all the inevitable cries from some quarters that it’s not their fault, they had a tough upbringing, society has failed them, they are drug addicts, alcoholics - we’ve heard it all before.

Meanwhile, long after prisoners have served their often derisory short sentences, their victims continue to suffer, often for the rest of their lives.

Personally I wish our prisons were as tough as the US ones, but no doubt they are on Joe Biden’s to do list.

GillT57

I agree Suziewoozie, prison reform is never a popular subject politically, and sadly, even on GN, we have had lots of the 'prison is like a holiday camp' crap misinformation peddled by the tabloids and regurgitated by people who have no experience of the prison system. An added problem with US prisons is that they are chiefly privately owned and run I believe, therefore there is no incentive to rehabilitate, educate or even get people out of remand and into the courtroom. I would have more sympathy with Ian Maxwell's concerns if he had been talking about the thousands of other remand prisoners, some kept away from their children for months, rather than just complaining about the treatment of his privileged sister

Agree absolutely Gill. Prison conditions are much more likely to be an issue if a privileged , well connected, white person is( unusually) at the receiving end. This case is of course caught up in the earlier failures to convict Epstein of the more serious charges years ago and then his ‘suicide’ when he was finally properly charged. They can’t afford to lose her now - and it’s very likely they would if she were released

I agree Suziewoozie, prison reform is never a popular subject politically, and sadly, even on GN, we have had lots of the 'prison is like a holiday camp' crap misinformation peddled by the tabloids and regurgitated by people who have no experience of the prison system. An added problem with US prisons is that they are chiefly privately owned and run I believe, therefore there is no incentive to rehabilitate, educate or even get people out of remand and into the courtroom. I would have more sympathy with Ian Maxwell's concerns if he had been talking about the thousands of other remand prisoners, some kept away from their children for months, rather than just complaining about the treatment of his privileged sister

If I agree with a poster I just say so - I would say that qualifying agreement as you did would actually put hesitant posters off as it makes GN sound even more tribal.

suziewoozie

Judy54

Innocent until proven guilty. Whether on remand or serving a sentence no one should be kept in these conditions.

Well plenty are and therefore there’s no reason to treat her differently. I haven’t heard of any pre-arrest campaigns by her or her brother to improve the lot of prisoners either in the US or UK.

Of course there's no reason to treat her any differently to others held on remand. That doesn't mean you can't think those conditions are unacceptable for anyone. I think lots of high profile people become campaigners only when an issue becomes relevant to their own circumstances, or those of their family and friends. He has to realise she is such a flight risk she will be held on remand until her trial, and is a fool if he doesn't. He should equally assert that the conditions his sister is incarcerated under are not fit for anyone, not try to make a special case for her.

The treatment of prisoners in general is awful and the fact that she is on remand is even more worrying. I would say that about anyone to be honest.

Don't worry, I expect you'll grasp it eventually SW but just in case - it's because some of us don't believe in belittling everything posters we often disagree with post. It's also to show other, perhaps more hesitant posters on GN that it's possible to disagree much of the time, but still find value in others opinions and behave decently towards them. It used to be called civility. I'll spare you from it in future.

She is on remand so should not be kept in these conditions. She has not yet faced trial, and it appears that they are punishing her on Epstein's behalf.
She could have left America in the year before she was arrested, but did not.

NellG

I know it's rare SW but I completely agree!

I never understand why posters feel the need to say that.

The problem is Gill is that, fundamentally, improving prison conditions scores no political brownie points. The prison population in the UK and the US are not representative of their population in general. Non-white, low socio-economic class,, health problems ( both physical and mental) learning disabilities, backgrounds of being in care, childhood abuse and deprivation are vastly over represented. As a society, there’s no evidence of improving prisons being anywhere near a political priority.

And it’s not just prisons, the whole criminal justice system here is falling apart, aggravated, but not caused by COVId. I’ve always read the reports of HMI of prisons and supported the work of the Howard Trust and Prison Reform Trust but it’s not a populist cause at all.

It is worth remembering that she is on remand, not convicted. She is obviously a flight risk, and potentially a 'suicide' risk like Epstein ( yeah, right), so maybe the authorities are making sure she makes it to trial. While I certainly do not have any sympathy for her if even some of the accusations are proved, I do think that the prison remand system in what is supposed to be a civilised country is dreadful. Imagine being stuck there for months if not years if you were innocent.

I know it's rare SW but I completely agree!

Judy54

Innocent until proven guilty. Whether on remand or serving a sentence no one should be kept in these conditions.

Well plenty are and therefore there’s no reason to treat her differently. I haven’t heard of any pre-arrest campaigns by her or her brother to improve the lot of prisoners either in the US or UK.

All prisoners should be deprived of liberty but not punished. The tiny cell ,inedible food, and brown water seem punitive.

One has heard about US prisons.

Innocent until proven guilty. Whether on remand or serving a sentence no one should be kept in these conditions.

Let me think about this......NO!

I believe the trial is in July.
She had better get used to the conditions as she could well be facing a lengthy sentence.

Like all adult women in privileged positions she made choices. Choices have consequences. This is hers.

We don’t know why it’s taking so long but I’d bet there are plenty of defence tactics being used that are as much to blame as on the prosecution side.

you do the crime..etc.
Documented evidence that she was procuring outside school gates for Epstein.
Sorry for her?
Nope.

I agree River she’s a huge flight risk and there are powerful/influential people who would sleep easier if she ‘disappeared’. After ‘losing’ Epstein, it would be extremely careless to lose a second one.

Conditions in US jails are notoriously bad, and whilst IMO no prison should be horrible in itself (the punishment is losing liberty, not living in constant misery), there is no reason I can think of why GM's case is any different from that of any other remand prisoner, or why she should get any sort of preferential treatment.

The case does seem to be taking a very long time, though. Maybe there should be a limit to the length of time that anyone can be held on remand without trial?