Ghislaine Maxwell has been placed on suicide watch, her attorney has revealed.
As reported by CNN, 60-year-old Maxwell is set to be sentenced on Tuesday (June 28) in Manhattan federal court after being found guilty on five of the six charges brought against her in late December. These charges include sex trafficking a minor.
The other charges are related to the allegations of abuse against young girls in conjunction with wealthy American financier Jeffrey Epstein
Now, Maxwell's attorney - Bobbi Sternheim - has revealed in a letter filed on Saturday that the former socialite has been removed from general population at the Metropolitan Detention Center and placed in solitary confinement on suicide watch.
What's more, Sternheim says that the decision to move his client - which happened on Friday - was made without a psychological evaluation and "without justification".
In her letter, Sternheim writes that she met with Maxwell at the federal detention facility in Brooklyn yesterday and states that "she is not suicidal." Sternheim added that a psychologist evaluated Maxwell on Saturday morning and also determined that the former socialite is not suicidal.
Reuters adds that Sternheim is now fighting to have Tuesday's sentencing delayed due to the fact that Maxwell is "unable to properly prepare, for sentencing".
Steinheim writes: "If Ms. Maxwell remains on suicide watch, is prohibited from reviewing legal materials prior to sentencing, becomes sleep deprived, and is denied sufficient time to meet with and confer with counsel, we will be formally moving on Monday for an adjournment."
In a letter to the judge overseeing Maxwell's case, Maxwell's lawyer, Bobbi Sternheim, said her client is "unable to properly prepare, for sentencing," after officials at the Metropolitan Detention Center on Friday declared the suicide watch and abruptly moved Maxwell to solitary confinement.
CNN reports that Maxwell could have been placed on suicide watch as a result of her connections with Epstein.
Epstein first came under investigation by police back in 2005 after being accused of committing crimes against minors. In 2008, he pleaded guilty to state charges in Florida of soliciting and procuring a minor for prostitution - this plea deal was later ruled to be illegal as a number of his victims weren’t consulted during the sentencing.
He was arrested once again in July 2019, and later found unresponsive in his cell on August 10.
At the age of 66, Epstein was pronounced dead after being transported to a nearby hospital. His death was ruled an apparent suicide.
Per Reuters, prosecutors will be arguing that Maxwell should be sentenced to a minimum of 30 years in prison.