The juror in Ghislaine Maxwell’s trial who was accused of failing to reveal his own history of sexual abuse has admitted to the error under oath but insisted it was not a deliberate ploy to get on the jury.
The juror, who publicly identified himself to the media as Scotty David, made the admission at a hearing in Manhattan federal court on Tuesday after the Justice Department granted him immunity in exchange for his testimony.
At the start of the hearing, the juror said he intended Fifth Amendment right to avoid self-incrimination but waived it under the immunity offer.
Maxwell was convicted of grooming young girls for her “partner in crime” Jeffrey Epstein in a five-week sex-trafficking trial late last year.
Her last-ditch bid to have those charges dismissed hinges on the conduct of the 35-year-old juror, who has said in media interviews that he drew on his own experience when encouraging other jurors to find her guilty.
Maxwell’s lawyers have argued that the juror’s failure to disclose his history in jury selection is grounds for a retrial.
