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Lawyers for convicted sex offender Ghislaine Maxwell have petitioned for a new trial after learning that one of the jurors was the victim of sexual assault.
The juror, identified as 35-year-old Scotty David, has done several interviews, in which he said his past experience as a victim helped him convince some members of the jury to believe the women who testified against Maxwell.
Scotty said that several jurors questioned the accuracy of the testimony of the women and that he decided to share his experience as a survivor of childhood sexual abuse.
"When I shared that, they were able to sort of come around on, they were able to come around on the memory aspect of the sexual abuse," he told Reuters in a phone interview.
Scotty reportedly did not reveal that he was sexually abused as a child even though the initial jury questionnaire specifically asked: "Have you or a friend or family member ever been the victim of sexual harassment, sexual abuse, or sexual assault?"
He told Reuters that he "flew through" the questionnaire and did not remember being asked about his history of being sexually abused as a child.
Maxwell's lawyers argue that she deserves a new trial because of Scotty's omission and because he used his experience to sway members of the jury.
"According to the juror, his disclosure influenced the deliberations and convinced other members of the jury to convict Ms. Maxwell," Maxwell's attorney Christian Everdell wrote in a filing.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Maurene Comey also raised concerns about the issue.
"Assuming the accuracy of the reporting, the juror asserted that he 'flew through' the prospective juror questionnaire and does not recall being asked whether he had been a victim of sexual abuse, but stated that 'he would have answered honestly,'" Comey wrote. "Based on the foregoing, the government believes the court should conduct an inquiry."
U.S. District Judge Alison Nathan will conduct an inquiry into the matter and expects to hold a hearing on the issue in the next month.