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Ghislaine Maxwell to Plead the Fifth, Declines House Epstein Inquiry, Oversight Chair Says

Key point: House Oversight Chair James Comer says Ghislaine Maxwell will invoke her Fifth Amendment right and refuse to answer questions in the committee's probe of Jeffrey Epstein's network and the Justice Department.

The committee subpoenaed Maxwell in July; her lawyers initially suggested she might testify after appeals were exhausted but later demanded immunity and pre-access to questions. Maxwell is serving a 20-year sentence after her 2022 conviction and reportedly met with DOJ investigators recently. Reports also say she may seek a commutation from President Donald Trump.

09:48 AM, 11/22/2025Politics
Ghislaine Maxwell to Plead the Fifth, Declines House Epstein Inquiry, Oversight Chair Says

House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer says Ghislaine Maxwell, the imprisoned former socialite convicted in the Jeffrey Epstein case, will invoke her Fifth Amendment right and refuse to answer questions in the committee's probe of Epstein's network and the Justice Department's handling of the matter.

"Her lawyers have replied that she's not going to answer any questions," Comer said. "She's only going to plead the Fifth. I mean, I could spend a bunch of taxpayer dollars to send staff and members down there, and if she's going to plead the Fifth, I don't know that that's a good investment."

The committee subpoenaed Maxwell in July as it renewed scrutiny of Epstein's network. Maxwell's legal team initially left open the possibility of cooperating once her appeals were exhausted, but after the Supreme Court declined to revisit her conviction, her attorneys shifted course and demanded immunity from future prosecution and advance access to the committee's questions. Comer said those terms were unacceptable and warned in July that she would likely invoke her Fifth Amendment rights if the committee rejected her conditions.

Maxwell is serving a 20-year sentence imposed in 2022 after her conviction for child sex trafficking. She reportedly spoke with Justice Department investigators in a two-day interview in July before being transferred to a federal minimum-security prison camp in Texas — a move that critics say raises questions about unusually favorable treatment. Media reports also indicate she is preparing a commutation request to President Donald Trump.

Comer suggested that attempting an in-person interview in the prison would be a poor use of resources if Maxwell will invoke the Fifth, leaving the committee to weigh next steps in its investigation.

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Ghislaine Maxwell to Plead the Fifth, Declines House Epstein Inquiry, Oversight Chair Says - CRBC News