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Prince Andrew seeks trial by jury in US case on sex abuse allegations

Prince Andrew has asked a New York judge for a jury trial as he has again rejected allegations of sexually abusing one of the last convicted sex offender accusers, Jeffrey Epstein.

In court documents filed on Wednesday, the Royal Family admitted to meeting Epstein in or around 1999. Epstein was found hanged in a New York jail cell in August 2019 after being charged with trafficking underage girls for sexual abuse.

However, Prince Andrew denied statement of Virginia Roberts Giuffre that he sexually abused her when she was under 18 and that Epstein trafficked girls for him.

“A jury trial is strategically beneficial for the prince because it requires Giuffre to convince six of the six juries that she was sexually abused. Those are better numbers than persuading a judge in a bench trial,” said Neama Rahmani, former federal prosecutor and president of West Coast Trial Lawyers. While a settlement is still possible, Rahmani speculates that it may be unlikely because Giuffre’s desire to testify publicly.

The filing comes after judge Lewis Kaplan this month rejected proposal by the Duke of York to dismiss the case on the grounds that he was covered up by a 2009 secret agreement between Epstein and Giuffre.

Under the terms of that settlement, which was made public, Giuffre received $500,000 in exchange for the dismissal of all claims against Epstein as well as “any other person or entity that may be deemed deemed to have been filed.” potential defendant”.

The Royal Family’s lawyers have argued he should not be “dragged” to court 20 years after being accused of abuse, adding that memories fade, witnesses die or could be detained and documents may disappear or be destroyed.

Giuffre’s attorneys have argued that her allegations are unequivocal.

Buckingham Palace this month said Prince Andrew will stop using title “His Royal Highness” and lost his role as royal patron to several organizations.

The Duke of York announced in 2019 that he would step down from his official duties after one BBC TV interview in which he tries to explain his relationship with Epstein and refute Giuffre’s accusations.

A photo released alongside court documents shows the prince putting his arm around the waist of a young Giuffre. Ghislaine Maxwell, who last month was guilty by a New York grand jury on criminal sex trafficking charges related to her long-term relationship with Epstein, is taking a side in the photo.

Prince Andrew lacks “enough information to admit or deny the allegation that there is photographic evidence of his alleged meeting with Giuffre,” according to Wednesday’s filing.

An attorney representing Giuffre did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Additional reporting by Joshua Chaffin in New York

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