The woman who had accused Jeffrey Epstein of sexually abusing her when she was a teenager says prosecutors violated her rights as a victim when they agreed to a deal with the disgraced American financier and philanthropist who died in 2019.
Courtney Wild filed a petition with the U.S. Supreme Court Tuesday, asking the justices to rule on whether prosecutors should be required to discuss potential agreements with alleged victims before striking a deal.
Critics questioned the non-prosecution, “sweetheart” agreement made with Epstein in 2008, when he pleaded guilty to two Florida state charges of soliciting and paying a minor for sex. That agreement precluded more severe federal charges that carried the possibility of life in prison.
Wild’s attorneys have asked the high court to overturn a 7-to-4 appeals court decision from the 11th Circuit this summer that determined she could not file a civil action citing the Crime Victims’ Rights Act. The court condemned prosecutors’ decision as “shameful,” but said Wild had no standing to file without an ongoing federal criminal case.
“The … decision leaves the Government free to negotiate secret, pre-indictment non-prosecution agreements without informing crime victims,” Wild’s attorneys said in the filing.
“It was only due to unusual circumstances that Jeffrey Epstein’s [agreement] was revealed to the victims — and the public,” the attorneys’ pleading continued. “In future cases, there is no guarantee that the Government will disclose its clandestine [agreements], much less disclose them in a way that would permit the kind of district and appellate court challenges that occurred here.”
Victims have claimed Jeffrey Epstein sexually abused dozens of teenage girls over a decade, alleging his associates prowled for young girls in high school parking lots.
A judge ordered Epstein be held without bond in a Manhattan prison as he awaited trial. But authorities said they found the 66-year old unresponsive in his cell in August 2019, pointing to suicide. After Epstein's death, the judge vacated the charges, saying he could no longer be prosecuted.
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