Judicial decision
Prince Andrew can be charged with rape – Buckingham Palace is silent
Prince Andrew has repeatedly and firmly denied the allegations made once morest him by Giuffre
© Neil Hall / DPA
Britain’s Prince Andrew has failed in an attempt to halt a US abuse charge once morest him. A New York court dismissed objections from Andrew’s attorneys.
The British Prince Andrew has failed with a motion to dismiss an abuse suit once morest him in the United States. The responsible New York federal judge Lewis Kaplan rejected the application in a decision published on Wednesday, paving the way for the proceedings to continue.
Queen Elizabeth II’s son lawyers had called for the civil suit to be dismissed because plaintiff Virginia Giuffre had entered into an agreement with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein in 2009. In the until recently secret agreement, Giuffre had promised not to sue the US multimillionaire Epstein for sexual offenses or “other potential accused” in this context in return for $ 500,000.
Prince Andrew’s lawyers argued at a hearing last week that Giuffre had “waived” their right to sue. The plaintiff’s lawyers stated that the agreement did not apply to the prince.
The now 38-year-old claims to have been sexually abused several times in 2001 by Prince Andrew at the age of 17. Epstein then “loaned” them to the Royal. Giuffre is now demanding compensation in an undisclosed amount. The civil trial might begin in the fall.
Prince Andrew rejects the allegations – Buckingham Palace comments on the judge’s decision
Prince Andrew has repeatedly and firmly denied the allegations made once morest him by Giuffre. Because of the allegations and his earlier contacts with Epstein, however, he gave up his royal duties and largely withdrew from the public.
Following Kaplan’s latest decision, Buckingham Palace is said to have refused to comment, citing the “ongoing legal battle”. Several British media reports unanimously.
Epstein, convicted of sex crimes in 2008, was found dead in his New York prison cell in August 2019 following being arrested once more. According to the authorities, he committed suicide.
Epstein’s longtime confidante Ghislaine Maxwell was found guilty of sex trafficking by the jury in late December in a trial in New York. According to the indictment, the British had systematically recruited minors for Epstein over the years, who were then sexually abused by him. The sentence once morest Maxwell has not yet been announced, the 60-year-old faces a decade-long prison sentence. No criminal proceedings have been initiated once morest Prince Andrew.
