DOJ-OGR-00008388.jpg
Extracted Text (OCR)
Case 1:20-cr-00330-PAE Document548- Filed 12/15/21 Page2of6
At a conference on November 1, 2021, the Court granted the Government’s motion in
limine to permit alleged victims to testify under pseudonyms and, as a consequence, to redact
their real identities from exhibits. Nov. 1 Tr. at 6. That motion was granted for two primary
reasons. First, the Court has a statutory duty to protect an alleged crime victim’s “right to be
treated with fairness and with respect for the victim’s dignity and privacy.” 18 U.S.C. §
3771(a)(8). Nov. 1 Tr. at 6-7. Because of the “sensitive and inflammatory nature of the conduct
alleged” the Court found that pseudonyms were necessary to protect that right. /d. at 8. Second,
if alleged victims of abuse were subject to publicity, harassment, and embarrassment, “other
alleged victims of sex crimes may be deterred from coming forward” to report abuse. /d. The
Court emphasized that the Government’s proposal is “quite common” among courts in this
circuit, citing six such cases. /d. at 7-8. As a consequence of protecting alleged victims, the
Court further permitted pseudonyms for several witnesses that were not alleged victims
themselves “because the disclosure of their identities would necessarily reveal the identities of
the alleged victims.” /d. at 8.
These reasons for granting the Government’s prior motion do not apply to the Defense’s
present request. Based on the current proffer, none of the Defense’s witnesses intend to testify to
sensitive personal topics or sexual conduct. Rather, they all are anticipated to deny misconduct
by Epstein and Ms. Maxwell, and therefore do not qualify as victims under § 3771. Further,
there is no similar concern, as there are for alleged victims of sexual abuse, that denying the use
of pseudonyms will deter reports of misconduct.
It is notable that the Defense does not cite in support of its motion a single case in which
a court granted the use of pseudonyms to defense witnesses. Neither does the Government. And
nor could the Court after significant independent research. It appears, then, that the Defense’s
DOJ-OGR- 00008388
Extracted Information
Document Details
| Filename | DOJ-OGR-00008388.jpg |
| File Size | 713.1 KB |
| OCR Confidence | 94.6% |
| Has Readable Text | Yes |
| Text Length | 2,123 characters |
| Indexed | 2026-02-03 17:34:25.453218 |