Supreme Court to consider Ghislaine Maxwell's appeal to reverse sex trafficking conviction

The U.S. Supreme Court Monday will begin discussion of which appeals to consider for the upcoming term — and among those cases hitting justices' desks is a petition from convicted child sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell.

Maxwell, who is a convicted Jeffrey Epstein associate, is asking the high court to reverse her sex trafficking conviction and 20-year prison sentence, MSNBC reports.

And while most appeals are denied, her petition could put the justices center stage in the political scandal involving the late financier, his relationship with President Donald Trump and the mounting calls to release the Epstein files amid the Trump administration's struggle to push the issue away.

Maxwell has argued that she was unfairly charged in New York and cites Epstein's "sweetheart deal," penned by attorney Alan Dershowitz and approved by Alex Acosta, who served under former President George W. Bush and Trump. That deal says "the United States also agrees that it will not institute any criminal charges against any potential co-conspirators of Epstein.”

The Trump administration's Department of Justice has opposed her petition.

If the high court grants the review, then her attorneys would file another series of briefs and then the court would set a hearing date where Maxwell's lawyers and the DOJ would argue before the court. If that's the case, the court would then issue a written decision, which would be sometime in early July.

The high court begins its next term on Oct. 6. It would need four justices to grant review of an appeal.

If the appeal is denied, then it would uphold the lower court's ruling against her.

Earlier this summer, Maxwell had an unusual meeting with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, who is a former personal lawyer of Trump. During the exchange, she said she never saw Trump do anything "inappropriate" and called him a "gentleman."

In August, she was moved from a Florida prison to a minimum-security facility in Texas, where Jen Shah, former “Real Housewives of Salt Lake City” cast member, and Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes are also serving time, according to The Salt Lake Tribune. That same month, Maxwell was cleared to leave prison at Federal Prison Camp Bryan to work.