What Does the Future Hold for Prince Andrew?
Subscribe
The Duke of York is being sued in the US for allegedly sexually assaulting Virginia Roberts Giuffre while she was under the age of 18. The woman claims the British royal knew everything about Epstein’s “sex-trafficking operation” she was a part of during the purported assault.
As Prince Andrew’s legal team has been trying to dismiss Virginia Roberts Giuffre’s civil suit, the royal could potentially request the unsealing of a settlement agreement his accuser signed with Jeffrey Epstein back in 2009.
The Duke’s lawyers believe that this document effectively invalidates any of Virginia’s sex abuse claims against Epstein’s potential associates – including Prince Andrew, if his name appears in the unsealed pages.
On the one hand, the unsealing of the controversial document may actually help the Duke, believes Thomas Mace-Archer-Mills, the founder and director of the British Monarchists Society. If the agreement fails to corroborate Virginia’s accusations that she was forced to have sex with the royal multiple times when she was young and “vulnerable”, the prince will come out the winner from the embarrassing situation, as he continues to strongly reject her claims.
“If there is a chance that his requesting of the unsealing of documents can prove his innocence, which could help to have the case against him thrown out, then he must actively request these documents be opened,” Mace-Archer-Mills tells Sputnik.
But there is another side to this story. The unsealing of the document could help Prince Andrew dismiss the civil case and potentially save him from settlement expenses but it would also forever link him to Epstein’s sneaky deeds and his alleged rink of sex-trafficking pals.
© Photo : Florida Southern District CourtPrince Andrew, Virginia Roberts Giuffre, and Ghislaine Maxwell. This photo was included in an affidavit in which Giuffre alleged that she was directed to have sex with Andrew
Prince Andrew, Virginia Roberts Giuffre, and Ghislaine Maxwell. This photo was included in an affidavit in which Giuffre alleged that she was directed to have sex with Andrew
© Photo : Florida Southern District Court
“Depending on what it contains, the unsealing of a 2009 settlement between Virginia Roberts and Epstein could mean her civil suit against Andrew is unable to proceed,” explains Richard Fitzwilliams, a public relations consultant.
“Whether this would have any effect in the court of public opinion about Prince Andrew is quite another matter,” the royal commentator adds.
US District Judge Loretta Preska, who is presiding over the Roberts Giuffre case, ruled last week that Prince Andrew could make the relevant request if he has “valid reasons” for this. So it’s basically up to the Queen’s son now.
Sex Assault Case
Virginia Roberts Giuffre, 38, is suing the British royal for battery and infliction of emotional distress, which he apparently subjected her to when assaulting the 17-year-old “child” three times at Ghislaine Maxwell’s London home, Epstein’s New York mansion and the financier’s private island.
She filed a civil lawsuit in the US in August, with her team promptly moving on to serve the Duke with the legal papers. But Prince Andrew’s lawyers have maintained that the summons were not handed to their client properly.
The London's High Court ruled last week that the arguments about the technicality concerning the serving of the papers do not stand up to scrutiny. But the question still remains whether the Queen’s son, who has no diplomatic immunity whatsoever, will be forced to testify in a US court.
Legal experts claim that the prince, who has British citizenship, cannot be forced to respond to an American lawsuit – or extradited to the US, given the suit’s civil and not criminal nature. But a high-profile lawyer for Epstein’s accusers, Lisa Bloom, says that the prince still could be forced into giving evidence if a UK court steps up to enforce a mutual assistance agreement between London and Washington.
© AP Photo / Steve ParsonsBritain's Prince Andrew attends the Sunday service at the Royal Chapel of All Saints at Royal Lodge, Windsor, following the death announcement of his father, Prince Philip, in England, Sunday, April 11, 2021.
Britain's Prince Andrew attends the Sunday service at the Royal Chapel of All Saints at Royal Lodge, Windsor, following the death announcement of his father, Prince Philip, in England, Sunday, April 11, 2021.
© AP Photo / Steve Parsons
The founder of the British Monarchists Society explained to Sputnik that “unless a subpoena is issued against the Prince, or he is served paperwork under ‘Mutual Legal Assistance’, the Duke of York in not obliged or required to assist in any manner regarding the Epstein case.”
“Prince Andrew does not in fact need to provide anything to a foreign government in which a lawsuit is brought against him,” Thomas Mace-Archer-Mills noted.
The royal commentator, however, believes that there is still a chance that the royal “could be denied entry into the United States or even arrested for contempt of court” if he ignores an outstanding subpoena.
“Due to his high profile and position more than likely Prince Andrew would be required to attend court and answer questions, but he could in fact be arrested by American authorities if he were not to comply,” Mace-Archer-Mills adds.
At the same time, he says it would be quite difficult to reach any financial settlement with Roberts Giuffre “without speculation of guilt on the part of Prince Andrew”.
Maxwell’s Helping Hand?
It looks like the royal could use all the help he can get now, including from and Epstein’s ex-lover Ghislaine Maxwell, the disgraced socialite who is currently in a Brooklyn jail awaiting a November trial on grooming and sex-trafficking charges.
© AP Photo / Elizabeth WilliamsGhislaine Maxwell, center, appears in Manhattan Federal court flanked by her attorneys, Bobbi C. Sternheim, left, and Jeff Paugliuca, right, and a US Marshal, rear, during her arraignment on a superceding indictment, Friday, April 23, 2021, in New York.
Ghislaine Maxwell, center, appears in Manhattan Federal court flanked by her attorneys, Bobbi C. Sternheim, left, and Jeff Paugliuca, right, and a US Marshal, rear, during her arraignment on a superceding indictment, Friday, April 23, 2021, in New York.
© AP Photo / Elizabeth Williams
Maxwell’s friends told the Telegraph last month that the woman would be “prepared to give evidence on the Duke's behalf” and effectively help her pal out of the embarrassing situation that was inflicted on him by her old enemy Roberts Giuffre.
“Although we don’t know what will surface during Ghislaine Maxwell’s trial, all publicity linked to this is damaging to Andrew and keeps it in the news,” argues Richard Fitzwilliams.
The royal expert believes that at this point, the 61-year-old royal, who stepped down from his public duties following a 'car crash' BBC interview which he hoped would clear his name but effectively sank him even further, has “no obvious future”.
So far, Prince Andrew, who has been named a “person of interest” in the US probe into Epstein and his associates, has not been officially accused of any wrongdoing by the FBI.
“His friendship with Epstein however, has been a catastrophe for him,” Fitzwilliams concludes.