Trump says he would consider Maxwell pardon as Combs seeks clemency

President Donald Trump said on Monday in the Oval Office that he would consider a presidential pardon for Ghislaine Maxwell and that Sean "Diddy" Combs had asked him for clemency, remarks that came hours after the Supreme Court declined to hear Maxwell's appeal and days after Combs was sentenced to federal prison. Trump made the comments during an event on approving a mining road in Alaska, telling reporters that he would "have to take a look" and that he would speak with the Justice Department before making any decision.

Maxwell, a British socialite, was convicted in 2021 of crimes related to child sex trafficking for her role in a scheme linked to Jeffrey Epstein. Prosecutors say she and Epstein recruited young women and girls, some as young as 14, to travel to his properties, where they were abused. Maxwell was sentenced to prison and is not scheduled for release until 2040. Her attorneys had argued to the Supreme Court that a prior nonprosecution agreement reached for Epstein in Florida should have shielded her from prosecution. The Justice Department urged the justices to reject that argument, with the Solicitor General contending the agreement would not apply outside the...