NEW YORK (Reuters) - A U.S. judge on Friday rejected Ghislaine Maxwell's bid to dismiss an indictment accusing the British socialite of aiding the financier Jeffrey Epstein's sexual abuse of girls.
The decision by U.S. District Judge Alison Nathan covers six of the eight criminal counts Maxwell faces over her relationship with Epstein, who killed himself in 2019.
Nathan granted Maxwell's request to sever two of the six counts, both for perjury, for a separate trial.
Lawyers for Maxwell did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The office of U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss in Manhattan did not immediately respond to similar requests.
Maxwell, 59, has pleaded not guilty to procuring and grooming three girls for Epstein to sexually abuse from 1994 to 1997, and to lying under oath about her role.
She is scheduled to be arraigned on April 23 on two sex trafficking charges related to her relationship with a fourth girl between 2001 and 2004.
A trial is scheduled for July 12. Maxwell is seeking to delay it by at least 90 days.