I was in the overflow room for today’s the sentencing of Allison Mack. Two overflow rooms were set aside, but only one was needed, even with social distancing. Early in the sentencing hearing, Judge Garaufis stated that the guideline range for the charges she pled guilty to [...]]]>

I was in the overflow room for today’s the sentencing of Allison Mack. Two overflow rooms were set aside, but only one was needed, even with social distancing. Early in the sentencing hearing, Judge Garaufis stated that the guideline range for the charges she pled guilty to was 14 to 17.5 years.

There were only 2 victim impact statements. The first one was on video, and her name is Tabby Chapman. She worked with Mack on her website. Mack required her to take expensive NXIVM courses in order to work with her. Chapman let her guard down, and was subjected to punishing “feedback,” supposedly to make her a better person. Chapman moved to Albany, where she was constantly criticized by both Nancy (presumably Nancy Salzman, Raniere’s business partner) and Allison. Allison became a bully and criticized everything about Chapman, her inadequacies as a friend, her weight, and her partner. Chapman was told she needed to fix these issues for the sake of her future children. She needed to love herself enough to work on her issues. She was required to take more NXIVM courses.

Chapman left NXIVM in 2014. Her statement shows that Mack engaged in cruel behavior even before the formation of DOS. Chapman said Mack’s role as a monster in DOS was “natural.” By this point, it sounded like Chapman was crying. She has trouble making new friends, and has to contend with an internal dialogue regarding her “flaws.”

There was a pattern of push/pull with Mack, who sometimes acted with care and compassion. Mack ensured that Chapman had a car to drive, and sent her flowers after a surgery. But Chapman also stated that once she was ganged up on for an entire day. Chapman is in therapy, which is mostly devoted to her interactions with Mack. She hoped that Mack will also find that healing. She is heartbroken for Mack and all the women she has harmed.

Chapman spoke rapidly, seemed to rush through here statement, and I found it difficult to hear every word. In contrast, actress Jessica Joan, who testified at the trial as Jaye, spoke in a clear and forceful voice and did not hold back in her victim statement as she characterized Mack as “a predator and an evil human being.” Ms. Joan was horrified when Mack asked for no jail time. She said Allison and Keith were the most evil monsters she ever met.

Joan said she wanted to speak for all of Mack’s victims who did not have a voice. Mack made Ms. Joan feel she was kind, loving and protective, the big sister Joan wished she had. Meanwhile Mack was probing into Joan’s psyche in a calculating way. She often asked how Ms. Joan felt about Keith. Ms. Joan was later given an “assignment’ by Mack to seduce Keith, and have Keith take a nude picture of her to prove the seduction had taken place. Ms. Joan herself is a victim of sexual abuse in her early life, which Mack was aware of. Mack characterized the seduction assignment as helpful for Joan’s issues regarding her abuse.

Joan feels that the whole time Mack was grooming her to be a sex slave for Keith. Joan recalled that during the phone call where Joan was given the seduction assignment. Mack even went so far as to give Joan “permission to enjoy it.” Joan stated that Mack plays the victim so well, but she is cut from the same cloth as Keith. Mack took pleasure in other’s pain, and Joan remembers the “evil glimmer in her eye” when Mack was doling out punishment to her and others.

Ms. Joan stated that there are not enough years left in Mack’s life to make up for the harm she caused. She said Mack had everything but it wasn’t enough, and hopes that Mack will one day see the light. Ms. Joan prays that Mack gets what she deserves. Ms. Joan ended by saying the she hopes the judge will bring justice to the victims of Allison Mack.

Prosecutor Tanya Hajjar spoke next. She pointed out that Mack cooperated with the government and accepts responsibility for her actions. Mack was prepared to testify and assisted in holding Raniere accountable. Mack gave the government material, an audio tape, which confirmed Raniere’s role in DOS. (This was the tape that crucially showed that the branding of women, and the ritual around it, was Raniere’s idea. It was his idea for the victim to be videotaped asking to be branded.)

For these reasons, the government recommended a sentence below the guidelines range.

Mack’s counsel spoke next. He said that while nothing excuses Mack’s abhorrent conduct, she was both a participant and a victim. He asked the judge to consider her abusive relationship with Raniere. Mack’s counsel stated that he believes her expressions of remorse and regret are sincere. Mack has been in therapy to figure out her flawed thinking. Mack, he said, had all but renounced her family for DOS, and her home confinement reunited her with her family. She had lost her family, a loved one and her career to Raniere.

Counsel stated “She can and will be a better person.” Counsel asked for home incarceration at Mack’s childhood home in California.

Next Allison spoke. She said she was filled with remorse and guilt, and her behavior was abusive, abhorrent, and illegal. She renounces Keith and all of his teachings. She has had to acknowledge the pain she caused. What was most terrifying was thinking about where she would be if Raniere had not been stopped. The guilt is permanent, and she is ashamed for the way she behaved. By this point Allison was crying. At one point for a moment she couldn’t go on. When she thanked her family for their support, she was sobbing. School and family gave her the path forward.

Next Judge Garaufis spoke. His statement is here (attachment). He sentenced Mack to 36 months on each of the 2 charges, to be served concurrently, followed by 3 years of post-incarceration supervision. He also imposed a $20,000 fine and 1,000 hours of community service. Allison was not remanded to custody today, but recommended that she be given a surrender date of September 29, 2021.

Mack’s defense counsel asked that she be put into a facility close to her family, and the Judge said he would recommend it. Judge Garaufis ended by wishing luck to Mack and to her family.

Mack left the courthouse through the front entrance and ran the gauntlet of press. Mack and her entourage could not walk in the middle of the wide sidewalk, but were pushed toward the side of the building. The marshals or police who were there repeatedly asked the reporters to give her room to walk, but to no avail. I could not get a photo of Mack, but at one point I caught a glimpse of a blond woman, presumably Mack, looking downward as an older woman, presumably her mother, with a stressed look on her face, clutched her by the arm to get her through the crush of reporters and photographers.

There have been many arguments regarding whether Mack was a victim or a perpetrator. I feel she was both. But when Judge Garaufis sentenced her to only three years I was surprised. I felt it was light. Judge Garaufis appears to be a compassionate man. He stopped Lauren Salzman’s cross-examination when he felt she was having a breakdown in his courtroom, even if it meant that the
defense might use it as a basis for an appeal. He said at the time that before he is a judge, he is a human being. I believe Judge Garaufis showed great compassion for Allison Mack, and I hope it will be justified.

As an aside, isn’t it ironic that Mack’s light sentence happened on the same day that Bill Cosby’s conviction was overturned?

— Dianne Lipson

Here’s Judge Garaufis’s sentencing statement…

US vs Allison Mack: Sentencing statement by Tony Ortega on Scribd

Today Clare Bronfman was sentenced to 6.75 years in prison, which was more time than the prosecution was seeking. She was handcuffed in court and taken away.

I was unable to be in court today, but here are my thoughts on her sentence. Letters written to Judge Garaufis in Clare Bronfman’s favor [...]]]>

Today Clare Bronfman was sentenced to 6.75 years in prison, which was more time than the prosecution was seeking. She was handcuffed in court and taken away.

I was unable to be in court today, but here are my thoughts on her sentence. Letters written to Judge Garaufis in Clare Bronfman’s favor paint a picture of an extremely hard worker, perhaps even a workaholic. Possibly her extreme dedication is an inherited trait from the family patriarch, Samuel Bronfman, who built his business into a powerful international conglomerate. Certainly Clare had the same ambition for NXIVM.

According to the FrankReport, high-ranking NXIVM member and reported current NXIVM leader Edgar Boone wrote to the judge, “I saw her working very hard. Once Clare made a commitment, I would see her work at it, day in and day out, until she would complete the project.”

Former Battlestar Galactica actress Nicki Clyne wrote, “I will explain why. Clare is one of the most hard-working and disciplined people I have ever met. As a showjumper, she worked tirelessly at her sport and put all of her mind, body and soul into being excellent. That meant doing everything from training to mucking stalls, and no type or amount of work was beneath her.”

Clare’s sister Sara Bronfman went even further, writing, “She lives a rather ascetic life – she would probably be well suited to being a nun.”

Clare’s dedication was clearly reflected in the victim statements in court today. Clare bankrolled expensive litigation against NXIVM members who defected, particularly if they spoke out. Some of them spoke in court today. According to the Daily News, Toni Natalie, former lover and business partner of Keith Raniere stated, “I was not scorched. I was incinerated.”

In her letter to Judge Garaufis ex-NXIVM member and Keith Raniire’s former girlfriend Barbara Bouchey stated:

Your Honor, this has been 20 years of having NXIVM in my life in a significant way. Most years were wrought with enormous abuse and devastating effects resulting in damages of $14 million as documented in my Declaration of Victim Losses submitted December 12 2019.

I am a victim of Clare, who has:

made false allegations bringing five civil lawsuits in two state against me·
had my Certified Financial Planning (CFP) Ethics Board perform a year-long investigation;
had me arrested under a false felony charge
made attempts with five government agencies to have me arrested under a false extortion demand
but got one filed in Mexico (still pending);
and dragged me into six litigations against detractors labeled a “hostile witness” accused of being the ‘ring- leader” conspiring with their adversaries and the media to destroy them.
NXIVM and Bronfmans each filed $10 million defamation claims

It is important to note that my CFP Ethics Board had a Tribunal Trial and closed their investigation ruling in my favor. All civil lawsuits were dismissed with no wrongdoing cited.

The criminal charge was dropped. This litigation lasted eight years costing me $700,000 to defend myself. At times, I was unable to afford an attorney, and represented myself in five litigations – which was a frightening, daunting task.

Letters to Judge Garaufis in Clare’s favor depict many acts of generosity toward her NXIVM friends. In one instance, NXIVM member Jim Del Negro stated that Clare paid for his plane ticket to come from California to Albany in order to play an important volleyball game. Del Negro does not state if this was game organized by Keith Raniere. But the reference to volleyball does not do Keith or Clare any favors. NXIVM watchers know that Keith’s late-night volleyball games were a chance for NXIVM members to meet with Keith, particularly young, attractive slender female members.

I believe Clare thought she was benefitting humanity, and following in the footsteps of her father and grandfather’s philanthropy. However, Clare doesn’t help her cause in her own letter to the judge by writing, “Many people, including most of my own family, believe I should disavow Keith and NXIVM, and that I have not is hard for them to understand or accept. However, for me, NXIVM and Keith greatly changed my life for the better.”

NXIVM loyalist Suneel K. Chakravorty wrote to Judge Garaufis, “I humbly request that you grant her the most lenient possible sentence so that she may use her considerable skills and resources for the betterment of others.”

That is just what I am afraid of. That is exactly what her victims fear. Bronfman supporter Edgar Boon stated that Clare would work day in and day out until she completed a project. Clare’s project for the betterment of humanity hurt many people. I hope, for the sake those hurt by Clare, that her future behavior follows more along the lines of what Sara Bronfman ended her letter with, “Clare has made errors in judgement, yet rather than blame the people or circumstances she misjudged, seeks to learn from and correct her mistakes. Furthermore, knowing her as I do, she will likely go on to dedicate the rest of her life to helping others not make the same mistakes she has.”

However, the longer than expected sentence implies that the judge was well aware of the danger of Clare being a free woman anytime soon. Clare, with her considerable financial resources, will probably appeal. But no doubt her victims are breathing a huge sigh of relief right now.

Former Nxivm sex slavery cult leader Keith Raniere was found guilty last June of crimes that could put him away in prison for the rest of his life, but numerous delays have put off his actual sentencing while he sits in jail in Brooklyn.

Two weeks ago, Judge Nicholas Garaufis delayed the sentencing [...]]]>

Former Nxivm sex slavery cult leader Keith Raniere was found guilty last June of crimes that could put him away in prison for the rest of his life, but numerous delays have put off his actual sentencing while he sits in jail in Brooklyn.

Two weeks ago, Judge Nicholas Garaufis delayed the sentencing again until June 23, but this time he said there would be no more delays. If the pandemic keeps them from holding the event in a courtroom, the sentencing would happen by video.

But now Raniere has objected, filing a letter saying that his rights would be violated if he could not be sentenced in a courtroom with his attorneys present.

“There are no legitimate reasons to proceed with a remote hearing and sentencing when Mr. Raniere cannot sufficiently consult with counsel. Indeed, proceeding via video in a case where the defendant will be sentenced to at least fifteen years is itself harming the interests of justice,” the letter states.

Submitted by Raniere’s attorney, Marc Agnifilo, it argues that Raniere shouldn’t be sentenced until he gets better access to his attorneys, and then the sentencing should happen in court.

No word on whether Raniere would then wear a mask or not. We’ll see what the judge thinks about another objection.

Here’s the document:

Raniere: Sentencing Objection by Tony Ortega on Scribd

Convicted Nxivm leader Keith Raniere filed a motion for a new trial today, saying that some of the witnesses against him in last year’s federal prosecution committed perjury during their testimony.

Raniere is awaiting sentencing after being found guilty last June of sex trafficking and faces decades in prison. But since his [...]]]>

Convicted Nxivm leader Keith Raniere filed a motion for a new trial today, saying that some of the witnesses against him in last year’s federal prosecution committed perjury during their testimony.

Raniere is awaiting sentencing after being found guilty last June of sex trafficking and faces decades in prison. But since his conviction a massive new lawsuit was filed against him by former Nxivm members, including some of the witnesses who testified in the criminal trial.

In that testimony, Raniere’s attorney Marc Agnifilo asked witnesses if they were planning to sue Raniere, and they answered no. But in his new filing, Raniere points out that the attorney who filed the lawsuit, Neil Glazer, had been shuttling the witnesses to interviews with federal prosecutors, and the prosecutors should have known that Glazer was planning a civil case.

The motion includes, for example, the cross-examination of one witness by Agnifilo, who asked specifically about a planned lawsuit…

Agnifilo: You have no intention of bringing a civil lawsuit against Keith Raniere or Nxivm or anyone else?

The lawsuit was then filed in January, and Raniere is arguing that the witnesses who denied it was being planned committed perjury.

He’s asking for a new trial.

Here’s the document itself. Let us know if you think he should get a do-over…

US v. Raniere: Motion for New Trial by Tony Ortega on Scribd

Judge Nicholas Garaufis has announced sentencing dates for Nxivm leaders Keith Raniere and Clare Bronfman in the month April.

Bronfmans’s sentencing was postponed from an earlier date in the same month to avoid Passover, and is now set for April 23 at 10 am. Garaufis has stated previously that he is [...]]]>

Judge Nicholas Garaufis has announced sentencing dates for Nxivm leaders Keith Raniere and Clare Bronfman in the month April.

Bronfmans’s sentencing was postponed from an earlier date in the same month to avoid Passover, and is now set for April 23 at 10 am. Garaufis has stated previously that he is considering sentencing Bronfman above the guidelines of 21-27 months. Per her plea agreement, this allows her to appeal her sentence but does not allow her to rescind her guilty plea.

Raniere’s sentencing date of April 16 may be postponed yet again pending the outcome of a possible evidentiary hearing which might take place on April 13 for the two sides to present objections to a pre-sentencing report. No doubt Raniere will have objections, and we’ll see if Garaufis can deal with that and still bring the sentencing on April 16.

Meanwhile, Raniere’s attorney Marc Agnifilo has weighed in on the implications of the lawsuit that was filed by attorney Neil Glazer against several Nxivm members and related Nxivm entities. During the trial, Agnifilo repeatedly and persistently asked former Nxivm members who testified for the government if they intended to take part in a civil suit against Nxivm. They all emphatically answered that they had no plans to do so. A typical example was Agnifilo’s exchange with the witness identified as Daniela, who had testified previously to being confined to a room for two years. Mark Vicente, mentioned in Agnifilo’s questioning, was also a witness for the government in the trial and is a named plaintiff in the recently filed lawsuit against Nxivm.

Agnifilo: You have a lawyer named Neil Glazer, correct?

The account of Jane Doe 1 in Glazer’s lawsuit closely resembles Daniela’s testimony of her experience in Nxivm. From the lawsuit: “At some point, Jane Doe 1 informed Raniere that she was attracted to another man and was experiencing romantic feelings that she had never felt for him. She informed Raniere that she would no longer have sex with him. Thereafter, he and members of his Inner Circle, including Defendants Nancy Salzman, Lauren Salzman and Karen Unterreiner began a campaign of extreme isolation, harassment and other abuse that lasted years, culminating in her confinement to a room with virtually no human contact for nearly two years, during which her pleas to be let out were either rejected or ignored. Defendants eventually sent her back to Mexico with almost no money and no identity papers (which they had taken and refused to give back to her) and cut her off from all contact with her immediate and extended family.”

According to the New York Times, “Marc Agnifilo, a lawyer for Mr. Raniere, said the lawsuit would allow Mr. Raniere to argue that some former Nxivm members did not provide truthful testimony at his trial.

‘As several of the plaintiffs in this lawsuit testified at trial that they were not planning on bringing a lawsuit, Keith’s chances on appeal just increased,’ Mr. Agnifilo said in a statement.”

The same New York Times article tells the story of another plaintiff in the lawsuit. Sally Brink joined Nxivm in her 20s, when she was putting in 18-hour days and struggling as the new co-owner of a restaurant in Vermont. Nxivm had been pitched to her as a program to help entrepreneurs. At first, she found the teachings were “profound” and improved her relationships with family and co-workers. But her Nxivm involvement subsequently took a darker turn. From The New York Times article quoted above, “More than a decade later, however, Ms. Brink was fighting to escape. The worst moment came in 2017, she said, when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Nxivm associates told her that she had given herself the disease to get her husband’s attention. Instead of spending the money she had raised online for treatment, they urged her to make the ethical decision to die, she added.”

When Nxivm’s co-founder Nancy Salzman, known in the organization by the title of “Prefect”, also developed breast cancer, she opted to treat her cancer. Moreover, Prefect chose conventional medicine rather than utilize the treatments developed by Raniere which had failed to save the lives of two other Nxivm cancer victims.

Nancy Salzman was also the first Nxivm defendant to obtain a plea agreement from the government.

Like many another high-control groups, Nxivm sought to limit its members’ access to outside information. Nxivm’s news outlet company, Knife of Aristotle, purported to separate fake news from fact, using scientific analysis including fact-checking. The lawsuit states, “It [Knife of Aristotle] also enabled him [Raniere] to shield members from bad press about Nxivm because members of the Nxivm community received their news solely from The Knife. To get news from anywhere else meant that one was rebellious and jeopardizing the community.”

— Dianne Lipson

After a highly-publicized trial that resulted in the conviction or guilty pleas of six Nxivm leaders who now await sentencing, they and numerous others are now facing another kind of fight in court.

Philadelphia attorney Neil Glazer has filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of plaintiffs Sara Edmondson, Toni Natalie, Mark Vicente, [...]]]>

After a highly-publicized trial that resulted in the conviction or guilty pleas of six Nxivm leaders who now await sentencing, they and numerous others are now facing another kind of fight in court.

Philadelphia attorney Neil Glazer has filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of plaintiffs Sara Edmondson, Toni Natalie, Mark Vicente, 58 Jane Does, and 19 John Does against NXIVM members and entities. The defendents in the lawsuit are the six defendants convicted in the criminal prosecution — Keith Raniere, Nancy Salzman, Lauren Salzman, Clare Bronfman, Allison Mack, and Kathy Russell — as well as numerous others: Sara Bronfman, Karen Unterreiner, Dr. Brandon Porter, Dr. Danielle Roberts, Daniella Padilla Bergeron, Rosa Laura Junco, Loreta J. Garza Davila, Monica Duran, Nicki Clyne, the Nxivm Corporation, Executive Success Programs Inc., Ethical Science Foundation and First Principles.

The complaint alleges that Nxivm “functioned as both a Ponzi scheme and a coercive community. Defendants exerted power over the Plaintiffs; took their money; made it financially, physically and psychologically difficult, and in some cases impossible, to leave the coercive community; and systematically abused Plaintiffs physically and emotionally.” Personal benefits to the defendants included “enriching themselves; wielding power over others; advancing in the perverse social order they created; and enhancing their own feelings of self-esteem.”

Nxivm is described as “far more than simply a personal improvement program”, using pyramid schemes and MLM techniques to induce their members to recruit new members in order to advance to a level where they could earn commissions and make a living themselves. However, Nxivm made this an unattainable goal because “the Defendants continually manipulated the program requirements, expanded the required curriculum, and graded most of the students as failures who needed to work harder and take more of Nxivm’s expensive courses.” Most of the earnings went to the inner circle. (This contention is supported by the Mark Vicente’s testimony in Raniere’s trial that even as the owner of a Nxivm center, “We were always running close to red all the time.”)

The lawsuit tracks some of the untruthful claims made by Nxivm:

Keith Raniere is the world’s smartest man, “speaking in complete sentences at age one, mastering college level mathematics in two days at age eleven, winning championship judo and track tournaments, and graduating college with three degrees.”

The “tech” can cure medical conditions, including Tourette’s syndrome.

Nancy Salzman had a background as a psychiatric nurse. In fact, Salzman had no such background or experience.

Nxivm’s form of psychotherapy, known as Exploration of Meaning, or EM, (sometimes touted as the “good” part of Nxivm), is described as producing “disturbing alterations in the subjects’ thinking, behavior, and emotional experience.” Once the victims’ trust was gained, reducing them to a highly vulnerable state, they were further abused by being constantly told that they were failing in their goals, and not working hard enough on their “issues.” Therefore they needed to take more courses and more EM’s. The victims were then exploited for financial gain. “This included coercing members into working for the Defendants on “exchanges” in which they would be severely undercompensated or even uncompensated for their labors, but for which they supposedly would earn credits toward the additional expensive courses and EMs that they were assured would improve their lives.”

There were serious consequences for dropping out of the group. “Quitting was failure and would result in immense shame and humiliation.” Moreover, leaving would expose the victims to shunning, being labeled a psychopath, losing their livelihood and all their friends and community. Not only did their participation in Nxivm leave victims impoverished and without resources to start a new life, but walking away could expose them to malicious litigation.

There is a long section on DOS and the trap of collateral, the special women’s group that was such a disturbing focus of the trial. DOS is depicted as a “severely abusive environment, which included caloric deprivation, sleep deprivation, arduous physical labor, performance of menial tasks, and a variety of punishments for any failure to fully comply with their masters’ commands.” . . . “Not a single DOS member understood when she gave that first collateral that she was signing up for a life of servitude and sexual slavery under a cruel grandmaster and his circle of mistresses.” The lawsuit contains an account of the misogynistic philosophy in Nxivm. “Women were taught, in expensive 8-day intensives, that they were inferior, dishonest, untrustworthy, and genetically and evolutionarily predisposed to subservient roles. In this warped natural order, women were monogamous while men, by nature’s design, were polygamous. This led to domestic abuse, destroyed marriages and relationships, and a community in which women were particularly traumatized.” (So Raniere was really helping women by preventing them from being traumatized by their ignorance of their own inferiority.)

The lawsuit goes over Nxivm’s history of vexatious litigation, stating, “Numerous Plaintiffs suffered in silence for years, even avoiding cooperation with law enforcement authorities once it became known that the federal government was investigating Defendants. Only now, after the guilty pleas and convictions of a number of the Defendants, do Plaintiffs feel safe enough to come forward and assert their claims. So great was the fear generated by Defendants, that Plaintiffs believe there are still many victims and witnesses hiding in the shadows, frightened at the prospect of seeing their lives further destroyed if they come forward and assert their rightful claims in this or any other legal proceeding.”

The FrankReport quoted attorney Neil Glazer, who said, “Nobody should ever feel afraid to come forward after being victimized. We should have zero tolerance for that.” The FrankReport adds\ed, “Although Sarah Edmondson and two other outspoken Nxivm victims, Toni Natalie and Mark Vicente, are named as plaintiffs in the lawsuit, the complaint was filed on behalf of 58 Jane Does and 19 John Does – persons who, according to Glazer, ‘fear both the defendants’ retaliation and society’s negative judgment of things that, quite frankly, society should start trying harder to understand. This can happen to anyone, and it has.'”

— Dianne Lipson

Judge Nicholas Garaufis has issued an order to permit victims to provide impact statements at Nxivm leader Keith Raniere’s sentencing without having to disclose their identities.

This will include alleged victims who were not included in the second superseding indictment against Raniere.

According to the Albany Times Union, that was over the objection [...]]]>

Judge Nicholas Garaufis has issued an order to permit victims to provide impact statements at Nxivm leader Keith Raniere’s sentencing without having to disclose their identities.

This will include alleged victims who were not included in the second superseding indictment against Raniere.

According to the Albany Times Union, that was over the objection of Raniere’s attorneys that the government will be deciding who is or isn’t a victim…

“Although the government has not identified these individuals, the prosecution is seemingly extending its request far beyond the operating indictment’s named Jane and John Does,” DerOhannesian stated. “In so doing, the prosecution is certifying to this court and the public who is a ‘victim’ which necessarily places the government in the position of vouching for the credibility of an individual who seeks to influence Raniere’s punishment.”

Raniere’s team also opposed the government’s effort to allow the alleged victims to deliver their statements anonymously. However, the judge agreed with the government in their contention that Raniere’s argument was “meritless” and that he had not shown a “particularized need” for the victim’s identities to be disclosed. Prosecuting attorney Tanya Hajjar further stated

“Requiring the victims of certain crimes, including sex trafficking, to provide their names in public could chill their willingness to be heard, for fear of having their personal histories publicized, and the embarrassment and humiliation that such publicity could cause them as they rebuild their lives. . . . In addition, a ruling requiring the victims to disclose their full identities publicly could cause other victims to fear seeking help from law enforcement as that could subject them to further harassment and embarrassment.”

I observed the power of victim statements when I was in court in Manhattan on the day Jeffrey Epstein’s indictment was dismissed following his untimely death. US District Judge Richard Berman allowed Epstein’s alleged victims to read their statements in court. They had the option to speak without disclosing their identities.. Even so, the prosecution stated that some witnesses declined to appear for fear of public exposure.

Alleged victim Courtney Wild’s attorney Brian Edwards said that the hearing meant a lot to the victims. The secret 2008 plea deal had made them feel that they did not matter.

One of the Jane Does recounted that she came from a small town to be a model in New York City. She met a female who told her about an amazing man who could help her. At Epstein’s home, she was sexually assaulted. She was ashamed and embarrassed. This was not how she was brought up. Her world spiraled. She stopped modeling, became depressed, and left New York. She buried what happened deep within her. She said Epstein took away the future she had envisioned for herself, and she will never fully heal.

Another Jane Doe, whom I had seen carrying her baby in the hallway outside the courtroom, was in tears as she stated she is still a victim of Jeffrey Epstein. She is fearful for her daughter and for everyone’s daughter in a world where there are predators and cowards. She was 17 years old and she thought she found someone who cared about her. Epstein took advantage of that poor girl who will never be the same. “He thought he was untouchable and so did I.”

Another Jane Doe related that when she was 15 she was on a plane to the ranch. I’m paraphrasing what she said: “When I was molested, he explained to me how beneficial this experience was to me and how he was helping me to grow. After he had finished, he told me to describe how good my first sexual experience had felt.”

She was not the only alleged victim who stated that she was a virgin before being molested by Epstein. Epstein’s description of the rape as helping her to “grow”, is a bizarre echo of Raniere’s self-serving delusions.

Of the over 20 accusers who read their statements in court, at least ten were Jane Does. If they had been forced to reveal their identities, they might not have come forward, or they might have experienced additional trauma if they had.

Compared to Epstein, presumably a smaller proportion of Raniere’s alleged victims were underage at the time they were victimized. Perhaps not all of the accusations against him will be of a sexual nature. But just as Epstein’s victim’s statements were powerful, I expect the statements of Raniere’s victims will have a powerful effect when read by the accusers in open court. And unlike in the Epstein case, Raniere’s victims will have the chance to confront a living defendant.

In other news, Kathy Russell’s January 29 sentencing date has been postponed until April 21 or later. Her Pre-Sentence Investigation Report is not expected to be issued until the end of January. Currently, only Clare Bronfman has a scheduled sentencing date, of February 14.

— Dianne Lipson

Sentencing dates for convicted Nxivm leaders Keith Raniere and Clare Bronfman have been postponed.

Bronfman’s sentencing date of January 8 has been pushed back to February 14 to give her time to respond to a 75-page pre-sentencing report. The report contains 25 pages of victim impact statement summaries. According to the Albany [...]]]>

Sentencing dates for convicted Nxivm leaders Keith Raniere and Clare Bronfman have been postponed.

Bronfman’s sentencing date of January 8 has been pushed back to February 14 to give her time to respond to a 75-page pre-sentencing report. The report contains 25 pages of victim impact statement summaries. According to the Albany Times Union the report also “raises numerous alleged instances of wrongdoing and other factual issues apart from the offenses to which Ms. Bronfman pled guilty,” [Bronfman attorney] Cassidy stated.

The big news here is that Judge Garaufis is considering sentencing Bronfman above the 21-27 month guidelines. According to Bronfman’s plea deal, this would give her the right to appeal her sentence. Presumably, Michael Avenatti will not be around this time to horse-trade with the government for more favorable treatment for Bronfman. Judge Garaufis gave no explanation on why he is considering a sentence above the guidelines. Pre-sentencing reports are confidential and not available to the public.

At her plea hearing on April 19, Bronfman was still painfully thin, her bones protruded and her clothes hung on her. In contrast, at Allison Mack’s plea hearing, Allison looked healthy and gave the appearance that she was eating normally. This makes me speculate that at least at that time, Clare was still loyal to Keith Raniere.

Meanwhile, Raniere’s sentencing has been postponed indefinitely from the scheduled date January 17 because his pre-sentencing report has not yet been finalized. He faces at least 15 years regardless. At almost age 60, he may face a virtual life sentence.

Kathy Russell’s sentencing is still on track for January 29. Sentencing dates for Allison Mack and Nancy and Lauren Salzman have not yet been scheduled.

— Dianne Lipson

 A documentary film featuring blogger Frank Parlato, The Lost Women of NXIVM, will premiere on the Investigation Discovery channel tomorrow (Dec 8) at 9 pm.

In it, Parlato investigates the deaths of four women who were close to Keith Raniere: Gina Hutchinson, Kristin Snyder, Barbara Jeske, and Pam Cafritz.

Many NXIVM watchers are familiar with suspicions [...]]]>

 
A documentary film featuring blogger Frank Parlato, The Lost Women of NXIVM, will premiere on the Investigation Discovery channel tomorrow (Dec 8) at 9 pm.

In it, Parlato investigates the deaths of four women who were close to Keith Raniere: Gina Hutchinson, Kristin Snyder, Barbara Jeske, and Pam Cafritz.

Many NXIVM watchers are familiar with suspicions around the suicides of Gina Hutchinson and Kristin Snyder. Gina’s sister Heidi alleges that Keith had sex with (raped) Gina when Gina was 15 years old. Keith convinced her to quit high school and told her she was the reincarnation of a Buddhist goddess. From FrankReport:

The irony is this — Keith told Gina for years that she was the Buddhist goddess Shyama [Green] Tara. And that she would attain nirvana and be able to help others more fully – only after she died. She would have to shed her corporeal body in order to attain her true godhood.

When Gina found out that Keith had a harem, she was upset. She left his orbit more than once, but Keith’s followers always lured her back. From the above blog post:

Heidi tells a story that at the hotel where Gina last stayed — Coco’s Motel — the clerk told her that four exceedingly slender women came to visit Gina [who was also exceedingly slender] two nights before she died. They came to her room and went inside.

Gina was found dead from a shotgun wound on October 11, 2002. Her death was ruled a suicide. She was 33 years old.

Kristen Snyer was an apparently happy, well adjusted woman living in Alaska with her wife, Heidi Clifford. She changed after taking courses with NXIVM and visiting Albany. Her sister Kim relates in The Sun:

“Then the last time I saw her was January 2003 with my parents. Again she was absolutely explosive. She had become this angry, depressed, sad, upset woman that we didn’t recognize anymore.”

Shortly after a visit to Albany, Kristin took a NXIVM intensive in which she became disruptive, shouting repeatedly that she was pregnant with Keith’s child. This was a problem because in NXIVM, Keith was presented as a celibate, living a monk-like existence in service to humanity. Kristin was ejected from the class.

From the Daily Mail:

‘My suspicion is that he might have even had sex with her,’ former NXIVM member Susan Dones says in the film, adding: ‘Keith did not like women being lesbians. Being gay, period, was an act of defiance, especially if you’re a woman. It was an act of defiance and, I think for him, because he treated women as objects, if you’re a lesbian, then you’re not available to him. So he could possibly try to turn her. It’s kind of like a notch on his belt.

After being ejected from the class, Kristin was driven home by a NXIVM member, who promised to stay with her until her wife returned. Kristin’s truck was still at the hotel where the intensive was being held. Somehow, Kristin, in a very disturbed emotional state, got back to her truck and drove 130 miles over dark roads to Miller’s Landing Resort, where Kristin’s NXIVM coach happened to own a cabin. Kristin left a suicide note in her vehicle. Breaking into a shed to steal a kayak, Kristin, an avid kayaker, allegedly took her own life by tipping the kayak over in the water. Her body was never found. She was 35 years old.

The deaths from cancer of Barbara Jeske and Pam Cafritz have generally been taken at face value. But Frank Parlato suspects foul play. Kristin Keeffe and Karen Unterreiner, who also lived with Keith at different times, also got cancer, but survived. From the FrankReport:

Besides the four women living at 3 Flintlock, four cats also got cancer and died.

. . .

I also interviewed the other cancer survivor [Karen] who lived at his house, whose hair samples are tested – [with horrifying results].

The location of Pam Cafritz’ body is unknown. NXIVM was initially reluctant to hand over Barbara Jeske’s body to her family. Both women bequeathed millions to Keith Raniere.

One housemate, Mariana Fernandez, did not become ill. If there was the suspected heavy-metal poisoning, perhaps Mariana escaped because she was younger and had a stronger immune system. But Mariana was always the favored one. Mariana’s sister Daniela, who did much unpaid work for NXIVM, testified at Raniere’s trial:

My sister [Mariana] had never worked. She didn’t even have her own money. Actually, you know, everything was given to her and she was traveling in private plane . . .

Keith loved my sister Mariana.

Reportedly, Kristin Keeffe’s pregnancy of Keith’s first child was discovered at a point when it was too late to have an abortion. But Mariana was the chosen one to have Keith’s avatar baby.

Here is a sneak preview of The Lost Women of NXIVM:

There were no surprises in yesterday’s “Curcio” hearing for the Keith Raniere case. Raniere was wearing tan prison garb, and he seemed confident, even upbeat as he entered the courtroom and approached the bench. The hearing is regarding a possible conflict of interest around defense lawyer Teny Geragos’ application to become [...]]]>

There were no surprises in yesterday’s “Curcio” hearing for the Keith Raniere case. Raniere was wearing tan prison garb, and he seemed confident, even upbeat as he entered the courtroom and approached the bench. The hearing is regarding a possible conflict of interest around defense lawyer Teny Geragos’ application to become a US attorney in the Eastern District of New York. The Eastern District is where the Raniere trial took place, and Ms. Geragos was presumably applying for the spot vacated by prosecutor Moira Penza, lead government attorney in the Raniere case.

Yesterdays hearing was a postponement from the original hearing on September 13th. At that hearing, Mr. Moskowitz, the attorney appointed by the court to represent Raniere in this matter, had not yet had adequate time to confer with his client. At the time of the September hearing, Garagos’ application to become a US attorney was still pending. She has since withdrawn it.

Geragos’ application arrived to the government on August 12th, which was after the trial was over. Judge Garaufis explained to Raniere why the Curcio hearing was still necessary even though Geragos has now withdrawn her application. The trial has ended but the case is not yet over; It is still his responsibly to sentence Raniere. During the time when her application to become a US attorney was pending, there may have been advice given by Geragos or communication with the government that would create a potential conflict.

Marc Agnifilo, Raniere’s lead attorney, felt the the risk of conflict is small. Judge Garaufis countered that even though Geragos only cross-examined three witnesses, she was still a very active participant in the trail. She had many conversations with the defendant, and he relied on her for guidance. (This is true, they conversed frequently. One day Raniere and Geragos were huddled close together watching the same monitor. I couldn’t help thinking that this was the nearest Raniere had been to a woman since his arrest.) Agnifilo replied that the overarching issue of how to handle the case is his responsibility. He added that Geragos is one of the best advocates anyone can have, and it was important to the defense for her to stay on the case.

The judge told Raniere that Garagos might still reapply for the job, and so she might try to please the government. After explaining the conflict in his own words, as requested by the judge, Raniere made the decision to waive the conflict. Judge Garaufis added that that Raniere was also waiving his right to appeal on this issue. The judge announced that the pre-sentencing report is not yet received, but they are working on it. Raniere gazed toward the the gallery as he left the courtroom.

After the hearing I asked Agnifilo if Raniere seemed upbeat to him, as he had appeared to me in the courtroom. Agnifilo paused, reflecting on how he would answer if I hadn’t said “upbeat.” Finally he said that Raniere appeared engaged, and it was fair to say upbeat.

Raniere is scheduled to be sentenced on January 17. Clare Bronfman will be sentenced on January 8th, Kathy Russell on January 29th. No sentencing dates have been set for Lauren and Nancy Salzman, and Allison Mack.