INTERNATIONAL: Britain's Prince Andrew on Wednesday ,January 26, has asked for a U.S. jury trial as he has again denied Virginia Giuffre's accusations that he sexually abused her more than two decades ago when she was only 17.
Virginia Giuffre, 38, has sued the Duke of York last August, alleging he battered her while the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was trafficking her.
In a filing with the U.S. District Court in Manhattan, Andrew, 61, has admitted to meeting Epstein in or around 1999, but denied Giuffre's claim that he "committed sexual assault and battery" upon her.
David Boies, a lawyer for Giuffre, has said in a statement that Andrew was trying to "blame the victim." "We look forward to confronting Prince Andrew with his denials and attempts to blame Ms. Giuffre for her own abuse," Boies has said.
Andrew's ties to Epstein, who killed himself in a Manhattan jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex abuse charges, have undermined his reputation with the public and standing in Britain's Royal Family.
Earlier this month, the family has removed Andrew's military links and military patronages, and has said the second son of Queen Elizabeth would no longer be known as "His Royal Highness."
Andrew's filing was an "answer," a common document in U.S. litigation in which defendants deny or say they lack enough information to comment on plaintiffs' substantive accusations.
The prince's lawyers had previously called Giuffre's lawsuit "baseless" and accused her of seeking another payday.
Giuffre has received $500,000 in a 2009 civil settlement with Epstein. U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan has said a trial could begin between September and December 2022.
PHOTO: FILE FOOTAGE OF PRINCE ANDREW PAYING TRIBUTE AT CHARLES II MONUMENT / FILE FOOTAGE OF PRINCE ANDREW LEAVING CHURCH WITH QUEEN ELIZABETH II AND PRINCE PHILIP / FILE FOOTAGE OF PRINCE ANDREW AND PRINCESS EUGENIE ARRIVING AT CHAPEL FOR HER WEDDING / VARIOUS STILL IMAGES OF PRINCE ANDREW / VARIOUS STILL IMAGES OF VIRGINIA GIUFFRE
