The federal judge for the Southern District of New York presiding over a lawsuit brought by six Jeffrey Epstein victims against various Virgin Islands officials has denied their motion for entry of a partial judgment after he dismissed the claims against all the defendants but V.I. Delegate to Congress Stacey Plaskett in March.
The plaintiffs, known only as Jane Does 1-6 to protect their identities as victims of sex crimes, had sought a partial judgment as to the dismissed defendants so they could immediately begin an appeal, rather than wait for the case against Plaskett to conclude.
However, Judge Arun Subramanian said Wednesday in a three-page order that granting a partial judgment “would risk piecemeal appeals that would require two or more three-judge panels to familiarize themselves with a given case in successive appeals from successive decisions on interrelated issues.”
Furthermore, the plaintiffs’ surviving claims against Plaskett will be resolved at trial in a matter of months, he said. “Given the schedule in this case, it is nearly impossible that the dismissed claims could be reviewed on appeal ‘in time to be tried with the other claims’ without ‘delaying prosecution’ of those claims,” Subramanian wrote, quoting from a 1997 case, Harman v. City of New York.
In fact, entering a final judgment on some but not all claims would derail the trial schedule, said the judge, who most recently presided over the sex trafficking trial of rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs.
“Here, the Court observes that denying certification will cause little delay and will permit the parties to engage in one round of appeals after trial is complete at which all the parties’ issues can be addressed. This will save time and resources all around,” Subramanian ruled in denying the motion the plaintiffs filed in April.
He ordered the plaintiffs and Plaskett to meet and confer by Aug. 21 and to jointly propose three separate weeks for trial this year.
The Jane Does’ complaint — first filed in November 2023 by Jane Does 1-5, amended that December to add a sixth plaintiff, and amended again last May — alleged negligence and violations of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act, or TVPA, and the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, or RICO, claiming territory officials actively conspired with Epstein to perpetuate his sex-trafficking scheme for their own gain.
A registered sex offender who pleaded guilty to procuring a minor for prostitution in Florida in 2008, Epstein died by apparent suicide in August 2019 at age 66 while in detention in New York on federal trafficking charges. His primary residence was Little St. James, his private island off St. Thomas, where for years he ran a complex web of shell companies registered in the USVI — and was afforded some $300 million in tax breaks through the territory’s Economic Development Commission — that enabled his crimes.
Plaskett remains the sole defendant after Subramanian ruled in March that the court lacks personal jurisdiction over the other six officials named in the complaint. They included the V.I. government, former governors John de Jongh and Kenneth Mapp, former senators Celestino White and Carlton Dowe, and former Attorney General Vincent Frazer. The charges against former first lady and longtime Epstein office manager Cecile de Jongh were dismissed because she is protected by a broad release the plaintiffs signed when they settled a previous suit against Epstein, which bars all claims against any of his employees.
While Subramanian dismissed the RICO claims against Plaskett in her official capacity as “an alleged USVI employee,” he denied her motion to dismiss the Trafficking Victims Protection Act and negligence charges.
“Unlike John de Jongh, Mapp, White, Frazer, and the USVI, who are not alleged to have specifically desired New York money from New York bank accounts, the [second amended complaint] adequately pleads that Plaskett traveled to New York and met with Epstein in the hopes of accessing the New York donor market,” Subramanian wrote in his March order.
While cautioning that the allegations have not been tested against the evidence, he cited claims in the complaint that Epstein made the maximum contributions to Plaskett’s campaigns, hosted a fundraiser for her, and gave her a $30,000 loan.
“In Plaskett’s case, the money she solicited from Epstein in New York and eventually received is directly related to the alleged quid pro quo to facilitate Epstein’s sex-trafficking enterprise,” so long-arm jurisdiction is established “at this stage,” the judge wrote.
Plaskett has strenuously denied the allegations in the suit and last July filed notice with the court that she would seek sanctions against Jordan K. Merson, the attorney representing the six Jane Does, saying the claims against her amount to “outright untruth, fiction, and misrepresentation.”

Swimming at Lindqvist Beach has been temporarily suspended due to a heavy accumulation of sargassum seaweed, according to a press release from Magens Bay Authority Wednesday.
The beach remains open for walking and other land-based activities, but officials are urging the public to avoid entering the water due to degraded water quality and potential health risks, the press release stated.
Sargassum, a naturally occurring brown seaweed, has been appearing more frequently and in larger volumes throughout the Caribbean. Scientists attribute this trend to shifting ocean currents, rising nutrient levels, and broader climate conditions. While the seaweed itself is non-toxic, large buildups can produce foul odors, disrupt marine life, and pose safety concerns for swimmers, the release stated.
“We appreciate your understanding and cooperation as we work to ensure the safety and enjoyment of all beachgoers,” the authority stated in the release.
Updates on the beach’s status will be available at www.magensbayauthority.org and on the Authority’s social media pages.