Woman abused by Jeffrey Epstein as child prepares lawsuit after NYC Council votes to reopen civil claims window

Karine Silva, who says she was abused by Jeffrey Epstein at 17, with her attorney Jordan Merson at City Hall Park prior to the vote on legislation reopening civil-claims windows for survivors.

Photo by Lloyd Mitchell

A woman who says she was abused by convicted sex offender and alleged sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein at 17 is preparing to file a lawsuit against the dead financier’s estate after the New York City Council on Tuesday passed legislation reopening a one-year window for survivors of gender-motivated violence to bring civil claims.

Karine Silva, who publicly disclosed for the first time last month that she was abused by Epstein, told amNewYork on Tuesday that she was introduced to Epstein by a friend at age 17 with the promise of a job as a masseuse at his Upper East Side townhouse. Instead, she said, sexual abuse occurred.

Silva did not provide details of the alleged abuse, only that it took place around 2000, the same time one of Epstein’s most prominent accusers, Virginia Giuffre, then 16, was introduced to him.

Giuffre later sued Epstein in 2009 and his convicted accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell, in 2015, claiming she was drawn into a sex-trafficking operation in which Epstein and Maxwell exploited her and introduced her to influential associates. Giuffre, 41, died by suicide earlier this year at her home in Australia.

Epstein survivor sees second chance for justice

Silva, now 42 and a mother of two, said she was not ready for years to come forward about the abuse she suffered at Epstein’s hands. She said she did not understand the legal deadlines that would later be used to block her from pursuing a case.

“I wasn’t ready to come out, and I wasn’t aware that the statute of limitations was something that was going to stop me from seeking justice,” she said.

Her attorney, Jordan Merson, who represents several victims of Epstein, said Silva reached out to his office after encountering the legal barrier of the statute of limitations.

“When she called the firm, we wanted to help,” Merson said, noting that the call came as momentum was building for the new amendment, Intro. 1297. “When I first proposed that she could become a powerful voice in this fight because of what was done to her, she decided to take it.”

Merson said he intends to file Silva’s suit as soon as the window opens.

“The New York City Council has shown by action that it stands with sexual abuse survivors and not the sex traffickers like Jeffrey Epstein,” he said. “Anyone who at this point tries to undo or defeat this bill will be telling the whole world that they want to protect Jeffrey Epstein and other sex traffickers and not help sexual abuse victims.”

If signed into law by Mayor Eric Adams, the legislation, sponsored by Queens Council Member Selvena Brooks-Powers and supported by more than 40 co-sponsors, will reopen the Gender-Motivated Violence Act (GMVA) “lookback” period. It also clarifies that survivors may sue not only alleged perpetrators but also institutions that enabled abuse, regardless of when it occurred.

When Silva first publicly identified herself during an October Council hearing, she testified that she struggles daily with how she was abused, but that she cannot afford mental health treatments.

On Tuesday, Silva said the passage of Intro. 1297 restores her ability to move forward.

“Today, thanks to the New York City Council, I get my voice back as a survivor,” she said at a press conference outside City Hall. “Now I can try to seek justice for all the harm I suffered.”

The bill now heads to Mayor Adams. If enacted, the window, slated to open in 2026, will allow Silva and other survivors whose cases were dismissed earlier this year to seek civil accountability from Epstein’s estate and institutions they say allowed the abuse to occur.

Silva’s potential legal action follows Congress passing and President Donald Trump signing legislation requiring the Justice Department to release all Epstein records before Christmas.

In July 2025, the FBI reported that its review of the files revealed Epstein had more than 1,000 victims.

Epstein was first investigated in 2005 in Florida for paying a 14-year-old for sex and later avoided federal charges through a secret plea deal, serving 13 months in a work-release program. In 2019, he was charged with sex trafficking in Manhattan and died by suicide a month later. In 2021, Maxwell was convicted of sex trafficking and is serving 20 years in prison.