New York attorney Deborah Blum represents Keith Alan Raniere in his latest attempt to challenge his 2019 conviction for racketeering, sex trafficking, forced labor conspiracy, and other crimes related to his leadership of NXIVM.
His most recent motion, known as a 2255 motion, may be his final attempt to end his imprisonment. In his initial self-filed petition, his 2255 primarily cited ineffective assistance of counsel. his trial attorneys were Marc Agnifilo, Paul DerOhannesian and Teny Geragos.
Attorney Asks for Time to Refine 2255 Appeal
Raniere retained Blum to help him amend his 2255 motion.
Last week, Blum filed a letter with Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis seeking a third extension to file an amended 2255 motion.
Blum wrote:
“Your Honor…. I am requesting a final extension of time, thirty-two (32) days, to October 7th, 2024….
“I have dedicated the work-week and weekends to working on the 2255 and still have a ways to go to get it fully drafted and ready to file….
“Since being engaged by Mr. Raniere, I have shifted my primary focus to his work…”
Judge Garaufis sentenced Raniere to 120 years in prison and five years of probation in October 2020. The probation was set to begin in 2120, when Raniere would be 159 years old. Raniere is 64 years old today.
He has been in custody since March 2018.
Raniere’s six-week trial ended with his conviction on all counts in June 2019, following a jury deliberation lasting less than half a day.
Subsequently, Raniere lost several Rule 33 motions for a new trial, and his appeal of his conviction at the Second Circuit was unsuccessful. The US Supreme Court declined to hear his appeal.
Deborah Blum
Working Almost Full Time for Raniere
Blum explained to Judge Garaufis that her need for additional time to perfect Raniere’s 2255 based is based on changes Raniere wants and her need to meet with him again.
Blum told the judge:
“On August 19th and 20th, I met with Mr. Raniere for the first time, and spent six (6) hours with Mr. Raniere at USP Tucson in Arizona. During the visits, Mr. Raniere and I addressed his preferred strategy, which changes the course of the submission, and items that now need to be researched and incorporated into the draft. Further, it became clear to me that I would need to have an additional visit with him prior to being able to submit the 2255. An in-person visit is the most effective way for me to communicate with Mr. Raniere. It is unrealistic that the visit could occur within the next two (2) weeks given the staffing constraints at his facility.”
Clare Bronfman
Bronfman Paying for the Legal Effort
According to court filings, Clare Bronfman, heir to the Seagram fortune and former director of operations for NXIVM, established a legal trust in 2018 with an initial funding of over $10 million to assist Raniere with his legal expenses.
That fund was exhausted by the end of Raniere’s trial in 2019.
Bronfman, who is currently serving an 81-month prison sentence for her involvement in NXIVM, continues to fund Raniere’s post conviction legal expenses, a point noted in court at hers and Raniere’s sentencing.
Backed by Bronfman funding, Raniere has retained Blum, as well as attorneys Arthur Aidala, Joseph M. Tully, Jeffrey Lichtman, Marc Fernich, Martin Tankleff, Alan Dershowitz, Jennifer Bonjean, Gregory Stoltz, Jorge de la Garza, Steven M. Abrams, and Stacy Scheff to attack his conviction and sue the Bureau of Prisons. He alleges the Bureau of Prisons tried to thwart his attempts to attack his conviction by blocking his access to his attorneys and isolating him in the Special Housing Unit.
Raniere has also retained seven forensic experts to help establish his claim that the FBI tampered with evidence in his case.
His earlier-filed 2255 motion contained his experts’ opinions on FBI evidence-tampering, as well as his claim of improper removal from Mexico where he was visiting at the time the US government filed a sealed warrant for his arrest in 2018.
The Bureau of Prisons released Bronfman from the Philadelphia Detention Center to a halfway house in NYC in May. Her sentence ends in June 2025. She continues to fund Raniere’s legal efforts
