After a three-day hiatus, the Ghislaine Maxwell trial in federal court in lower Manhattan resumed on Dec. 16 with the defense calling its first five witnesses. On the stand first was Cimberly Espinoza, who began working for Jeffrey Epstein’s legal team in October 1996. She was 28 years old at the time. Espinoza quickly changed positions and became Maxwell’s executive assistant. Under direct examination by defense attorney Christian Everdell, Espinoza said, “I highly respected Ghislaine,” and “I looked up to her very much.” When she first met “Jane,” the alleged victim who testified for the prosecution, she estimated her age at “probably 18.” She said Jane’s mother referred to Jane as Epstein’s goddaughter, and therefore was treated “a little extra special” at his Madison Avenue office. Espinoza testified that in later years, Jane stopped coming around the office because she was cast in a soap opera in California. The series …