US Department of Justice seeks judges’ approval to publicly release Epstein and Maxwell grand jury materials
The US Department of Justice has filed motions asking two judges in the Southern District of New York to authorize the public release of grand jury transcripts and exhibits from the prosecutions of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, ABC News reported. The move comes amid a 30-day deadline imposed by the newly enacted Epstein Files Transparency Act.
US Attorney Jay Clayton, appointed by Attorney General Pam Bondi to oversee investigations linked to Epstein, signed the motion seeking judicial approval for the release of materials, subject to necessary redactions.
“In the light of the Act’s clear mandate, the Court should authorize the Department of Justice to release the grand jury transcripts and exhibits and modify any preexisting protective orders that would otherwise prevent public disclosure by the Government of materials the disclosure of which is required by the Act,” the motion stated, according to the news outlet.
The filings noted that redactions could be applied to materials that “would jeopardize an active federal investigation or ongoing prosecution,” though they did not reference ongoing investigations into prominent figures including Bill Clinton, Larry Summers, and Reid Hoffman, recently ordered by Trump.
Ruling requested
The DOJ requested an expedited ruling, emphasizing that it would coordinate with relevant US Attorney’s offices to properly redact victim-related and personally identifying information.
Judge Richard Berman previously denied release
The department had previously sought approval to release the grand jury materials in August, but judges denied the request, ruling the government had not demonstrated sufficient legal grounds to unseal the documents.
Judge Richard Berman, who presided over Epstein’s 2019 case, rejected a Trump administration request in August, writing that a “significant and compelling reason” existed to keep the transcripts sealed.
Berman noted that the government already possessed over 100,000 pages of Epstein-related materials, dwarfing the roughly 70 pages of grand jury documents.
Grand jury sessions
The grand jury sessions took place on June 18 and July 2, 2019. The July 2 session concluded with grand jurors voting to indict Epstein. The remainder of the presentation included a PowerPoint slideshow and a call log. Epstein was arrested on July 6, 2019, and was later found dead in his Manhattan federal jail cell on August 10, 2019, in what authorities have ruled a suicide.
