From the Associated Press, by Larry Neumeister
NEW YORK (AP) The government’s request to release grand jury transcripts was denied by a federal judge who oversaw the sex trafficking case against millionaire Jeffrey Epstein.
Federal Judge Richard Berman in Manhattan issued the decision on Wednesday, following the denial of the government’s request by the judge overseeing the case against Epstein’s ex-girlfriend, British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell.
Maxwell was found guilty of sex trafficking and sentenced to 20 years in jail for assisting Epstein in sexually abusing kids and young women. While awaiting trial, Epstein passed away in prison.
A spokesman for the Justice Department chose not to comment.
According to Berman, the Department of Justice’s Epstein investigative materials and information are far superior to the information found in the grand jury transcripts.
Berman’s decision states that none of the victims gave testimony to the Epstein grand jury. The judge wrote that the only witness was an FBI agent whose testimony was primarily hearsay and who had no direct knowledge of the case’s facts. Over the course of two days, on June 18 and July 2, 2019, the agent provided testimony. A PowerPoint presentation from the June 18 session and a call log from the July 2 session, which concluded with the grand jurors voting to indict Epstein, made up the remainder of the grand jury presentation. Berman decided that each of those would also stay sealed.
Since the Justice Department said last month that it will not be disclosing any more documents from the Epstein sex trafficking investigation, there has been increased public attention to Maxwell’s case. The ruling angered conspiracy theorists, internet detectives, and members of President Donald Trump’s supporters who were hoping to find evidence of a government cover-up.
Officials from the Trump administration have since attempted to portray themselves as advocating for openness in the investigation, even going so far as to ask judges to unseal grand jury transcripts.
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In apparent allusion to the Justice Department’s decision to unseal grand jury transcripts but refusing to reveal further data on its own, Berman wrote, “The government is the logical party to make comprehensive disclosure to the public of the Epstein file.”
In contrast, he continued, the current grand jury motion seems to be a distraction from the size and scope of the Government’s Epstein files. Jeffrey Epstein’s alleged actions are only hinted to in the grand jury testimony.
Meanwhile, the House Oversight Committee had stated that it wished to speak with Maxwell, and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche had conducted an interview with Maxwell at a Florida courthouse a few weeks prior. Her attorneys stated that if the panel guaranteed immunity from prosecution, they would be amenable to an interview.
The committee was willing to postpone the deposition until after Maxwell’s appeal to the Supreme Court was resolved, according to a letter written by the committee chair, Rep. James Comer, to Maxwell’s attorneys. Late September is when that appeal is anticipated to be decided.
Although Maxwell’s testimony was essential to the Republican-led probe into Epstein, Comer noted that the committee refused to grant her immunity or ask any questions before her hearing, despite her team’s request.
