The Department of Justice revived its push to unseal grand jury records related to the prosecution of sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, months after being stymied by the courts.
The big picture: Amid mounting public fury this summer over its handling of the Epstein case, the administration turned to the courts to try to release grand jury materials. But it met legal roadblocks from three different federal judges.
Driving the news: Now, the DOJ is arguing that a law forcing the DOJ to release its records on Epstein, signed by President Trump, shakes up the situation.
- The Epstein Files Transparency Act compels the DOJ to share its files related to the Epstein probe within 30 days, though it contains loopholes that could delay or change how the files look.
What they're saying: But Assistant U.S. Attorney Manolo Reboso wrote in a Friday motion filed by the DOJ that "the Act does not exempt all grand jury transcripts from public production."
- Therefore, he wrote, "[p]ublic production of the grand jury material is therefore required."
- The DOJ said it would "make appropriate redactions of victim-related and other personal identifying information" and requested an expedited ruling given its mid-December deadline.
Catch up quick: Trump urged Attorney General Pam Bondi "to produce any and all pertinent Grand Jury testimony, subject to Court approval."
- But judges in Florida and New York earlier this year struck down the administration's efforts to unseal those materials, which typically remain secret.
- In July, a Florida-based judge wrote that the court's "hands were tied" and that she could not release the files.
- The next month, a New York-based judge wrote that the government had not met the high bar justifying the rare unsealing of grand jury materials, saying that anyone who reviewed the records expecting "to learn new information about Epstein's and Maxwell's crimes ... would come away feeling disappointed and misled."
Go deeper: Why the Epstein files won't be released as soon as the law is passed
