A federal judge on Tuesday rejected the Justice Department’s request to unseal grand jury transcripts from the 2019 Jeffrey Epstein sex trafficking case, marking the third court to deny the Trump administration’s push for disclosure and suggesting the effort was aimed at creating an illusion of transparency rather than revealing meaningful information.
US District Judge Richard Berman ruled the government failed to demonstrate “special circumstances” that would justify releasing the sealed materials from the grand jury that indicted Epstein on sex trafficking charges before his death in August 2019.
“The Government is the logical party to make comprehensive disclosure to the public of the Epstein Files,” Berman wrote. “By comparison, the instant grand jury motion appears to be a ‘diversion’ from the breadth and scope of the Epstein Files in the Government’s possession.”
The ruling revealed that the grand jury materials consist of just 70 pages of testimony from a single FBI agent who testified over two days in June and July 2019, along with a PowerPoint presentation and call log. No victims testified before the grand jury in Epstein’s case, the judge noted.
Berman’s decision follows similar rejections by Judge Paul Engelmayer in the Ghislaine Maxwell case on August 11 and Judge Robin Rosenberg in Florida on July 23. Engelmayer was particularly scathing, calling the Justice Department’s premise “demonstrably false” and suggesting the request was motivated by public relations rather than genuine transparency.
The denials come amid mounting pressure on the Trump administration over its handling of the Epstein files. Attorney General Pam Bondi had promised extensive disclosure in February, but released documents contained no new revelations. A July memo from the Justice Department concluded there was no evidence of an Epstein “client list” or that he blackmailed prominent figures, contradicting years of conspiracy theories.
The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform voted to subpoena Epstein-related documents after expressing frustration with the administration’s approach. Committee members are expected to begin receiving materials Friday, though they will require redaction to protect victim identities before any public release.
Read: House GOP Orders DOJ Hand Over Epstein Files; Subpoenas Clintons, Ex-FBI Heads & AGs
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, who previously served as Trump’s personal attorney, conducted a two-day interview with Maxwell at her Florida prison facility in late July as part of the administration’s investigation. Maxwell is currently serving a 20-year sentence for her role in Epstein’s crimes and has petitioned the Supreme Court to overturn her conviction.
Read: Convicted Child Sex Trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell Cleared for Work Release
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