Judge allows release of Epstein-related grand jury documents

REUTERS/ANNABELLE GORDON

Protesters stand behind the barricades at a press conference with U.S. Representative Adelita Grijalva (D-AZ) (not pictured) as she calls for the release of the Epstein files, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 18. A U.S. judge today granted a request by the Justice Department to make public grand jury documents in the case involving Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell, who is in prison for sex trafficking.

WASHINGTON >> A U.S. judge today granted a request by the Justice Department to make public grand jury documents in the case involving Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell, who is in prison for sex trafficking.

In a written order, U.S. District Judge Paul Engelmayer said he would allow the unsealing of the documents because of a recent law passed by Congress, the Epstein Files Transparency Act.

Engelmayer said he was putting in place a mechanism to protect victims from the inadvertent release of materials that would identify them or otherwise invade their privacy. The order followed a similar one from a judge in Florida on Friday that allowed for the unsealing of documents in a case against Epstein.

The bill passed by the Republican-controlled Congress required U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to release unclassified files related to its investigations of Epstein and Maxwell.

President Donald Trump had initially urged Republican lawmakers to oppose the measure, warning that releasing internal investigative records could set a precedent he viewed as harmful to the presidency, according to two congressional aides. But he reversed course after it became clear the bill had enough bipartisan support to pass with or without his backing.

See more:National news

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