Federal Judge Orders Release of Epstein Grand Jury Records from 2006-2007 Florida Investigation


U.S. District Judge Rodney Smith ruled that a recently passed federal law overrode traditional rules prohibiting the release of grand jury materials. The decision came following passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act

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	U.S. District Judge Rodney Smith ruled that a recently passed federal law overrode traditional rules prohibiting the release of grand jury materials. The decision came following passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act
	Federal Judge Orders Release of Epstein Grand Jury Records from 2006-2007 Florida Investigation Marc Kennedy - National-Politics Tell Us USA News Network FORT LAUDERDALE, FL - A federal judge in Florida has ordered the unsealing of grand jury transcripts from the 2006-2007 federal investigation into Jeffrey Epstein, marking a significant development in the long-standing effort to bring transparency to the sex offender's case. U.S. District Judge Rodney Smith ruled that a recently passed federal law overrode traditional rules prohibiting the release of grand jury materials. The decision came following passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which was signed by President Donald Trump last month and compels the Justice Department, FBI and federal prosecutors to release material amassed during Epstein investigations by December 19. Judge Smith's order applies specifically to the Florida grand jury investigation conducted between 2006 and 2007. The law's language explicitly overrides the traditional secrecy of grand jury materials, providing the legal basis for the unprecedented disclosure. The timing of the materials' public release remains unclear. The Justice Department has stated it will work with relevant U.S. Attorney's Offices to make appropriate redactions of victim-related and other personal identifying information. This represents the federal grand jury records from the investigation that ultimately led to a controversial 2008 plea deal. That agreement allowed Epstein to plead guilty to state solicitation charges involving a single underage victim, despite investigations into numerous others. He served just over a year in county jail with work-release privileges. The Justice Department has filed similar unsealing requests for grand jury materials from Epstein's 2019 sex trafficking case in New York and Ghislaine Maxwell's 2021 sex trafficking case. Those requests remain pending, with judges indicating they plan to rule expeditiously. Much of the underlying material from the 2005 and 2007 investigations is believed to have emerged over the years through civil suits brought by Epstein's victims, though the formal grand jury transcripts have remained sealed until now. Epstein died by suicide in his New York jail cell in August 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges. Maxwell was convicted of federal sex trafficking charges in 2021 and is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence.