Judge denies Justice Department request to unseal Epstein grand jury transcripts

A federal judge rejected the government's request to unseal grand jury transcripts from the Jeffrey Epstein sex trafficking investigation. Judge Richard Berman ruled that the transcripts contain limited material compared with investigative files held by the Department of Justice. Berman wrote that no victims testified before the Epstein grand jury and that the only witness was an FBI agent who offered mostly hearsay over two days in June and July 2019. The grand jury presentation also included a PowerPoint and a call log, and those materials will remain sealed. Ghislaine Maxwell is serving a 20-year sentence after conviction; Epstein died awaiting trial.

A federal judge who presided over the sex trafficking case against financier Jeffrey Epstein has rejected the government's request to unseal grand jury transcripts. The ruling Wednesday by federal Judge Richard Berman in Manhattan came after the judge presiding over the case against British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein's former girlfriend, also turned down the government's request. Maxwell is serving a 20-year prison sentence after her conviction on sex trafficking charges for helping Epstein sexually abuse girls and young women.

Epstein died in jail awaiting trial. A Justice Department spokesperson declined to comment. Berman said the information contained in the Epstein grand jury transcripts pales in comparison to the Epstein investigative information and materials in the hands of the Department of Justice. According to Berman's ruling, no victims testified before the Epstein grand jury. The only witness, the judge wrote, was an FBI agent who had no direct knowledge of the facts of the case and whose testimony was mostly hearsay.

The agent testified over two days, on June 18 and July 2, 2019. The rest of the grand jury presentation consisted of a PowerPoint slideshow shown during the June 18 session and a call log shown during the July 2 session, which ended with grand jurors voting to indict Epstein. Both of those will also remain sealed, Berman ruled.

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