DOJ fails to fully comply with Friday deadline for Epstein files release
The U.S. Department of Justice will not release the entirety of the federal government’s files on sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein by the end of day Friday, failing to fully comply with a mandate from Congress.
DOJ will release several hundred thousand documents, however, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a Fox News interview. He estimated that “several hundred thousand more” will be released “over the next couple of weeks.”
The delay, Blanche explained, is due to the significant number of redactions that the department must complete in order to protect the identifications of witnesses and victims in the files.
By failing to fully comply with a congressional edict, lawmakers would have grounds to impeach or hold U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi in contempt of Congress.
Congress passed the Epstein Files Transparency Act on Nov. 18, which President Donald Trump signed into law the next day.
The bill, sponsored by Reps. Ro Khanna, D-Calif.; and Thomas Massie, R-Ky., requires that the U.S. Attorney General “make publicly available in a searchable and downloadable format all unclassified records, documents, communications, and investigative materials in the possession of the Department of Justice” that relate to Epstein and his close associate Ghislaine Maxwell.
“Any Justice Department official who does not comply with this law will be subject to prosecution for obstruction of justice,” Khanna vowed.
Epstein died in jail awaiting trial in 2019 and Maxwell is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence.
President Donald Trump, former president Bill Clinton, billionaire businessman Bill Gates, and dozens of other high-profile figures have received intense public scrutiny for their connections with Epstein and Maxwell.
Slight Chance Showers And Thunderstorms then Chance Showers And Thunderstorms
Latest News Stories
Manhattan Inks New Four-Year Contracts with Police Patrol Officers and Sergeants
Historic Joseph Perry House in Crete Granted Landmark Status
Constitutional tests await IL Dems’ race-based district plan
State House OKs access to abortion medication at colleges
Nonprofit hospitals called out for prioritizing politics over patients
Americans back birthright citizenship 2-to-1, poll finds
Roy leads congressional delegation calling to halt federal funding for CAIR
Marilyn Monroe’s home becomes a monument; owners sue
Abbott lauds Supreme Court’s second ruling upholding Texas’ new congressional maps
Illinois quick hits: Appeals court upholds Madigan corruption conviction
Special session for congressional maps set to convene
Trump officials explain assassination attempt charges on alleged attacker
