A federal judge in Florida has ordered the release of grand jury transcripts from the federal sex trafficking investigation of convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, marking a rare move to unseal typically secret records. The decision follows the passage of new federal legislation requiring the Department of Justice to disclose long-hidden files related to the case.
The ruling, first reported by The Associated Press, came Friday from U.S. District Judge Rodney Smith, who determined that the newly enacted Epstein Files Transparency Act supersedes federal rules that normally bar the release of grand jury materials. President Donald Trump signed the bipartisan bill in November, giving the Justice Department a Dec. 19 deadline to release materials tied to the Epstein investigation.
No Release Date Yet
Despite ordering the unsealing, Judge Smith did not specify when the Justice Department must begin releasing the records, and the DOJ has not given a public timeline. The absence of a schedule leaves open questions about how quickly — or how fully — the department will comply.
The ruling came just days after House Democrats released a cache of previously unseen photos and videos taken on Epstein’s private island in the U.S. Virgin Islands, renewing public attention on the case and the government’s past handling of it.
A Rare Move to Unseal Grand Jury Records
Grand jury materials are ordinarily protected under strict confidentiality rules meant to shield witnesses, ongoing investigative leads, and prosecutorial strategy. But under the new transparency law, the Justice Department sought court permission to include grand jury documents in the release, arguing that Congress intended the disclosures to be broad.
The law still gives the department discretion to withhold documents that could jeopardize active investigations — a standard consistent with longstanding DOJ policy. Officials may also redact or decline to release any classified materials or records tied to national defense or foreign policy.
Which Cases Are Covered
According to the AP, the Justice Department asked for authorization to unseal records from three separate federal cases involving Epstein, all connected to the grand jury investigation in West Palm Beach, Florida. That probe focused on allegations that Epstein targeted and exploited underage girls in the area in the mid-2000s.
The Florida investigation closed after Epstein secured a now-infamous non-prosecution agreement, allowing him to plead guilty only to state-level solicitation charges involving a single minor. That deal — negotiated largely out of public view and without notifying victims — later sparked national outrage, internal DOJ reviews, and the resignation of then-Labor Secretary Alex Acosta, who had overseen the federal component of the negotiations.
How Much Will Be New?
It is unclear how many of the forthcoming records will reveal new information. When federal prosecutors in New York charged Epstein with sex trafficking in 2019, they had access to the Florida investigative files. Much of the underlying evidence has already surfaced over the years through civil lawsuits filed by victims, though grand jury transcripts themselves remain unseen.
Epstein died in a New York federal jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on the new charges. His death — officially ruled a suicide — continues to fuel public suspicion and conspiracy theories.
What Comes Next
With the judge’s ruling now in place, the Justice Department must determine which materials can be released under the law and which must remain sealed under investigative or national-security exemptions. Until the department sets a public timeline, it remains unclear when — or how much — new information about the government’s handling of the Epstein case will come to light.
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