ORLANDO, FLORIDA – A federal judge has authorized the Justice Department to release transcripts from the long-stalled federal grand jury investigation into Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse of underage girls in Florida, marking the first time material from the earliest federal probe may become public. The ruling came after the passage of a new federal law requiring the disclosure of records tied to Epstein’s decades-long pattern of criminal activity, overriding traditional grand jury secrecy rules. The Justice Department, FBI, and federal prosecutors must now prepare vast collections of investigative files for release under this law, which was signed in November by President Donald Trump.
The transcripts relate to the initial federal investigation that began after Palm Beach police uncovered allegations in 2005 from teenage girls who said they were hired to provide Epstein with sexualized massages at his mansion. The FBI joined the case, and federal prosecutors drafted an indictment in 2007. But as prosecutors moved forward, Epstein’s legal team simultaneously attacked the accusers’ credibility in public while privately negotiating a controversial plea agreement. In 2008, Epstein pleaded guilty only to lesser state charges and received an 18-month sentence, most of which he served on a work-release arrangement that allowed him to spend his days in his office. The federal prosecution was abandoned under then-U.S. Attorney Alex Acosta, a decision that drew outrage and later contributed to his resignation as Labor Secretary.
A 2020 Justice Department review criticized Acosta’s handling of the case as “poor judgment” but said he did not commit misconduct. Years later, federal prosecutors in New York brought new sex-trafficking charges against Epstein in 2019, reflecting many of the same allegations that underpinned the earlier Florida inquiry. Epstein died in jail before trial, and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell was later convicted and sentenced to 20 years in prison. The newly ordered release of federal grand jury transcripts could illuminate why the original prosecution was halted, especially since transcripts of related state proceedings have already been disclosed.
While the exact release date remains unclear, the Justice Department sought court approval to unseal the transcripts so they can be included in the broader disclosure mandated under the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which carries a deadline of December 19. The law permits federal officials to withhold documents that could compromise ongoing investigations or that are classified or tied to national defense or foreign policy. Additional requests involving grand jury records from the New York cases remain pending, with judges indicating they plan to issue rulings promptly.