In a firm response, two federal judges have essentially told the Trump administration that its latest attempt to unveil grand jury transcripts tied to Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell isn’t cutting it. The judges are asking for a redo.
The unsealing motions were filed by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche as political criticism has intensified against President Donald Trump’s team for not keeping its word to make all documents related to Epstein public. You can check out the details for both the Epstein and Maxwell cases.
However, it’s important to note that unsealing these grand jury documents wouldn’t necessarily release all information regarding Epstein, who passed away in custody back in 2019, with authorities ruling it a suicide.
That said, even the limited information that could be revealed won’t be available until the DOJ addresses the legal shortcomings evident in Blanche’s motions.
The judges made their decision public on a Tuesday, coinciding with Blanche’s press announcement that he intends to question Maxwell and basically ask her, “What do you know?”
Blanche highlighted that the Justice Department hadn’t posed such inquiries to Maxwell, who was charged during Trump’s first term and subsequently convicted in 2021 of conspiring with Epstein in minor sex trafficking. She’s also pursuing a Supreme Court petition aimed at overturning her conviction and 20-year sentence, and just last week, the DOJ opposed her appeal.”
The directive for Blanche to refine his arguments came from U.S. District Judge Paul Engelmayer—a nominee from Obama—in charge of the Maxwell case, and U.S. District Judge Richard Berman—a nominee from Clinton—who’s handling the Epstein case. Both judges oversee the Southern District of New York, where both individuals were prosecuted. For anyone interested, you can check out the official Maxwell order here and the Epstein one here.
The judges indicated they’d like to move forward with the unsealing requests as quickly as possible but deemed Blanche’s recent submissions inadequate. They’ve given the DOJ until July 29 to present a more comprehensive memorandum justifying why the documents should be unsealed.
They’ve also pointed out that the DOJ needs to clarify if it reviewed the transcripts in question before making these motions and whether the victims were informed.
In addition to the governmental briefs, both judges have required additional submissions from Maxwell, representatives of Epstein, and victims, all due by August 5.
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This piece appeared originally on MSNBC.com.
