Justice Department asks court to unseal Jeffrey Epstein grand jury records
By ALANNA DURKIN RICHER WASHINGTON AP The Justice Department questioned a federal court on Friday to unseal grand jury transcripts in Jeffrey Epstein s development amid a firestorm over the Trump administration s handling of records related to the wealthy financier Related Articles Jon Stewart says he could be next after Stephen Colbert s show is canceled Venezuela releases jailed Americans in deal that frees foreigners deported to El Salvador by US Trump administration seeks release of Epstein grand jury records but not Justice Department files Trump signs new stablecoin regulations into law a major milestone for crypto industry Tears and frustration at California immigration court where a lawyer fears for his clients safety Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche filed motions urging the court to release the Epstein transcripts as well as those in the event against convicted British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell a day after President Donald Trump directed the Justice Department to do so The Trump administration has been embroiled in conflict since the Justice Department last week released that it would not be releasing any more evidence in its possession from Epstein s analysis Trump s demand to release the grand jury transcripts came after The Wall Street Journal disclosed on a sexually suggestive letter that the newspaper says bore Trump s name and was included in a album for Epstein s th birthday Trump denied writing the letter calling it false malicious and defamatory The Justice Department explained it will work with with prosecutors in New York to make appropriate redactions of victim-related information and other personally identifying information before transcripts are circulated Grand jury transcripts which could show the testimony of observers and other evidence presented by prosecutors are rarely distributed by courts unless they need to be disclosed in connection with a judicial proceeding Even with the Justice Department endorsement it could take weeks or months of legal wrangling to decide what can be disclosed and how to protect onlookers and other sensitive victim information
