A federal judge approved a request to unseal grand jury materials related to Jeffrey Epstein on Friday.
Congress’ decision to pass the “Epstein Files Transparency Act” overrides typical rules surrounding grand jury secrecy, Miami-based District Court Judge Rodney Smith, a Trump appointee, held.
“The Act applies to unclassified records, documents, communications, and investigative materials that relate to Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell,” Smith wrote. “Consequently, the later-enacted and specific language of the Act trumps Rule 6’s prohibition on disclosure.”
Smith denied in July a prior request from the government to unseal the materials. The Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a new motion to unseal the records in November after Congress passed the bill.
“The Legislative and Executive Branches have nearly unanimously directed the Department of Justice to make records related to the Epstein and Maxwell investigations publicly available,” the DOJ wrote in its filing.
The department noted it would “work with the relevant United States Attorney’s Offices to make appropriate redactions of victim-related and other personal identifying information.”
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