A federal judge has rejected the Trump administration’s request to unseal grand jury materials from Ghislaine Maxwell’s sex-trafficking case on Monday, assailing the plea as a “distraction.”
The Justice Department (DOJ) had sought to release testimony and exhibits from the case against Jeffrey Epstein’s accomplice, who was convicted of sex trafficking in 2021 and is serving 20 years in prison, citing “abundant public interest.” Except in rare circumstances, grand jury testimony is usually kept under seal to protect witnesses and the independence of the grand jury.
In denying the motion, District Judge Paul Engelmayer rejected the DOJ’s argument that unsealing the testimony would provide new information.
“Its entire premise—that the Maxwell grand jury materials would bring to light meaningful new information about Epstein’s and Maxwell’s crimes, or the Government’s investigation into them—is demonstrably false,” he wrote.
The bid came as the administration has struggled to contain MAGA fallout after backtracking on President Donald Trump’s promise to release more information on convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. In July, the DOJ and Federal Bureau of Investigation concluded that Epstein died by suicide awaiting trial in prison in 2019, rather than being murdered, and that no “client list” of wealthy co-conspirators exists. The determination has led Trump’s conspiracy-minded supporters to accuse the administration of a cover-up.
Engelmayer wrote that the evidence presented to the Maxwell grand jury was all a matter of public record already, except for victims’ names—and that the DOJ already knew that to be the case.
“The Government admitted as much in response to the Court’s order,” the judge wrote.
“Because the Government proposes to redact the witnesses’ identities, the exception it noted does not reflect information that the public would learn were the grand jury transcripts unsealed,” he added. “The Court’s review confirmed that unsealing the grand jury materials would not reveal new information of any consequence.”
The grand juries in Maxwell and Epstein’s cases neither heard testimony from any firsthand witnesses nor victims, the judge noted. Instead, the grand jury heard from a law enforcement agent who testified about information obtained in the investigation to support the charges.
Engelmayer also blasted the government for failing to justify unsealing the grand jury material.
“The one colorable argument under that doctrine for unsealing in this case, in fact, is that doing so would expose as disingenuous the Government’s public explanations for moving to unseal,” he wrote. “A member of the public, appreciating that the Maxwell grand jury materials do not contribute anything to public knowledge, might conclude that the Government’s motion for their unsealing was aimed not at ‘transparency’ but at diversion.”
It’s the latest blow to the DOJ as it attempts to contain MAGA’s outrage over the Epstein files. As part of its attempt to turn the page, the Justice Department’s second in command, Todd Blanche, met with Maxwell at a federal courthouse in Florida in July for additional testimony. The administration has reportedly been considering releasing her testimony.
A week after she met with the deputy attorney general, Epstein’s accomplice was moved to a minimum security prison camp in Texas, raising questions over a quid pro quo.
Maxwell’s team had pushed back on the grand jury testimony being unsealed as it looks to the Supreme Court to overturn her conviction.
The Daily Beast has reached out to Maxwell’s lawyer and the White House for comment.
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