Survivors Rake Pam Bondi Over the Coals Over Epstein Files Release
What will happen now that the DOJ has missed its deadline?
Survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking operation released a statement criticizing the Justice Department’s Friday release of documents related to the investigations into his activities.
The Justice Department released tens of thousands of documents after Congress voted to pass the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which set a December 19 deadline for the DOJ to release all information pertaining to Epstein’s operations and those who participated in them.
The statement criticized the Justice Department for failing to release all of the information. “Instead, the public received a fraction of the files, and what we received was riddled with abnormal and extreme redactions with no explanation,” the statement reads.
At the same time, numerous victim identities were left unredacted, causing real and immediate harm. No financial documents were released. Grand jury minutes, though approved by a federal judge for release, were fully blacked out – not the scattered redactions that might be expected to protect victim names, but 119 full pages blacked out. We are told that there are hundreds of thousands of pages of documents still unreleased. These are clear-cut violations of an unambiguous law.
The statement further explains, “the partial release was done in a manner that made it difficult or impossible for survivors to find materials that would be most relevant to our search for accountability.”
There has been no guidance for survivors on how to locate materials pertaining to our own cases, nor have we been provided with copies of our own files despite repeated requests. There has been no communication with survivors or our representatives as to what was withheld from release, or why hundreds of thousands of documents have not been disclosed by the legal deadline, or how DOJ will ensure that no more victim names are wrongly disclosed. While clearer communication would not change the fact that a law was broken, its absence suggests an ongoing intent to keep survivors and the public in the dark as much as possible and as long as possible.
The DOJ faced significant backlash last week when it acknowledged it wasn’t releasing all of the Epstein Files on Friday, as required by the recently-passed law. Reps. Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Ro Khanna (D-CA) announced on Sunday that they are drafting an inherent contempt resolution against Attorney General Pam Bondi.
The resolution could subject Bondi to personal fines and other forms of punishment if the DOJ fails to release the files.
If it wasn’t obvious before, it should be now. The Justice Department is trying desperately to make sure the public never finds out exactly who was involved with Epstein’s sex trafficking ring.
After promising to release the files on the campaign trail, President Trump has responded to those seeking the information by stonewalling and even attacking those who are demanding it.
At this point, it’s unlikely that we will ever know the full extent of Epstein’s network and those who participated in the trafficking of young girls.
Given that it’s Trump’s last term, he doesn’t have to worry about the fallout from this. But does not necessarily mean the Epstein matter won’t hurt the GOP, especially since Republican lawmakers have largely backed this administration’s efforts to prevent the public from finding out what is in the files.