A federal judge on Monday denied a Justice Department request to unseal grand jury transcripts in the New York sex trafficking case of Ghislaine Maxwell, longtime associate of Jeffrey Epstein.
The ruling comes as public scrutiny grows over the administration’s handling of the Epstein case. Prosecutors argued that releasing the materials would address transparency concerns, but U.S. District Judge Paul A. Engelmayer ruled the move was not legally justified.
“The Government has not cited any case finding such materials to present a ‘special circumstance’ that justifies the exceptional step of unsealing grand jury materials,” Engelmayer wrote in his decision. “There is none.”
Grand jury proceedings are generally kept secret to protect witnesses, encourage candid testimony, and safeguard ongoing investigations. The Justice Department has faced pressure from advocacy groups, journalists, and legal nonprofits to make more Epstein-related records public, but similar efforts have met repeated legal obstacles.
Maxwell is currently serving a 20-year federal sentence after being convicted in 2021 of sex trafficking and other charges tied to Epstein’s abuse of underage girls.
Sources:
Discover more from News Facts Network
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
