Judge Orders DOJ To Unredact More Epstein Files, Says Todd Blanche Admitted Missing Transparency Law Deadline
A federal judge ordered the Justice Department on Thursday to release additional information from the recently disclosed files related to disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein or provide a detailed explanation for why those materials cannot be made public.
US District Judge Emmet Sullivan gave the DOJ until July 2 to produce less-redacted versions of certain documents or justify why the information must remain concealed.
The judge also ordered the Trump administration to publish a comprehensive log detailing every redaction made in the files.
In his ruling, Sullivan noted that the Epstein Files Transparency Act, signed into law by President Donald Trump in November, required the release of the covered documents and accompanying redaction log by Dec. 19, 2025.
“The Attorney General conceded that he is in violation of the Act,” Sullivan wrote, referring to Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche.
Blanche became the target of a lawsuit filed in April by independent journalist and former MSNBC host Katie Phang, who alleged that the administration failed to comply with the law’s disclosure requirements.
The lawsuit argued that the Justice Department missed statutory deadlines, improperly redacted records and failed to adequately explain why portions of documents had been withheld from the public.
Among the materials covered by Sullivan’s order are a number of emails and investigative documents that have fueled renewed interest in the Epstein case.
Those include an April 2009 email in which Epstein allegedly wrote, “I loved the torture video,” and a 2014 message in which an unidentified correspondent thanked Epstein for “a fun night” while referring to a “little girl” as having been “a little naughty.”
The court order also covers a 2017 email that allegedly compared a woman known to both correspondents to the title character from Vladimir Nabokov’s novel “Lolita” and referenced sending Epstein additional “candidates.”
Other documents include a draft federal indictment from South Florida that would have charged Epstein and four associates with sex trafficking conspiracy offenses before prosecutors instead reached a controversial plea agreement that resulted in state prostitution charges.
The order further includes records identifying four potential co-conspirators connected to Epstein’s longtime associate and convicted accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell.
Also included are FBI interview notes involving allegations made by a woman who claimed she was sexually assaulted as a minor after being introduced to Trump by Epstein.
Blanche has repeatedly argued that the Justice Department possesses little new information to release, contending that many of the records are duplicates of material already made public or contain explicit details involving victims whose privacy must be protected.
The DOJ has also maintained that many files contain unverified allegations that law enforcement agencies do not typically disclose publicly and previously stated that some of those allegations involving Trump were “unfounded and false.”
Epstein was found dead in his Manhattan jail cell on Aug. 10, 2019, while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges. His death sparked years of speculation surrounding his relationships with prominent figures, including Bill Clinton, Bill Gates and Prince Andrew, among others.