New York — A federal judge in Manhattan is demanding more information from the Justice Department as he considers its request to unseal records of the sex trafficking case against Jeffrey Epstein’s longtime close friend. Ghislaine Maxwell.
Judge Paul A. ordered Engelmayer on Tuesday told the Justice Department of the materials it planned to release publicly that were subject to confidentiality orders in the British socialite’s case.
Deadline: Wednesday noon.
Engelmayer’s order came after the Justice Department on monday He asked for his permission to release the grand jury records, exhibits and discovery materials in the Maxwell case.
Engelmayer said the government’s attorney must file a letter in the case docket describing the material it wants to release “in sufficient detail to meaningfully inform victims” of what it plans to release.
It was Maxwell He was convicted in 2021 by a federal sex trafficking grand jury for helping recruit some of Epstein’s minor victims. she He is serving a 20-year prison sentence.
Epstein, a millionaire money manager known for his social interactions with celebrities, politicians, billionaires and the academic elite, He killed himself in prison A month after his arrest in 2019.
Engelmayer had already notified the victims and Maxwell that they could respond next month to the Justice Department’s request to release the materials before he decided to approve them.
The Justice Department said it was seeking court approval to release the materials in compliance with the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Donald Trump last week. He calls for the release of grand jury and discovery materials in the case.
That request, along with a similar request for grand jury transcripts from the Epstein case, were among the first public indications that the Justice Department was trying to comply with the transparency law, which requires it to release files related to Epstein in a searchable format by December 19.
Engelmayer did not preside over the trial, but was assigned to the case after the trial judge, Alison J. Nathan, was promoted to the Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals.
Discovery materials subject to confidentiality orders would likely include interviews with victims and other material that could only have been seen by attorneys or Maxwell before her trial.
Engelmayer said in an order Monday that Maxwell and the victims of Maxwell and Epstein could respond by Dec. 3 to the government’s request to release the material to the public. The government must respond to their requests by December 10. The judge said he would rule “immediately thereafter.”
Lawyers for the victims did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment. A spokesman for federal prosecutors declined to comment.
Judge Richard M. Berman, who presided over Epstein’s case before his death, issued an order Tuesday allowing the victims and Epstein’s estate to respond to the Justice Department’s request for disclosure by Dec. 3. He said the government could respond to any requests by December 8.
Berman said he would make “every effort to resolve this proposal immediately.”