Federal Judge Orders Epstein Grand Jury Transcripts Unsealed
A federal judge has issued an order that transcripts of Florida grand jury proceedings that took place 20 years ago, involving a criminal investigation into deceased convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, be unsealed.
In his order Friday, U.S. District Judge Rodney Smith explained that the “specific language” of the Epstein Files Transparency Act “overrides Rule 6’s prohibition on disclosure,” according to ABC News.
President Donald Trump signed the Epstein Files Transparency Act into law in November. In an article on Truth Social, Trump predicted that “maybe the truth” would come out about Democrats such as former President Bill Clinton, Democratic megadonor Reid Hoffman and former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, and their associations with Epstein.
“The law applies to unclassified records, documents, communications and investigative materials relating to Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell,” Smith said. “Therefore, the specific and subsequently enacted language of the statute trumps Rule 6’s prohibition on disclosure. Accordingly, it is ORDERED that the United States’ expedited motion to unseal the grand jury transcripts and modify the protective order…is GRANTED.”
While Smith ordered transcripts of grand jury proceedings to be unsealed, he is “one of three federal judges” asked by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to “unseal grand jury documents in cases” involving Epstein and his former assistant, Ghislaine Maxwell, according to the outlet.
According to the media, “two New York judges are expected to issue their decisions next week.”
Breitbart News’ Olivia Rondeau reported in July that U.S. District Court Judge for the Southern District of Florida Robin Rosenberg denied a request from the Trump administration to unseal transcripts of grand jury proceedings in Florida regarding the Epstein investigation.
At the time, Rosenberg wrote that an “Eleventh Circuit statute” did not allow the court “to grant the government’s request.” Rosenberg’s refusal came after the DOJ “made a request to the U.S. District Court in West Palm Beach, Florida, for transcripts from” two separate grand juries that took place in 2005 and 2007.
