Sen. Chuck Schumer says he’s introducing resolution to force DOJ into full release of Epstein files

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Monday that he is introducing a resolution ordering the Senate to “initiate legal action against the DOJ for its blatant disregard of the law in its refusal to release the full Epstein files.”

“The law passed by Congress is crystal clear: release the Epstein files in full so Americans can see the truth,” Schumer wrote in an article on

Schumer will force consideration of the measure in January, when the Senate reconvenes. The Senate returns from recess on Monday, January 5.

The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif. — who co-wrote the bill that required the DOJ to release its records on Jeffrey Epstein — said over the weekend that he plans to take action in the House as well. The DOJ on Friday released only a portion of its investigative files on Epstein and his co-conspirator, Ghislaine Maxwell.

“The quickest, and I think the quickest, way to get justice for these victims is to inflict inherent contempt on Pam Bondi,” Massie said Sunday on CBS’ “Face the Nation.”

The law, which President Donald Trump signed into law on Nov. 19, gives the attorney general 30 days to “make public in a searchable and downloadable format all unclassified records, documents, communications, and investigative materials in the possession of the Department of Justice” involving Epstein, “including any investigations, prosecutions, or custody matters.”

A group of Epstein victims urged lawmakers to talk in a statement released Monday.

“The public received only a fraction of the records, and what we received was riddled with anomalous and extreme redactions without explanation. At the same time, many victims’ identities were not redacted, causing real and immediate harm,” the statement said.

They said the DOJ “violated the law” and called for “immediate congressional oversight, including hearings, formal requests for compliance, and legal action, to ensure that the Justice Department meets its legal obligations.”

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche acknowledged in an interview with Fox News on Friday that the Justice Department missed a Dec. 19 deadline to make all information public, but said that was because the department was still working to redact the information to protect victims’ identities, as also required by the new law.

The Justice Department said Epstein, who died by suicide in his prison cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges, preyed on more than 1,200 women and girls.

The department defended the release of the records, some of which were heavily redacted, as well as its decision to remove more than a dozen photographs it had initially released — one of which included photos of Trump. Trump and Epstein had been friends for years, but the president said they had fallen out. There is no evidence that the president was involved in wrongdoing related to Epstein.

That sparked criticism that the DOJ was trying to cover up for the president, something Blanche denied Sunday in an interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

The decision “has nothing to do with President Trump” and was made because “victims’ rights groups” were concerned about other images captured in the photo, Blanche said. The photo was put back into the DOJ’s Epstein Files database later Sunday.

“The Southern District of New York flagged an image of President Trump for possible additional action to protect victims. Out of an abundance of caution, the Department of Justice temporarily removed the image for further review,” the DOJ said in an article on

Blanche said he expects the full records to be public in two weeks.

In a “fact sheet” released by the DOJ on Sunday, the department said it “has more than 200 attorneys working around the clock to review each individual filing for release.” This is an arduous process, as each document and photograph must be reviewed individually by the DOJ and the Southern District of New York for possible redactions to protect actual or potential victims. »

“The Department is required by law to redact identifying information about victims, minors or potential victims, as well as privileged materials. NO redaction has been or will be made to protect famous individuals or politically exposed persons,” he said.