type: timeline_event
U.S. District Judge Paul Engelmayer of the Southern District of New York granted the Justice Department's request to publicly release grand jury transcripts and evidence from Ghislaine Maxwell's sex trafficking case, reversing his earlier August 2025 denial. In a 24-page order, Judge Engelmayer determined that the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which Congress passed and President Trump signed in November 2025, "unambiguously applies" to grand jury materials and requires their disclosure. The law mandates the DOJ to release all unclassified Epstein and Maxwell-related records by December 19, 2025.
Judge Engelmayer strongly cautioned that the materials "would not reveal new information of any consequence," tempering public expectations about significant revelations. The grand jury proceedings contained only "summary testimony from two law enforcement officials," with evidence largely already made public during Maxwell's 2021 trial. The judge emphasized there is "no 'there' there," noting the materials "do not identify any person other than Epstein and Maxwell as having had sexual contact with a minor," do not discuss or identify any clients, and do not reveal previously unknown means or methods of their crimes. The grand jury transcripts amount to approximately 70 pages, which Judge Berman had previously described as "merely a hearsay snippet of Jeffrey Epstein's alleged conduct" that is "dwarfed" by the government's 100,000 pages of other Epstein-related files.
The materials subject to release include grand jury transcripts, voluminous discovery provided to Maxwell's defense team, search warrant applications, financial and travel records, photographs, videos of properties, immigration records, forensic reports from electronic devices, materials from Epstein's estate, and interview notes with victims and third parties. Despite ordering the release, Judge Engelmayer established strict victim protection safeguards, requiring the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York to "personally certify in a sworn declaration" that all records undergo "rigorous review" before release to protect victim identities and privacy.
Judge Engelmayer sharply criticized the Justice Department's treatment of victims throughout this process. He wrote that victims' concerns about inadvertent disclosure "have a basis in fact," noting the DOJ acted without prior victim notice. The judge stated: "The DOJ has paid lip service to the victims but has not treated them with the solicitude they deserve." He took "great care to put in place a mechanism to protect victims from the inadvertent release of materials," mandating that victims' identities be redacted to protect them and their families from further trauma.
This ruling represents the second federal judicial order granting DOJ requests to unseal Epstein-related grand jury materials under the Epstein Files Transparency Act. Judge Rodney Smith had previously granted similar relief for records from the mid-2000s Florida investigation into Epstein. The December 9 order came just ten days before the statutory December 19, 2025 deadline, ensuring compliance with the congressional mandate for transparency while attempting to balance public interest against victim protection concerns.