A federal judge in Manhattan has denied a request from the Trump administration to unseal grand jury transcripts related to Ghislaine Maxwell, a convicted sex trafficker and associate of Jeffrey Epstein. U.S. District Judge Paul Engelmayer, appointed by Obama, ruled on Monday that the request did not provide a strong enough argument to make the transcripts public. He stated that releasing the materials would not bring any new significant information to light.
Judge Engelmayer criticized the Justice Department’s reasoning, saying it was "demonstrably false" to claim that the grand jury materials would shed meaningful light on Epstein’s and Maxwell’s crimes or the government’s investigation. He emphasized that the transcripts would not enhance public knowledge and described them as consisting of routine summaries from law enforcement agents.
This ruling adds to the challenges faced by the Justice Department as it seeks to increase transparency surrounding the Epstein case. Recently, there has been public outcry over the department’s conclusion that there was no evidence of a client list tied to Epstein. In a similar case, another Obama-appointed judge, Robin L. Rosenberg, also denied a request to unseal grand jury transcripts, stating that legal restrictions prevented her from doing so.
Maxwell, who was convicted in 2021 for her role in Epstein’s scheme to sexually exploit underage girls, is currently serving a 20-year sentence. She has recently agreed to cooperate with the Justice Department by answering questions related to Epstein. Meanwhile, she has been seeking a pardon from former President Trump and is appealing her conviction to the Supreme Court.
Maxwell’s legal team opposed the unsealing of the grand jury transcripts, arguing that the public’s interest in Epstein does not justify breaching grand jury secrecy, especially since Maxwell is still alive and has ongoing legal rights. There is still an outstanding request from the Justice Department to unseal transcripts related to Epstein’s indictment in Manhattan, which remains pending before another federal judge.
