 "The mystery of the missing Epstein files: 2 million documents still in review, under 1% released")
More than two million files linked to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein have yet to be released, according to a NBC News report, citing court filing submitted late Monday by the US Department of Justice (DOJ).
The filing said a team of about 400 lawyers is reviewing the material to ensure “victim privacy” before any further disclosures. It also noted that the department would reassess its review procedures after victims complained that some information previously released should have been redacted.
To date, DOJ has released about 12,000 documents, comprising roughly 125,000 pages, in three batches.
The filing, signed by Attorney General Pam Bondi and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, outlines how the department plans to comply with the Epstein Files Transparency Act.
Epstein, a disgraced financier with past ties to President Donald Trump, died in a New York jail in August 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges. Trump has repeatedly denied any involvement in or knowledge of Epstein’s crimes.
Trump signed the Epstein Files Transparency Act into law late last year following sustained pressure from victims, advocacy groups and lawmakers seeking greater disclosure of records related to the case.
The DOJ’s filing, authored by US Attorney Jay Clayton and submitted to US District Judge Paul Engelmayer, said the department is conducting a “victim privacy-related review and redaction of certain of the materials.”
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View AllIt added that in the coming weeks, “in the range of over 400 lawyers across the Department will dedicate all or a substantial portion of their workday to the Department’s efforts to comply with the Act.”
The FBI is contributing more than 100 specialists with experience handling “sensitive victim materials.”
The filing said the DOJ is refining its procedures for reviewing the files and streamlining how it handles requests for redactions from victims.
Since the passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act, the department said it had received dozens of queries from victims and would now be “running additional electronic quality control searches.”
“Prior releases have included tens of thousands of manual redactions of victim-identifying information. Even with these efforts and related quality control checks, unfortunately, information that victims believe should have been redacted has been posted,” the filing said.
The department said it will also work to deduplicate the massive number of files across different parts of the DOJ, ensure a standard level of redaction, introduce new categories of documents, and assign DOJ lawyers to those containing “sensitive victim-identifying information.”
With inputs from agencies
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