DOJ Begins Releasing Its Trove of Epstein Files

The Department of Justice on Friday unveiled a trove of records related to the late Jeffrey Epstein, marking the first documents released under a law signed by President Donald Trump last month.

The DOJ posted the files on its website. Earlier in the day, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said the documents would include "several hundred thousand" records, with several hundred thousand more to be released in the coming weeks.

Blanche's timeline, however, would not comply with the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which required the DOJ to release all files in its possession by Friday, with narrow exceptions for survivors' personal information and other protected categories.

The law compelled the public release of records from criminal investigations into Epstein and his convicted accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell. It also required disclosure of flight logs, travel records and internal communications related to Epstein's case and his 2019 suicide while in federal custody.

Two senior House Democrats, Reps. Robert Garcia of California and Jamie Raskin of Maryland, reportedly said they are "examining all legal options" because the DOJ missed the deadline to release all records, as required by the law.

"Ridiculous framing," the DOJ wrote on X. "The DOJ is releasing a massive tranche of new documents that the Biden and Obama administrations refused to release. The story here: the Trump administration is providing levels of transparency that prior administrations never even contemplated."

The material released by the Trump administration includes numerous photographs, including images of unidentified women, and some police records, according to CBS News. Many of the images are heavily redacted, with black boxes obscuring subjects.

Other images appear to be from Epstein's Manhattan home, including photos of his bedroom, risqué wall art and a taxidermied tiger. Some files include images of framed photographs. Epstein is in some of the photos released by the DOJ.

The documents reportedly include seven pages listing the names of 254 masseuses that were entirely redacted, accompanied by the explanation "redacted to protect potential victim information." The release also included numerous photographs not previously made public, including one depicting former President Bill Clinton reclining in a hot tub, with part of the image obscured by a black rectangle.

Another image depicted Clinton swimming with a dark-haired woman who appeared to be Maxwell.

Trump's name appears in a contact book found among the files, although it is not clear to whom the book belonged.

Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., said he believes the DOJ is attempting to comply with the law but urged department officials to explain why they were unable to release all documents and to account for "each redaction," The New York Times reported.

The DOJ said on its Epstein files webpage that "reasonable efforts" were made to shield survivors' personal information. A privacy notice at the top of the page warns that, given the volume of material and the congressional deadline, some non-public personally identifiable information or other sensitive content may have been inadvertently included.

The DOJ also warned that portions of the "Epstein Library" contain descriptions of sexual assault and may not be appropriate for all readers.

In addition to documents released under the Epstein Files Transparency Act, the full library includes court records, materials made public through public records laws, and documents released by the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

The files are organized into four categories: court records, DOJ Disclosures, Freedom of Information Act records, and House Oversight Committee disclosures.

The Trump administration has faced criticism for stalling the release of the records amid claims they could contain damaging information about Trump, who had a friendship with Epstein before a falling out. Trump has denied knowing anything about crimes committed by the late financier.

"The Trump Administration is the most transparent in history," White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said in a statement. "By releasing thousands of pages of documents, cooperating with the House Oversight Committee's subpoena request, and President Trump recently calling for further investigations into Epstein's Democrat friends, the Trump Administration has done more for the victims than Democrats ever have."