A Florida federal judge ruled on Wednesday that the Trump Administration cannot disseminate grand jury testimony related to the 2000s investigation into Jeffrey Epstein.
Judge Robin L. Rosenberg ruled that she does not have the authority to unseal the records, which were from 2005 and 2007 investigations in West Palm Beach. Rosenberg said the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit’s past ruling only allows her to release federal grand jury records in very particular circumstances, according to USA Today.
Rosenberg wrote that the “court’s hands are tied” in this instance.
The ruling comes the same day the House Oversight Committee formally subpoenaed Ghislaine Maxwell, who is currently serving a 20-year sentence for grooming and abusing Epstein’s underage victims. The New York Times reported that the hearing will take place at the federal prison in Florida where Maxwell is completing her sentence.
On Tuesday, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche announced he planned to meet Maxwell. Blanche said Attorney General Pam Bondi ordered the meeting.
“I intend to meet with her soon. No one is above the law — and no lead is off-limits,” he wrote.
USA Today reported that Judge Rosenberg’s ruling does not apply to other requests from the Justice Department to unseal records in Manhattan, New York. Those cases, which are also federal, pertain to criminal cases against Epstein and Maxwell.
This story is developing.
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[Feature Photo: New York State Sex Offender Registry via AP, File]
