What’s Redacted in the New Epstein Files and What Isn’t

The Justice Department released another tranche of documents—this time with many more references to President Donald Trump—on Tuesday in an effort to quell public demand for transparency in the investigation into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. But which names in the documents have been redacted—and which haven’t—have raised some eyebrows.

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The DOJ drew criticism for failing to meet a Dec. 19 deadline to publish the entirety of the so-called Epstein files after publishing thousands of files over the weekend that included many redactions—with some pages entirely blacked out. The department attributed the delay to needing to ensure the privacy of victims and their families, which is legally mandated, and said that was also the reason that it removed and then reuploaded certain files, including an image that featured a photo of Trump. The DOJ has also called on career prosecutors in Florida to volunteer over the “next several days” to help redact the Epstein files, according to an internal memo, suggesting that more files may be released in the coming days.

The Epstein Files Transparency Act requires the Justice Department not to withhold or delay the release of files “on the basis of embarrassment, reputational harm, or political sensitivity, including to any government official.”

“President Trump is leading the most transparent administration in American history,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said on X on Friday. In a fact sheet, the Justice Department said it is “redacting only what is legally required,” which is “identifying information about the victims, minors, or potential victims, as well as privileged material. NO redactions have been or will be made to protect famous individuals or politically exposed persons.”

But a group of Epstein survivors on Monday, prior to the latest release, criticized the partial release of files as being “riddled with abnormal and extreme redactions with no explanation.”

The names of some federal prosecutors and law enforcement officers were redacted from files pertaining to investigations into Epstein or related emails. Some of these emails are from the late 2000s, when then-U.S. Attorney Alex Acosta approved a controversial deal that shielded Epstein from federal charges related to allegations of sexual abuse and sex trafficking of minors in Florida in exchange for a guilty plea to state charges. Acosta’s name was not redacted. He stepped down from his position as Secretary of Labor during Trump’s term over his handling of the Epstein case.

These redactions have drawn criticism from some observers over the obscuring of people who may have been key decision makers in investigations into Epstein. Still, redactions of rank-and-file government personnel are not unusual under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)—which does not apply to the Epstein files but is commonly applied as a standard for the release of government records.

Names of alleged co-conspirators redacted

Some references to “10 Co-conspirators” in FBI communications in 2019 have also been redacted. One July 7, 2019 email with the subject line “Co-conspirators” redacts what appear to be the names of several co-conspirators, although it names Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell, as well as “Wexner” and “Brunel.” The emails come a day after Epstein was arrested on federal sex trafficking charges.

“Of the 10 co-conspirators, 3 have been located in FL and served GJ subpoenas; 1 in Boston, 1 in NYC, and 1 in CT were located and served. 4 of the 10 are outstanding with attempts having been made,” another email sent in July 2019 reads, with the names of the sender and recipient redacted.

“In 2019, Trump’s DOJ had a list of 10 Epstein co-conspirators,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D, NY) posted on X. “Who are these 10 co-conspirators? Why haven’t we seen those memos? Where are the grand jury records? Where are the FBI records? What are they hiding?”

“Tens of thousands of files released shed no light on who they are. More questions than answers,” Schumer added.

A document from November 2020, nearly a year after Epstein’s death in prison, appeared to lay out possible next steps in the investigation and potential criminal charges that prosecutors were considering. The document suggests that prosecutors were weighing more prosecutions, although so far only Epstein and Maxwell have been criminally charged.

The document is also heavily redacted, with most of its first page, detailing “Anticipated Charges and Investigative Steps,” blacked out. The name of one alleged co-conspirator is redacted, although the person was also identified as a victim. The New York Times identified the person as a potential co-conspirator who had been named in the non-prosecution agreement Epstein reached with Florida federal prosecutors in 2007.

“We are in plea negotiations with counsel for [redacted], another Epstein co-conspirator. [Redacted], who scheduled hundreds of sexual massages with minors for Epstein but was also a victim of his sexual abuse, may plead to an obstruction of justice-related count.”

Justice Department critized for fake material and releasing some names of victims

The DOJ has also issued statements that have been criticized as going beyond its intended role as a neutral arbiter.

Alongside its announcement of the release of 30,000 more pages of documents on Tuesday, the department said, “Some of these documents contain untrue and sensationalist claims made against President Trump that were submitted to the FBI right before the 2020 election. To be clear: the claims are unfounded and false, and if they had a shred of credibility, they certainly would have been weaponized against President Trump already.”

The Justice Department called a letter signed by “J. Epstein” and addressed to convicted sex offender Larry Nassar that describes “Our President” also sharing “our love of young, nubile girls” as “FAKE.” The letter had reportedly been discovered by officials while investigating Epstein’s suicide.

Read more: Fake Video Purporting to Show Epstein’s Suicide Released by DOJ Then Taken Down

“We produce documents, and sometimes this can result in releasing fake or false documents because they simply are in our possession because the law requires this,” Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche posted on X. “Case in point: the so-called Epstein Nassar letter is clearly FAKE – wrong handwriting, wrong return address, and postmarked three days after Epstein died. Fake videos of Epstein in his cell. Photos with no explanation. Sensational tales and lies by random people. These are not reality.”

In a separate post, the DOJ wrote, “This fake letter serves as a reminder that just because a document is released by the Department of Justice does not make the allegations or claims within the document factual. Nevertheless, the DOJ will continue to release all material required by law.”

It’s a far cry from the DOJ’s descriptions of prominent Democrats who have been mentioned in the files. On Friday, Gates McGavick, a spokesperson for the department, posted an image on X from the files that appeared to show former President Bill Clinton in a hot tub with a person whose face was redacted.

“Beloved Democrat President,” McGavick wrote. “The black box is added to protect a victim.”

Neither Clinton nor Trump has been accused by law enforcement of wrongdoing related to Epstein. In a letter sent to Congress on Friday, Blanche said the DOJ did not “uncover evidence that could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties.”

Angel Ureña, a spokesperson for Clinton, called on the DOJ to release all materials relating to Clinton.

Ureña said in a statement posted to X on Monday, “What the Department of Justice has released so far, and the manner in which it did so, makes one thing clear: someone or something is being protected. We do not know whom, what or why. But we do know this: We need no such protection.”

Meanwhile, some of the names of Epstein survivors were found unredacted among the files released. One survivor, who had identified herself anonymously as “Jane Doe”, told CNN that she has received numerous unsolicited phone calls since her identity was revealed Friday. As of Tuesday afternoon, she was still publicly named several times in the Epstein files, although one document that had named her on Monday is now redacted, according to CNN.

“I have no words. I just have no words. It hurts my heart. It haunts me to my core,” she told the broadcaster.

The White House previously publicly identified a redacted name from an earlier batch of documents as the late Virginia Giuffre, who alleged that she was a victim of Epstein and accused Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly Prince Andrew, of sexually abusing her when she was a teenager.

“There has been no communication with survivors or our representatives as to what was withheld from release, or why hundreds of thousands of documents have not been disclosed by the legal deadline, or how DOJ will ensure that no more victim names are wrongly disclosed,” the statement from survivors said. “While clearer communication would not change the fact that a law was broken, its absence suggests an ongoing intent to keep survivors and the public in the dark as much as possible and as long as possible.”