Two of Jeffrey Epstein‘s former attorneys this week dismissed claims that President Donald Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi are withholding a “client list.”
David Schoen, who helped secure Epstein’s plea deal on state prostitution charges in 2008, on Tuesday argued that the public’s push for the release of the names is based on fallacies.
“I don’t believe for a second there’s a client list out there. That wasn’t Jeffrey Epstein,” Schoen said on NewsNation’s Cuomo.
Epstein had “no plan” to blackmail his inner circle, though speculation of such plans circulated after his death in 2019, according to Schoen.
However, investigators recovered 300 gigabytes of data, which included graphic images of minors, lists of victim names and likenesses, physical descriptions, place of birth, employment history, and associates, according to a July memo released by the FBI and the Department of Justice.
The memo sparked major backlash despite the findings, primarily because no “Epstein list” was revealed, nor was there any information released undermining the claim that his death in a New York City jail cell was a suicide. Instead, a “modified” video with low visibility and nearly three minutes missing was released as evidence that Epstein’s death was, in fact, a suicide.
Bondi appeared to suggest the client list was sitting on her desk in February. After the memo was released, claiming no such list existed, Bondi’s spokesman said that she was referring to the overall files in the case — not a client list.
“I know that people want to see it as a certain period of interest in all of these things,” Schoen said when asked whether Trump administration officials were withholding names.
“It’s tantalizing, but I don’t think that information is out there,” Schoen said.
Schoen noted that Epstein’s connection to political figures and celebrities created a window for speculation about the list.
“You put the names out there, the fact that he did know Bill Richardson [Bill Clinton, Prince Andrew etc.], doesn’t mean that they did nefarious, illegal conduct with him. But people start drawing rumors and making claims,” Schoen said. “Also, the accusers demanded a certain level of privacy, so the judge balanced that when the parties came before him, and that’s why he kept some of those files private.”
Another previous lawyer of Epstein, Alan Dershowitz, who also helped him reach his 2008 plea deal, said on Monday that there was never a client list. However, he added that accusers have named wealthy men in their affidavits.
“There are several of them from accusers that accuse Jeffery—that accuse various people of having improper sex, and that has been redacted, the names of the people accused have been blacked out. Now of course, because I was a lawyer, and I did all the investigations, I know who all of these people are,” Dershowitz said Monday. “Some of them were previously in office. Some of them are dead. But there is no client list, and the redactions could be undone if you go to court.”
As for the exact names in the redacted files, Dershowitz stated they are not world leaders.
Dershowitz also rejected the theory that Epstein acted alone in his suicide, suggesting he had help in the act.
“It was not a suicide that he could committed alone,” Dershowitz said. “I think the jailers had something to do with his cellmate being dismissed, with the cameras being turned off.”
FIGHTS OVER EPSTEIN FILES TEST TRUMP’S POWER TO CONTROL THE HEADLINES
The Epstein files have irritated GOP lawmakers within the last week. However, Trump and Bondi have doubled down on the memo’s findings, with Trump pushing his party base to move on from the topic.
“I don’t understand it. Why they would be so interested. He’s been dead for a long time. He was never a big factor in terms of life,” Trump told reporters on Tuesday. “I don’t understand what the interest and what the fascination is. I really don’t, and the credible information has been given.”