The Department of Justice has only reviewed a small percentage of the Epstein files, and more than 2 million documents still remain, attorneys told a court Monday.
The DOJ is two weeks past the deadline for the files’ release dictated by the Epstein Files Transparency Act, and could take longer even with hundreds of lawyers on the task.
U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Jay Clayton wrote a five-page update on where the DOJ is with the files release to federal judge Paul A. Engelmayer, who presided over Jeffrey Epstein’s case.
Clayton said the DOJ has released 12,285 documents totaling 125,575 pages so far, but has over 2 million more documents “that are in various phases of review.” He said files need to be properly identified as relevant documents to the Epstein files and need to undergo a series of steps, including redactions, in order to be released.
He also acknowledged the DOJ’s Epstein files workload recently skyrocketed, with over a million more files not included in the department’s initial review for responsive documents.
Clayton said the effort “has required and will continue to require substantial Department resources,” including more than 400 lawyers. Those lawyers will “dedicate all or a substantial portion of their workday” to the files, he wrote. One hundred FBI analysts specialized in handling sensitive victim materials are assisting the lawyers.
The department is also focused on shifting its victim privacy efforts following victim requests to redact materials after some were “inadvertently” posted publicly. The new process includes additional guidance to reviewers, more quality control and collaboration across the department, and maintaining redactions across duplicative materials.
At the pace the department is going, the release will take months to years. The DOJ and FBI have repeatedly said the slowness of the effort is to protect victims. Epstein files advocates worry that the Trump administration won’t release “key” documents.
“I’m less concerned about the timeline, and I’m more concerned about them not releasing the key documents,” said Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA), one of the leading Democratic advocates for the Epstein files’ release.
“If they were acting in good faith and putting out the survivors’ statements, putting out these prosecution memos, then they would have some leg to rest on. They could say, ‘Well, it’s a huge file, we’re taking time.’ The point is this doesn’t take a lot of time … they’re just not releasing it,” he added.
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), the leading Republican Epstein files advocate, has asked whether Bondi should be impeached for the effort. He also believes she’s redacting the wrong names, such as those of accused sex offenders.
“@AGPamBondi’s most egregious violation of the Epstein Files Transparency Act is not that she ignores the deadline… it’s that she’s redacting names of accused sex offenders AND internal communications about decisions, wrongly citing old rules that are overridden by new law,” he wrote on X.
Massie and Khanna worked together to pass the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which mandated the release of all related documents in mid-December. Some files have been released.
It’s unclear when the public will have the full Epstein files. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said on New Year’s Eve last year that the department was “working around the clock” on the files.
“It truly is an all-hands-on-deck approach and we’re asking as many lawyers as possible to commit their time to review the documents that remain. Required redactions to protect victims take time but they will not stop these materials from being released. The Attorney General’s and this Administration’s goal is simple: transparency and protecting victims,” he wrote on X.