Name: Justice Department releases trove of Epstein files hours before deadline
Uploaded: 2025-12-20T03:07:25.986Z
Duration: 2 min 32 s
Description: The Justice Department has unveiled four groups of records from the Jeffrey Epstein files, the first documents to come to light under a new law signed by President Trump compelling their release. Scott MacFarlane reports.

The Justice Department has unveiled four groups of records from the Jeffrey Epstein files, the first documents to come to light under a new law signed by President Trump compelling their release. Scott MacFarlane reports.

Washington

The U.S. Justice Department has released a trove of documents, videos, and other materials related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, following a law requiring disclosure by a set deadline. However, many of the released files are heavily redacted, and some required materials were not included, prompting criticism from survivors and lawmakers.

Among the released items are photographs of prominent individuals associated with Epstein, as well as his contact book and a list of over 250 unnamed masseuses. Survivors and a bipartisan group in Congress have voiced dissatisfaction with the partial release, with calls for hearings or legal action to ensure full public disclosure.

Justice Department releases trove of Epstein files hours before deadline

Good evening, everyone. I'm Weijia Jiang. Thanks for joining us. A law passed by Congress and signed by President Trump required his Justice Department to open its files on convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein by midnight tonight. And late today, the material came pouring out. Documents, videos, thousands of items, but not all of what the law requires. Justice Correspondent Scott McFarlane covers the Epstein case and has an early read on what's in those files. Scott? Yeah, Weijia, it was just hours before the deadline for the release of the full Epstein case files and only some have been released. Much of it redacted, the information still hidden. And what's there is not what survivors were looking for. Among the most prominent items released, photos of a famous Democrat. Photos tonight of many of the powerful who ran in convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein's circle. Bill Clinton seems swimming in a pool with Ghislaine Maxwell and another woman with her face redacted. Clinton with another unknown woman on his lap. Celebrities too, including Michael Jackson and Diana Ross. Epstein with Mick Jagger and Chris Tucker with Maxwell. Many of the records are heavily redacted and survivors say suspiciously so, including Epstein grand jury records. We do see Epstein's book of contacts with the name of President Trump, his late wife and his daughter, Ivanka. A list of girls or young women listed as masseuses keeps the names private, but shows there were more than 250. How confident are you at the end of the day, the end of this period, you'll get everything? I don't feel tremendously confident that everything will come out. Survivors, including Annie Farmer, have been fighting for years for the release of records and say they're frustrated these records are incomplete. There's been a lot of effort and money and time put into redactions, not to protect victims, but to protect people in power. Many of the records released have long been public already, including videos in the jail the night Epstein died, which had been obtained months ago by CBS News. And Scott, the Justice Department clearly made a decision here to only release some of the files. Have they commented on why? Yeah, they sent a letter to Congress tonight, Weijia, defending what they've released, arguing it's being transparent, but it's also protecting the victims. But I could tell you the bipartisan group in Congress that pushed for this release, Weijia, they're not satisfied. They're calling for a hearing or a potential legal challenge to force more files to be made public. And we know you'll be following that. Scott, thank you.

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