Violating law....

Todd Blanche ‘conceded’ violating law on Epstein files, judge finds

Court gives DOJ a week to remove redactions or justify them.

By Josh Gerstein and Kyle Cheney

The Justice Department has effectively conceded it is violating the law Congress passed last November requiring the public release of the vast majority of records relating to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, a federal judge declared Thursday.

U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan said Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche essentially admitted the violations by failing to address allegations from independent journalist Katie Phang in a lawsuit seeking broader access to the records — including allegations against President Donald Trump.

“The Attorney General does not respond substantively to any of these arguments,” Sullivan, an appointee of President Bill Clinton, wrote in the opinion. “The Attorney General has conceded that he is in violation of the Act.”

Sullivan also issued a preliminary injunction that gives Blanche a week to release certain names and other information redacted by DOJ from the millions of pages of the Epstein files, or provide a more detailed explanation for withholding them.

Records subject to Sullivan’s order include notes of FBI interviews with a woman who has alleged that in the 1980s, when she was about 13, Epstein introduced her to Trump, who in turn assaulted her.

It also covers the identities of email correspondents with Epstein in eight exchanges regarding a “torture video” and sexual activity with minors; the names of co-defendants in a draft indictment, as well as the identities of potential co-conspirators and the identities of Department of Justice officials who exchanged messages about them; and “foreign language” materials that DOJ said that reviewers lacked the skills to translate and assess for potential redactions.

Officials have emphasized that the files contain unverified and uncorroborated allegations that are not normally made public by federal law enforcement. POLITICO has not independently verified allegations in the files. The Justice Department also said in a statement in January that the records include “unfounded and false” claims about Trump.

However, the Epstein Files Transparency Act passed by Congress last year — and signed begrudgingly by Trump after he initially urged lawmakers to reject it — forced the department’s hand, leaving few exceptions primarily aimed at protecting victims’ identities.

Blanche has acknowledged some redaction errors, but said they were inevitable given the tight timeline Congress gave DOJ to assemble and disclose the files.

Blanche has served as the acting head of the Justice Department since April, when Trump fired Attorney General Pam Bondi. Earlier this month, Trump nominated Blanche for the attorney general job. His confirmation hearing is set for next month.

Phang, a former MSNBC TV host who now publishes on Substack, filed suit in federal court in Washington in April, arguing that DOJ had failed to comply with the law that was the product of a massive public furor over the government’s handling of investigations into Epstein and his associates.

Justice Department attorneys argued that Phang’s lawsuit was improper because the Epstein Files Transparency Act includes no language authorizing private suits to enforce its provisions. But Sullivan said a broad federal law requiring agencies to comply with federal statutes, the Administrative Procedure Act, gave Phang the power to sue.

Sullivan also noted that the Justice Department failed to meet a deadline of 1 p.m. Thursday to further explain how it has handled Freedom of Information Act requests for Epstein-related files.

The Justice Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

An attorney for Phang, Brendan Ballou, said the ruling Thursday was the logical result of DOJ’s cavalier response to the suit.

“The government ignored its own law and blew off a judge’s order, all for the sake of protecting the very powerful and the very rich,” Ballou said. “Doing so had consequences, and now the public will finally get transparency around Jeffrey Epstein and his network.”