By Andrew Goudsward
WASHINGTON, April 23 (Reuters) – The U.S. Justice Department’s internal watchdog said on Thursday it would investigate how the department complied with a law requiring the release of investigative files on the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The DOJ’s Office of Inspector General, which operates independently of the department, said it would “evaluate the DOJ’s processes for identifying, redacting, and releasing records in its possession as required by the act.”
The law, passed in November, required the Justice Department to release nearly all of its files related to sex trafficking investigations into Epstein, a financier who cultivated ties with wealthy and powerful figures, and his former associate Ghislaine Maxwell. It included only limited exemptions to shield identities of alleged victims and protect ongoing investigations.
REPUBLICAN AND DEMOCRATIC CRITICISM
The review will likely prolong scrutiny of the DOJ’s handling of the Epstein files, an issue that has shadowed Justice Department leadership under President Donald Trump and that the DOJ has appeared eager to move on from after federal prosecutors spent weeks reviewing material. Republican and Democratic lawmakers have criticized the department’s rollout of the files, bemoaning the release of some alleged victims’ identities and redactions in the records that appear to go beyond limited exemptions allowed under the law.
Trump’s dissatisfaction with the issue was one reason he fired former Attorney General Pam Bondi this month.
A Justice Department spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The review will focus on how the department identified and collected records related to Epstein, its process for redacting and withholding material and its efforts to address concerns about some information that was released. The office pledged to release a report on its findings, though such inquiries often take years.
DOJ officials have released more than 3 million pages of records under the law and argued the Trump administration has been more transparent on the issue than its predecessors, though Trump opposed the release of files until shortly before Congress approved the law with bipartisan support. Department officials have said any identification of alleged victims was inadvertent and that lawyers worked on a compressed timetable to review millions of pages of files.
The DOJ’s inspector general, tasked with investigating waste, fraud and misconduct, has faced criticism for a lack of public action as the Trump administration overhauled the department and fired dozens of prosecutors and agents who led investigations into Trump and his allies. The announcement of the Epstein review comes two days after Trump nominated Don Berthiaume, a longtime investigator in the office, to be the permanent inspector general.
The Office of Inspector General previously investigated Epstein’s death in a New York jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. The scathing 2023 report faulted federal Bureau of Prisons employees for negligence but did not dispute the FBI’s finding that Epstein’s death was a suicide.
(Reporting by Andrew GoudswardEditing by Rod Nickel)
