- - Epstein accusers say files are 'riddled with abnormal' redactions

Bart Jansen, USA TODAY December 22, 2025 at 6:16 PM

1.5k

WASHINGTON – More than a dozen Jeffrey Epstein accusers criticized the Justice Department’s release of documents about their investigation of the alleged sex trafficking operation as “riddled with abnormal and extreme redactions with no explanation.”

One example was a grand jury document that a federal judge allowed to be released, but all 119 pages were blacked out. No financial documents were released and hundreds of thousands of pages remain unreleased.

“These are clear-cut violations of an unambiguous law,” the group wrote in a two-page letter demanding oversight and accountability from Congress.

1 / 9What do the Epstein files show? See photos released by DOJ(L-R) Michael Jackson, Bill Clinton and Diana Ross in a photo that was part of thousands of files related to Jefferey Epstein released by the Department of Justice on Dec. 19, 2025. The images were released by the US DOJ without location information, dates or context.'No permission for delayed disclosure' of Epstein files

Two House members who wrote the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which directed the department to release its records by Dec. 19, accused Attorney General Pam Bondi of “breaking the law” through the partial release of documents and threatened to hold her in contempt.

Bondi reaffirmed on social media that the department would bring charges against anyone involved in Epstein’s alleged trafficking and exploitation of girls as young as 14 years old. Bondi asked victims to step forward. She called the Trump administration the most transparent in history.

Congress approved a law, which President Donald Trump signed, demanding the release by Dec. 19 of all department files that didn’t name alleged victims, portray child sexual abuse or hurt the prosecution of cases

“It afforded no permission for delayed disclosure,” the group said in the letter. “Instead, the public received a fraction of the files, and what we received was riddled with abnormal and extreme redactions with no explanation.”

But in releasing hundreds of thousands of documents, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche acknowledged Dec. 19 that hundreds of thousands more documents were still being reviewed. He also told Congress some documents might be withheld under legal privileges covering the internal deliberations of lawyers or communications with clients.

Blanche said more documents would be released within weeks. The law directs the department to list the documents withheld from public release and explain the reasons within 15 days.

Annie Farmer, whose sister Maria Farmer, shown in the photo with herself, was the first woman to file a criminal complaint against accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein in 1996, speaking on Nov. 18, 2025 along with survivors.'No guidance on how to locate materials' in Epstein files

Epstein accusers and lawmakers have advocated for the release of documents to find suspects who may have helped Epstein in his alleged trafficking or in covering it up.

But besides the delay and redactions, the accusers criticized the department for how the documents were released, which they said “made it difficult or impossible for survivors to find materials that would be most relevant to our search.”

“There has been no guidance for survivors on how to locate materials pertaining to our own cases, nor have we been provided with copies of our own files despite repeated requests,” the group wrote.

The signatories of the letter are Jess Michaels, Rachel Benavidez, Danielle Bensky, Lara Blume McGee, Marijke Chartouni, Anouska de Georgio, Maria Farmer, Annie Farmer, Teresa J. Helm, Marina Lacerda, Lisa Philips, Ashley Rubright, Amanda and Sky Roberts, Sharlene Rochard and Liz Stein. Three others identified as A.W. and two Jane Does were also included.

Lawmakers threaten Bondi with contempt over partial Epstein release

Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Kentucky, and Ro Khanna, D-California, each accused Bondi of “breaking the law” by not releasing more documents. They threatened to hold her in contempt of Congress.

Massie said Dec. 21 on social media, “Epstein survivors aren’t satisfied with the DOJ’s incomplete and redacted” disclosures that began Dec. 19. Massie said that "unfortunately," Bondi is "breaking the law."

“Congress should assert its ability to hold Bondi in ‘inherent contempt’ to get justice for the survivors,” Massie said.

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer of New York proposed a resolution on Dec. 22 to force the Justice Department to release more documents. But its prospects are uncertain because Democrats are in the minority. "This Administration cannot be allowed to hide the truth," Schumer said on social media.

(This article has been to add new information.)

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Epstein files are 'riddled with abnormal' redactions, accusers say

Original Article on Source

Source: “AOL Breaking”