Lawyers for victims of Jeffrey Epstein are calling on federal judges in New York to order the Department of Justice (DOJ) to immediately remove millions of Epstein-related documents posted online, citing thousands of failures to properly redact victims’ personal information. The urgent request came in a letter sent Sunday (February 1) to U.S. District Judges Richard Berman and Paul Engelmayer, who oversee the Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell cases.
Attorneys Brittany Henderson and Brad Edwards detailed how the DOJ’s public release of more than 3.5 million pages on Friday (January 30) exposed the identities of nearly 100 survivors. They described this as an “unfolding emergency,” listing examples where victims’ names appeared unredacted dozens of times in a single document or email. In one case, only one out of 32 underage victims’ names was hidden.
The Justice Department released these files to comply with the Epstein Files Transparency Act, signed into law by President Donald Trump in November 2025. The law required full disclosure of investigative documents, aiming for transparency after years of criticism over secrecy in the Epstein investigation.
The victims’ lawyers argued that DOJ failed in its most basic duty: “redact known victim names before publication.” They said previous warnings about redaction problems went unheeded, and the latest errors included leaked addresses and even photos of victims, raising fears for their safety and leading to reports of harassment and death threats.
One anonymous victim wrote: “I have never come forward! I am now being harassed by the media and others. This is devastating to my life… Please pull my name down immediately as every minute that these documents with my name are up, it causes more harm to me.”
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche responded that about 0.001 percent of the material was affected and that the DOJ is working quickly to correct those mistakes. He stated, “We took great pains…to make sure that we protected victims. Every time we hear from a victim or their lawyer that they believe that their name was not properly redacted, we immediately rectify that.”
Despite these efforts, the lawyers are demanding an immediate takedown of the DOJ website hosting the documents and want a special master appointed to oversee a new round of redactions before the files are republished. They claim that with proper attention, the files could be corrected and restored within a day.
The court is now considering possible actions, including a temporary takedown of the files, additional safeguards for redactions, or appointing an independent overseer. The DOJ has asked anyone affected to contact them so errors can be fixed.
The debate around the files continues to draw attention from lawmakers and advocates, with calls for both transparency and victim protection shaping future legal actions and public scrutiny.
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