Key Epstein Reporter Scorches Claim Democrats Could’ve Released Epstein Files
AP Photo/John Minchillo, File
Miami Herald investigative reporter Julie Brown scorched efforts by Republicans to claim that the Democrats could have already released the Epstein files by pointing out a key fact about the timeline.
Brown’s work is widely credited with leading to the arrests of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell for their sordid child sex trafficking scheme, as well as exposing details about the controversially lenient plea deal Epstein had for his earlier criminal case.
With Rep. Adelita Grijalva (D-AZ) finally sworn into office last week after a 50-day delay, a House petition for a vote to release the files related to the deceased convicted child sex predator had the 218 signatures needed to pass. For months, President Donald Trump has denounced the effort as a “Democrat hoax” and publicly berated any Republicans who supported it.
On Sunday, however, Trump wrote a Truth Social post that surprised many, calling for House Republicans to go ahead and vote to release the Epstein files. Nonetheless, the president and other Republicans have continued to make comments claiming the scandal belongs to the Democrats, either as the other men who allegedly participated in the sex trafficking of girls and young women, or to accuse President Joe Biden and other Democrats of failing to act.
It’s not just Republicans making such claims; sports media personality Stephen A. Smith dropped a rant last week accusing Democrats of dropping the ball by not releasing the files while Biden was president.
Brown replied to Smith’s comments on her social media, highlighting how Maxwell’s criminal appeal was still pending:
This is a complicated case, with a LOT of files, so I know it’s easy to confuse what’s what. What Stephen doesn’t understand is that the emails released Wednesday are from Epstein’s estate. They were obtained from Epstein’s lawyers pursuant to a subpoena that was issued by the House Oversight Committee (lawmakers). These documents are separate from the criminal case files held by the DOJ and the FBI that Trump and Bondi promised to release after the election.
As for why Biden and the Democrats didn’t release the criminal case files — Maxwell’s criminal case was still OPEN during the Biden administration. She wasn’t convicted until late 2021, and then she appealed her conviction. Generally, it’s not a good idea to open your evidence files when a criminal case is ongoing. We also don’t know whether the FBI was *still* investigating other possible suspects who helped Epstein or participated in his crimes. If you are still targeting suspects, you don’t want them to know you are zeroing in on them.
“Five wrongs don’t make a right,” she added in a reply to a commenter. “This case spans 20 years and a lot of presidents. Bottom line is the victims deserve answers. Right now, Trump has the power to make things right.”
On Monday, Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) shared a post from White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt that noted Trump’s reversal on the vote to release the files.
“The Democrats had the Epstein Files for 4 years and never raised the issue and blocked every attempt to release them,” wrote Burchett. “3 Democrat appointed Judges blocked it.”
Brown fired back at the Tennessee congressman a few hours later, writing “the Epstein case was still an OPEN criminal investigation during the Biden administration.”
At the time, Brown wrote, there was an “open grand jury,” and “even after Maxwell’s conviction, the case was on appeal.”
“[A]nyone in law enforcement knows you don’t open your case file when it’s still under appeal,” she continued. “There were still victims going to the FBI with new information. That changed when Trump’s DOJ reviewed the files and closed the case in July.”
