Epstein files live updates as Justice Department expected to release records today

The Justice Department refuted that it will not comply with the deadline to release all files related to its investigation into Epstein and said it will meet the "initial deadline" while working to protect survivors.

"The DOJ is releasing a massive tranche of new documents that the Biden and Obama administrations refused to release. The story here: the Trump administration is providing levels of transparency that prior administrations never even contemplated," the department's public affairs office said on X. "The initial deadline is being met as we work diligently to protect victims."

Mr. Trump succeeded former President Barack Obama in the White House, and former President Joe Biden was elected after him in 2020. Epstein faced federal sex-trafficking charges during Mr. Trump's first term, and Maxwell was tried and convicted during the Biden administration.

Oregon Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden, who has long been critical of the Justice Department's handling of the Epstein investigations, responded scathingly to Blanche's comment that not all files would be released immediately.

"It is an insult to the intelligence of the American people when a lawyer for Donald Trump, Jeffrey Epstein's longtime wingman, claims the administration is blowing off this deadline out of concern for the privacy of Epstein's victims," Wyden said, referring to Blanche's time as Mr. Trump's private criminal defense attorney. "The administration began combing through the Epstein files for any mention of Donald Trump shortly after the inauguration, so they know what's in there and they've had plenty of time to make the necessary redactions."

Wyden reiterated that the law passed by Congress and signed by Mr. Trump last month sets today as the deadline for all files to be made public.

"The law Congress passed did not say 'release some of the Epstein files' or 'release the files whenever it's convenient for Donald Trump.' Anything short of a full release today is a violation of the law and a continuation of this administration's coverup on behalf of a bunch of pedophiles and sex traffickers," Wyden said. 

Rep. Jamie Raskin, the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, and Rep. Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the Oversight Committee, accused the Trump administration of violating the law after Blanche suggested the Justice Department will make additional releases of Epstein-related files after the statutory deadline.

"Donald Trump and the Department of Justice are now violating federal law as they continue covering up the facts and the evidence about Jeffrey Epstein's decades-long, billion-dollar, international sex trafficking ring," Raskin and Garcia said in a joint statement. "For months, Pam Bondi has denied survivors the transparency and accountability they have demanded and deserve and has defied the Oversight Committee's subpoena. The Department of Justice is now making clear it intends to defy Congress itself, even as it gives star treatment to Epstein's convicted co-conspirator, Ghislaine Maxwell."

Raskin, of Maryland, and Garcia, of California, said they are "examining all legal options" given Blanche's earlier admission.

"The survivors of this nightmare deserve justice, the co-conspirators must be held accountable, and the American people deserve complete transparency from DOJ," they said.

The Justice Department is expected to release the Epstein documents at 3 p.m. ET this afternoon, two sources tell CBS News.

Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna of California, the lead sponsor of the Epstein Files Transparency Act, said in a statement to CBS News that "the fact they are even releasing hundreds of thousands of these is a historic moment for survivors across our nation," even if the full set of files isn't out today.

Khanna said the Justice Department "had months to prepare for this" and "must today offer a clear timeline for the full release."

Read Khanna's full statement below:

"My bipartisan Epstein Files Transparency Act has finally forced Trump to comply with Congress after a year of his willful disregard for our laws. The law requires 'all unclassified records' to be released in a "searchable and downloadable format" by today. If DOJ is producing real documents of interest that are not overly redacted, and if they are clear about a timeline for full production then that is a positive step. They ultimately must release all of it. The north star remains justice for survivors and holding the rich and powerful men who raped young girls or covered up the abuse accountable.

"They have had months to prepare for this, and they have continually rejected our offer to meet with them about this or to meet with survivor's lawyers about the logistics.

"That said, there are millions of pages of documents they need to go through to protect victim's identities and redact graphic materials. The fact they are even releasing hundreds of thousands of these is a historic moment for survivors across our nation.

"In addition to today's document release, the DOJ must today offer a clear timeline for the full release. The key is they release the names of all the powerful men in question who abused underage girls or covered it up. They must provide a clear framework to the survivors and the nation by when we will have everything public.

After Blanche's comments, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said that a failure by the Trump administration to make all the documents public by Friday would be violating the law. 

"The law Congress passed and President Trump signed was clear as can be — the Trump administration had 30 days to release ALL the Epstein files, not just some. Failing to do so is breaking the law," Schumer, a New York Democrat, said in a statement. "This just shows the Department of Justice, Donald Trump, and Pam Bondi are hellbent on hiding the truth."

Schumer said Senate Democrats are working with lawyers representing survivors as well as outside legal experts "to assess what documents are being withheld and what is being covered up by Pam Bondi."

"We will not stop until the whole truth comes out," he said. "People want the truth and continue to demand the immediate release of all the Epstein files. This is nothing more than a cover up to protect Donald Trump from his ugly past."

GOP Rep. Thomas Massie, who led the discharge petition to force a vote on releasing the files, wants the full tranche of files to be released today.

Asked about Blanche's comment implying that the Justice Department intends to make public hundreds of thousands of documents and that there will be more file drops to come, a spokesperson for Massie pointed to a post on X from the congressman.

The post is an image of the act requiring the Epstein files' release, with one line and one separate word highlighted:

"Not later than 30 days after the date of enactment of this act," Massie highlighted, referring to today, Dec. 19, and then the word "all" before a description of the documents.

Massie also posted a 14-minute-long video Thursday describing his expectations for the release. Massie laid out a few ways he believes the public will be able to tell if the Department of Justice does not fully release all of the material. 

"The victim's lawyers have been in contact with me, and collectively they know there are at least 20 names of men who are accused of sex crimes in the possession of the FBI. These would reside in the FD 302 forms," Massie said, referring to FBI records of interviews. "If we get a large production on Dec. 19, and it does not contain a single name of any male who is accused of a sex crime or sex trafficking or rape, or any of these things, then we know they haven't produced all the documents. It's that simple."

In July, Reps. Thomas Massie, a Kentucky Republican, and Rep. Ro Khanna, a California Democrat, introduced legislation to require the Justice Department to release the Epstein files within 30 days. In September, Massie filed a discharge petition to force a vote on the bill, circumventing GOP leadership. 

The petition, which required 218 signatures, won support from all Democrats and four Republicans. The final signature needed remained out of reach for weeks, as newly elected Democratic Rep. Adelita Grijalva's swearing in was delayed during the government shutdown. 

When the shutdown ended last month, Grijalva signed the petition, forcing the vote on the Epstein Files Transparency Act. Mr. Trump had opposed the legislation, but once it was evident that the bill would pass the House, he gave it his blessing.

The House voted almost unanimously in favor of the measure. The Senate quickly followed suit, approving it with no objections.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, who had led the charge against it in Congress, ultimately voted to move it forward, saying that he expected the Senate to amend it. Senate Majority Leader John Thune did not. President Trump signed it into law on Nov. 19.

Todd Blanche, the deputy attorney general, said Friday morning that the Justice Department will release "several hundred thousand" documents related to its investigation into Epstein. He told Fox News' "Fox and Friends" that the batch will include photographs and other material, but indicated that there will be some information that is redacted to protect Epstein survivors.

"We are looking at every single piece of paper that we are going to produce making sure every victim — their name, their identity, their story, to the extent that it needs to be protected — is completely protected," Blanche said.

He predicted that the Justice Department will release more material in the coming weeks.

"So, today, several hundred thousand, and then over the next couple of weeks, I expect several hundred thousand more," Blanche said. "There's a lot of eyes looking at these, so we want to make sure that when we do produce the materials that we're producing, we're protecting every single victim."

The legislation passed by Congress in November requires the attorney general to make public all unclassified records, documents, communications and investigative materials in possession of the Justice Department, the FBI and U.S. attorneys' offices within 30 days of becoming law. President Trump signed the law on Nov. 19.

The documents would stem from a pair of federal investigations, in Florida and New York, spanning more than a decade. 

The documents could include bank records, witness interviews, and messages or other files retrieved from Epstein's electronic devices. 

Read more here.

The law lets Attorney General Pam Bondi withhold files under narrow circumstances. 

Records can be redacted to remove survivors' personal information, and the Justice Department can hold back documents that include child sexual abuse material or "images of death, physical abuse, or injury of any person." If any materials need to "be kept secret in the interest of national defense or foreign policy," those wouldn't come out, either.

The law also allows for the withholding of records that "would jeopardize an active federal investigation or ongoing prosecution, provided that such withholding is narrowly tailored and temporary."

One of the bill's initial sponsors, Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, warned last month that the last category may come into play, as President Trump has directed the Justice Department to investigate Epstein's relationships with high-profile Democrats.

"I'm concerned that now he's opening a flurry of investigations, and I believe they may be trying to use those investigations as a predicate for not releasing the files," Massie told reporters.

It isn't clear whether the Justice Department plans to use that provision to withhold files.

The law requires Bondi to provide lawmakers with a list of redacted and withheld records within 15 days of the files being made public. It also says: "No record shall be withheld, delayed, or redacted on the basis of embarrassment, reputational harm, or political sensitivity, including to any government official, public figure, or foreign dignitary."

Some case records were impacted by grand jury secrecy rules. But in recent weeks, three federal judges have ordered the unsealing of grand jury transcripts from Epstein's 2019 case, his convicted associate Ghislaine Maxwell's 2020 case and an investigation into Epstein in the 2000s, following requests from the Trump administration.

Tens of thousands of pages of documents have been released over the past year, in most cases by a House committee that subpoenaed the Justice Department and Epstein's estate. They included emails and text messages showing that Epstein continued to court the rich and famous right up until his 2019 arrest.

Dec. 18, 2025: Democrats on the House Oversight Committee released a batch of 68 photos from a trove of about 95,000 the committee obtained from Epstein's estate. 

Dec. 12, 2025: An earlier batch of photos from Democrats on the House Oversight Committee, obtained from Epstein's estate, included snapshots of prominent figures like President Trump, former President Bill Clinton, former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, filmmaker Woody Allen and former Trump adviser Steve Bannon. The photos do not implicate any of those pictured in Epstein's crimes. 

Dec. 4, 2025: Democrats on the House Oversight Committee released 73 photos and four videos of Epstein's estate on the 72-acre private island known as Little St. James, in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Epstein allegedly exploited underage girls for sex at the island, and he had stakes in businesses in the U.S. territory.

Nov. 12, 2025: The House Oversight Committee released 20,000 records from Epstein's estate, including scores of emails. The disgraced financier's messages often referenced Mr. Trump. Other messages showed him bantering with Larry Summers and attempting to reconnect with Bill Gates, neither of whom is accused of wrongdoing.

Sept. 8, 2025: House Oversight released a tranche of material from Epstein's estate, including a 2003 birthday note to Epstein that appeared to be signed by Mr. Trump. The president has denied penning the message. Republicans have often accused Democrats of cherry-picking documents.

Sept. 2, 2025: The panel released more than 33,000 pages of files from the Justice Department, including court documents, flight records from Epstein's private plane, and a video of Epstein's cell block from before his death that includes a minute missing from earlier videos. Many of the documents had been released before.

Aug. 22, 2025: The Justice Department released a transcript and audio recording of Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche's interview with convicted Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell, who is serving a 20-year sentence.

Feb. 27, 2025: The White House gave a group of 15 conservative influencers binders labeled "The Epstein Files: Phase 1," but the binders contained little new information.

Prior to 2025: Other documents, including contacts, schedules, flight logs and depositions, were made public previously, often as part of Epstein and Maxwell's criminal cases and in connection with civil lawsuits filed by survivors.

Dozens of Epstein's accusers have hailed the effort to release records on the late sex offender.

Annie Farmer, who testified that she was abused by Epstein and Maxwell when she was 16, called the passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act a "long-overdue victory."

"It's also bittersweet because of, I think, what it took for us to get to this moment," Farmer said in an interview last month with "CBS Mornings." She added that she's hoping for more information on those who may have enabled Epstein and "people in positions of power that were looking the other way."

Her sister, Maria Farmer, accused Epstein and Maxwell of abuse in the 1990s, and has said the FBI ignored her initial report. In a statement shortly after Mr. Trump signed the bill, she said Congress "finally listened to survivors," but that the bill's passage "doesn't absolve the government and law enforcement's enormous failure to do its job in the past 30 years."

"I hope to see the government make good on its promise of transparency and release the entirety of the files — not bits and pieces, not mass redactions, but the complete truth, removing only child sexual abuse material and victim names and identifying information," she said. 

Before and after the bill passed, dozens of other survivors and their families signed open letters and held rallies pressing for the files to be released — including relatives of Virginia Giuffre, who died by suicide earlier this year.

Many survivors say careful redactions are necessary to ensure their privacy is protected. One law firm criticized the redactions so far as inadequate, writing in a letter last month to a judge who was weighing whether to unseal grand jury transcripts: "transparency CANNOT come at the expense of the privacy, safety, and protection of sexual abuse and sex trafficking victims."