Deadline nears for release of Epstein files as survivors await accountability
The clock is ticking toward a critical deadline in the long-running Jeffrey Epstein case. The Department of Justice faces a Dec. 19 mandate to release records tied to the investigation.
The deadline stems from the Epstein Files Transparency Act, a new law signed by President Trump that requires public access to federal documents related to Epstein within 30 days of enactment.
What remains unclear is exactly what the Justice Department will release or when. As of now, DOJ officials have not announced a specific timeline for making the files public, even as pressure intensifies from survivors and advocates demanding transparency.
Elizabeth Stein is an anti-trafficking advocate and Epstein survivor.
"Things happened really quickly"
Stein was 21 years old when she first met Ghislaine Maxwell and Epstein in 1994 while she was studying fashion and interning at a high-end boutique in New York City. She described what followed as three years of grooming, sexual assault and trafficking.
"That first day that I met her, I met Epstein and that was also the first time I was assaulted by them," Stein said. "So, things happened really quickly."
For decades, Stein said she did not understand what had happened to her.
"I didn't know that I had been trafficked until Epstein's arrest in 2019," she said. "I think that is a really important point that I would like to make."
Stein explained misconceptions around trafficking delayed her understanding of her own abuse.
"In my mind, I was like, I wasn't trafficked because I wasn't in Florida, because I didn't go to the island, because I was over the age of 18," she said. "When I really understood what trafficking was, I realized that was exactly what happened to me."
Stein sued Epstein's estate and Maxwell in 2023. The case has since been settled, with Stein receiving compensation without any admission of wrongdoing by Epstein's estate or Maxwell.
Shame, silence, and survival
Stein said shame kept her silent for years.
"For anyone who is a survivor of sexual assault, shame is probably the biggest thing that we deal with," she said. "We internalize it and think these things are our fault."
She added that for nearly three decades, she minimized her experience in her own mind.
"I thought I had become friends with people I had no business being friends with and had a really awful experience that I never wanted to talk about," Stein said.
Politics and pressure for transparency
The debate surrounding the release of the Epstein files has been front and center in American politics for years. At the heart of it, Stein said, are survivors fighting to have the names of perpetrators made public and held accountable.
"This case has been ongoing through five administrations of both political parties," Stein said. "The people who are potentially named also come from both sides of the political spectrum."
President Trump and others, however, have characterized the release as a distraction, calling it "a Democrat hoax that never ends."
Stein rejected that framing.
"This is a crime of sex trafficking," she said. "If you took powerful people's names out of the headlines, no one could stand for a crime that victimized over a thousand girls and young women."
What the law requires and allows
The Epstein Files Transparency Act, signed Nov. 19, requires the Justice Department to publish records in a searchable, downloadable format within 30 days — no later than Friday, Dec. 19.
The law prohibits releasing victims' personally identifiable information or material depicting the sexual abuse of children. It allows redactions to prevent an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy and permits temporary withholding if release could jeopardize an active federal investigation. However, records cannot be withheld solely to avoid embarrassment to public figures or officials.
Judges have also recently granted requests to unseal additional material tied to Epstein-related investigations as the deadline approaches.
Remembering Virginia Giuffre
During the interview, Stein wore a butterfly pin in remembrance of Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein's most outspoken accusers, who died by suicide.
"She paved the way for the work that we are doing now," Stein said.
She explained the symbolism behind the butterflies.
"They represent renewal and rebirth — transformation," Stein said. "We are living full, beautiful lives even while carrying this trauma."
Stein added that Giuffre's death underscores the long-term toll of abuse.
"It's a complicated concept to think of how someone can be so strong and so brave yet feel so overwhelmed by trauma that they can't see going forward," Stein said.
Waiting to see what justice looks like
As the DOJ's deadline nears, Stein said survivors are watching closely.
"We are concerned that survivors' names and personal information are redacted," she said. "But we want to make sure the perpetrators' information is not hidden. They deserve to be held accountable. No one is above the law. It doesn't matter what their titles are. They committed crimes against girls and young women."
As Friday's deadline approaches, survivors and the public alike are left waiting not just for files, but for clarity on whether long-promised transparency will finally arrive.