A federal judge has denied the Trump administration’s request to unseal grand jury transcripts related to the case of convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell. The ruling, handed down by U.S. District Judge Paul Engelmayer, stated that releasing the documents would not offer significant new information and could jeopardize the fundamental secrecy of grand jury proceedings.
Releasing the documents would not provide new information and risked ‘unraveling the foundations of secrecy’ of grand jury proceedings.
Judge Engelmayer’s decision emphasized that the transcripts contained little of consequence that had not already been made public during Maxwell’s 2021 trial, describing them as primarily “garden-variety summary testimony by two law enforcement agents” and offering no fresh insights into the crimes or any associated individuals. He suggested that the administration’s push to release the documents might serve as a “diversion” rather than genuine transparency (The Guardian, CBS News).
The Trump administration had sought the unsealing of these materials amidst a broader public and political clamor for more information regarding the late financier Jeffrey Epstein and his co-conspirators. Maxwell, who is currently appealing her conviction for facilitating Epstein’s abuse of underage girls, had also opposed the release of the records (Associated Press). Sources
