DOJ’s Partial Release of Epstein Files Sparks Democratic Legal Threat

Two senior House Democrats announced they are “examining all legal options” after the Justice Department confirmed it would release only a portion of the long-sought Jeffrey Epstein files, violating federal law that requires their full public disclosure.

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche stated Friday that the DOJ plans to initially release “several hundred thousand” documents before additional releases over the next few weeks. During an interview on Fox News, Blanche explained, “I expect that we’re going to release several hundred thousand documents [Friday],” and noted that further releases would follow in the coming days.

The Democrats swiftly condemned the move, accusing the Trump administration of disregarding Congress and federal statutes. Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) and Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) jointly declared: “Donald Trump and the Department of Justice are now violating federal law as they continue covering up the facts and evidence about Jeffrey Epstein’s decades-long, billion-dollar international sex trafficking ring.”

Blanche attributed the delay to the volume of documents and the necessity to protect victims by redacting identifying information. He emphasized that DOJ attorneys were reviewing each document to ensure victim confidentiality: “There’s a lot of eyes looking at these,” he said. “We want to make sure that when we do produce the materials, we’re protecting every single victim.”

However, Garcia and Raskin rejected this justification, accusing the department of deliberately defying Congress. They stated the DOJ is now “making clear it intends to defy Congress itself” and are considering legal action.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) joined the criticism, labeling the partial release “nothing more than a cover-up” and alleging its purpose was to shield President Trump from scrutiny. Schumer reiterated that Congress had passed—and President Trump signed—a law requiring full disclosure within 30 days: “The law Congress passed and President Trump signed was clear,” he said.

Meanwhile, Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Cal.) of California, a co-sponsor of the Epstein Files Act, expressed cautious optimism if the documents prove meaningful and a clear timeline is established. Khanna noted that while the DOJ has released more records than previously provided to his committee, “they ultimately must release all of it.”

The legislation compelling the release of Epstein’s files passed Congress with overwhelming support in November and was signed by President Trump despite his objections to the bill.

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), who co-led the bipartisan effort behind the statute, questioned whether the partial disclosure complies with law, warning of potential penalties for noncompliance.

Jeffrey Epstein was arrested on federal child sex trafficking charges in July 2019 and died weeks later in a Manhattan jail. His longtime associate, Ghislaine Maxwell, was convicted in 2021 and is serving a 20-year prison sentence.