Florida governor OKs release of more Epstein documents

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill into law permitting the public disclosure of grand jury testimony, paving the way for officials to release documents from the secretive 2006 Jeffrey Epstein case.

The bill, HB-117, states in part that grand jury testimony “may be disclosed so long as the subject of the grand jury inquiry is deceased, the grand jury inquiry related to criminal or sexual activity between the subject of the grand jury investigation and a person who was a minor at the time of the alleged criminal or sexual activity.”

According to DeSantis, the law will spearhead the release of records related to the grand jury case where a single criminal charge was brought against Epstein, despite prosecutors identifying over 30 victims. Some of the people who claimed he abused them at his Palm Beach home were as young as 14 years old.

When police raided Epstein’s home in 2006, they found hidden cameras believed to have been used to document the abuse, as well as several photos of young girls.

The FBI stepped in after the Palm Beach Police Chief requested Epstein be charged with several offenses and accused the state prosecutor of being too lenient with Epstein. The then-state attorney, in an unusual move, decided to present evidence to a grand jury, which would legally seal the identities of those involved and the details of the accusations.

Epstein pleaded not guilty to the single charge of “procuring for prostitution a girl below age 18” as part of a deal negotiated between his lawyers and the state attorney. According to the Miami Herald, the deal “essentially shut down an ongoing FBI probe into whether there were more victims and other powerful people who took part in Epstein’s sex crimes.”

After spending just 13 months in jail – housed in a private wing and permitted to leave for up to 12 hours a day – Epstein walked free until his July 2019 federal sex trafficking arrest. He died by suicide in his jail cell just over a month later.

Epstein’s longtime associate Ghislaine Maxwell was convicted of sex trafficking and conspiracy in 2021 for helping Epstein groom his victims.

Two victims of the disgraced billionaire joined DeSantis at the Palm Beach Police Department on Thursday. Haley Robson, a former teen “recruiter” for Epstein, said victims are still healing from the abuse, and she hopes the law will bring some closure.

“I’m trying to put the final pieces of this puzzle together so I can move on and finally get the peace I deserve for my life,” Robson said. “I’m so grateful for this bill. Really, I just want to know why Jeffrey Epstein was given such grace and mercy for his inhumane crimes.”

Robson also wants to know why the young victims were scrutinized so heavily in the media. She said the victim-shaming that arose from the high-profile case was psychologically damaging and led some to retract statements out of fear.

Jena-Lisa Jones was 14 years old when she was sexually assaulted by Epstein.

“We’ve been left in the dark for so long, with no answers as to what was going on and why things played out the way that they did,” Jones said. “It would have saved literally hundreds of girls from being put in a position none of us ever wanted to be put in.”

Both women said they were grateful to the legislature for passing the bill.

“It’s going to shed light on what I’ve known this entire time. I’m excited to see what is and what isn’t included in these documents,” Robson said. “I think it’s going to be groundbreaking.”

Grand jury documents from the Epstein case will be authorized for release on July 1, when the law goes into effect. When Robson asked DeSantis if the documents were allowed to be altered before they are released, he said the judge is allowed to redact some things, but the law is “structured in a way that’s disfavored.”

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