Justice Department says members of Congress can't intervene in release of Epstein files

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: AP

Updated 8:29 PM EST, January 16, 2026


NEW YORK (AP) — Manhattan’s top federal prosecutor said Friday that a judge lacks the authority to appoint a neutral expert to oversee the public release of documents in the sex trafficking probe of financier Jeffrey Epstein and British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell.

Judge Paul A. Engelmayer was told in a letter signed by U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton that he must reject a request this week by the congressional cosponsors of the Epstein Files Transparency Act to appoint a neutral expert.

U.S. Rep. Ro Khanna, a California Democrat, and Rep. Thomas Massie, a Kentucky Republican, say they have “urgent and grave concerns” about the slow release of only a small number of millions of documents that began last month.

In a filing to the judge they said they believed “criminal violations have taken place” in the release process. Clayton, though, said Khanna and Massie do not have standing with the court that would allow them to seek the “extraordinary” relief of the appointment of a special master and independent monitor.

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/epstein-congress-neutral-expert-dfff6c2f06162a4a7a637fe22c4e2dc1

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Manhattan’s top federal prosecutor said Friday that a judge lacks the authority to appoint a neutral expert to oversee the public release of documents

Yet that same office had a Special Master assigned to sort out Michael Cohen's seized records to filter out "attorney-client" privilege stuff vs other stuff and in Florida, 45 insisted on one (granted by Loose Cannon to delay the case, but then halted by the 11th Circuit) with respect to the classified docs seized at Mar-a-Lago, and supposed (non-existent) "Executive privilege" items.

[Lovie777]

1. Cover up.....

[bucolic_frolic]

2. DOJ is a political entity now

Everything they say should be disregarded until cases make it to SCOTUS.

[MLWR]

15. It has been for the better part of a year now.

[tirebiter]

3. Since when does a lawyer tell a judge what to do?

[Pachamama]

9. Asking myself the same question

WTF

[riversedge]

4. More delaysfiled Late Friday night

More delays===filed Late Friday night

‪MeidasTouch‬ ‪@meidastouch.com‬
· 8h
NEWS: The U.S. Department of Justice has formally moved to block the appointment of an independent monitor or special master to oversee the release of Epstein-related records

NEWS: The U.S. Department of Justice has formally moved to block the appointment of an independent monitor or special master to oversee the release of Epstein-related records

— MeidasTouch (@meidastouch.com) 2026-01-17T04:42:31.049Z

...........The U.S. Department of Justice has formally moved to block the appointment of an independent monitor or special master to oversee the release of Epstein-related records in the long-closed criminal case of Ghislaine Maxwell—arguing that no federal court has the authority to compel such disclosures.


In a six-page letter filed tonight, to U.S. District Judge Paul A. Engelmayer, prosecutors contend that recent efforts by members of Congress to force production of the so-called “Epstein files” amount to an improper attempt to reopen a concluded criminal case and to create a form of judicial oversight that Congress itself did not authorize..........

.............................

In short, the government’s filing makes clear that—absent new legislation explicitly authorizing court enforcement—the DOJ believes no court can force it to produce the Epstein files, regardless of public pressure or congressional intent.

Judge Engelmayer is expected to rule on the motion for leave to file an amicus brief and the request for an independent monitor in the coming weeks.

[sinkingfeeling]

5. Time for US citizens to understand justice, law and order, and the Constitution are no longer in play.

Happy 250th. Birthday.

[snot]

23. And nevertheless to insist on and fight for

their restoration.

[UpInArms]

6. The entirety of this maladminstration is a criminal enterprise

I am at my wits end

[underpants]

7. Everyday that passes IS a criminal violation

[intheflow]

8. Members of Congress have no standing

in holding the DOJ accountable for ignoring a very specific law Congress passed and the president signed? This DA needs to go back to law school.

[BootinUp]

10. tRumps Justice Department is a laughing stock. nt

[Joinfortmill]

11. Lots of horrible photos and huge blackmail scheme.

TickTock

[AllaN01Bear]

12. i cant say what i want to say on here . but,,

this comes close ,

[Diraven]

13. Welp, that's it I guess

If they really succeed in their argument that literally no one has authority to compel them to obey laws then our country is done.

[ancianita]

14. Seems to me that the judge can find the DOJ and U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton guilty of conspiring to obstruct justice.

How?

Overall, to preserve the integrity of the judicial system, if Khanna and Massie's filing has given facts to give the judge cause, whether they have standing or not --

In a filing to the judge they said they believed “criminal violations have taken place” in the release process.

-- Engelmayer can still rule to enforce the Epstein Files Transparency Act. that the Bondi DOJ and Clayton come forward with 'instructions' or excuses should not be grounds for Engelmayer's being complicit in accepting them.

[paleotn]

16. Probably based on extraordinarily weak logic and / or ambulance chaser legal opinion.

and destined to fail. Even for those at DoJ who actually HAVE a functioning cerebral cortex, simply parroting what the demented orange moron says is a guaranteed loser. Judge says go fuck yourselves in 3.....2.....1

[LetMyPeopleVote]

17. DOJ is now arguing that no court can force it to release the Epstein files.

This is a very weak legal argument

Link to tweet

[sakabatou]

18. DOJ is a fucking joke

[travelingthrulife]

19. Congress needs to physically surround the DOJ and stay there until they puke up Trump's kiddie diddling records.

[maliaSmith]

20. Trump's DoJ now claims no US Court can force release of Epstein files.

This is why they've been delaying the release.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

21. 'My god': DOJ's latest effort to block release of Epstein files leaves onlookers floored

The DOJ's response here is ridiculous. A law is supposed to be complied with and there is no need for an express remedy to be stated in such law. Courts enforce all laws even when there is no express remedy.

‘My god’: DOJ’s latest effort to block release of Epstein files leaves onlookers floored

They quietly filed a motion in federal court Friday to block a new effort to compel them to release the files.

Whatever's in those files must be beyond horrifying.

www.rawstory.com/jeffrey-epst...

— Mar-a-Hell-No! Hitler's Back And I Don't Have An Attic (@mara-hell-no.bsky.social) 2026-01-17T15:45:07.858Z

https://www.rawstory.com/jeffrey-epstein-2674904768/

The Justice Department quietly filed a motion in federal court Friday to block a new effort to compel the agency to release its trove of files on Jeffrey Epstein – as it’s required to by law – in a move that sparked fierce backlash among critics.

“Oh my god,” wrote Brett Meiselas, cofounder of MeidasTouch, in a social media post on X to his more than 270,000 followers Friday night in response to the DOJ’s motion......

On Friday, however, the DOJ filed a motion to block that effort in the Southern District of New York, arguing that courts lack the authority to force the agency’s hand in the matter.

“I’ve never seen a group of people go to such lengths to protect sexual predators,” wrote Shawn Ryan, an influential podcast host and former Navy SEAL to his more than 1.2 million followers on X.

Others, like the anti-MAGA political commentator “CattardSlim,” called out Attorney General Pam Bondi for what they characterized as her hypocrisy on the matter.

“Hours after posting ‘No one is above the law!’ Pam Bondi says she & the DOJ are above the law, & they don't want an independent monitor seeing what they're doing with the Epstein files,” they wrote to their more than 33,000 followers on X.

Link to tweet

[RandiFan1290]

22. Jay Clayton is the former Chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission

serving from 2017 to 2020 under trump