Grand jury testimony about the late pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein could be made public thanks to a new Florida law that paves the way for the release of long-sealed documents.
Epstein, who committed suicide in a Manhattan jail in August 2019, was first investigated by Palm Beach police for abusing a teenage girl at his South Florida mansion in 2006, leading to a grand jury investigation.
A controversial agreement with prosecutors in 2007 allowed Epstein to avoid federal prosecution, pleading guilty to only two state prostitution charges, including recruiting a minor for sexual purposes.
invoiceThe bill, co-sponsored by Rep. Peggy Gossett Seidman (R-Highland Beach) and Sen. Tina Polsky (D-Boca Raton), would normally prohibit the disclosure of testimony or evidence received by a grand jury. Extend the exception. secret, CBS News reported.
While signing the bill at the Palm Beach Police Department, DeSantis said it was wrong for someone “very wealthy and well-connected” to “plan an outcome that would never be possible for the average citizen.” .
“In some of these rare situations, we need a mechanism for people to know the truth and seek justice,” DeSantis said.
Polsky said he is “looking forward to the transparency” this bill will bring to the people of the state.
“The public and the victims have a right to know whether prosecutors induced a jury not to indict Epstein on more serious charges,” Polsky said.
“We need to know whether the system worked or failed in pursuing justice for this heinous individual.”
Epstein was arrested in New York in July 2019 on federal sex trafficking crimes involving underage girls and died in federal custody weeks later.
The Palm Beach Post filed suit in 2019 to obtain a court order to lift the 2006 seal. grand jury records.
