US justice department asks to unseal grand jury transcripts in Epstein case

<p>Move seeks to contain controversy that has engulfed Trump administration since it announced it would not release more files from sex trafficking case</p><p>The US Department of Justice asked a federal court on Friday to unseal grand jury transcripts in <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/jeffrey-epstein">Jeffrey Epstein’s</a> case at the direction of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/donaldtrump">Donald Trump</a> amid a firestorm over the administration’s handling of records related to the wealthy financier.</p><p>The move – coming a day after a Wall Street Journal story <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jul/18/trump-libel-lawsuit-wsj-dow-jones-rupert-murdoch">put a spotlight</a> on Trump’s relationship with Epstein – seeks to contain a growing controversy that has engulfed the administration since it announced that it would not be releasing more government files from Epstein’s sex trafficking case.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jul/18/justice-department-unseal-grand-jury-transcripts-epstein-case">Continue reading...</a>