An internal DOJ email from July 24, 2019 alerting colleagues that NBC 4 was about to break news that Jeffrey Epstein had been found injured in his jail cell, either from an attack or self-harm.

This is a forwarded internal email between prosecutors at the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York (USANYS) on July 24-25, 2019. The email chain involves James Margolin (a DOJ contractor) and Nicholas Blase warning colleagues that NBC 4 was preparing to run a story that night about Epstein being 'either attacked or attempted to hurt himself' in jail. The sender notes they declined to comment and didn't confirm anything to the press. This document captures the real-time government response to one of the most significant events in the Epstein case—the July 2019 jail cell incident that preceded his death weeks later.

Key Highlights

• •Documents real-time DOJ coordination as news broke about Epstein's first jail cell injury
• •Shows government officials declining to comment on the incident to NBC
• •References James Margolin, a DOJ contractor, and Nicholas Blase as key communication recipients
• •Captures the initial uncertainty about whether Epstein was attacked or attempted self-harm

Frequently Asked Questions