What is document EFTA00018732?

This is an internal Department of Justice email chain from March 10, 2021, where DOJ officials are coordinating to create a complete list of all FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) requests their office received related to Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. The emails discuss searching internal databases and reaching out to the Civil Division for additional cases.

Who is mentioned in this document?

The document mentions Jeffrey Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell, and an individual named Touhy (referenced as an Epstein victim who filed FOIA requests). It also references organizations including Radar Online, the New York Times, the Bureau of Prisons (BOP), and the DOJ's Civil Division. The names of the DOJ officials sending and receiving the emails have been redacted.

What does this document reveal?

This document reveals the DOJ's internal process for tracking FOIA requests about Epstein and Maxwell. It shows that by March 2021, multiple FOIA requests and resulting lawsuits existed, including from Radar Online and the New York Times. It also indicates that the DOJ's FOIA tracking database only covered requests directed to their specific office, not requests to other components like the FBI that the Civil Division might defend in court.

What was the Radar Online FOIA case mentioned in this document?

Radar Online filed a FOIA lawsuit against the FBI in 2017 seeking records from the FBI's investigation of Jeffrey Epstein. The case (Radar Online LLC v. FBI) was litigated in the Southern District of New York. In September 2023, a federal judge ruled against Radar Online, allowing the FBI to keep files hidden due to Ghislaine Maxwell's ongoing appeal at the time.

What is document EFTA00018732?

This is an internal Department of Justice email chain from March 10, 2021, where DOJ officials are coordinating to create a complete list of all FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) requests their office received related to Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. The emails discuss searching internal databases and reaching out to the Civil Division for additional cases.

Who is mentioned in this document?

The document mentions Jeffrey Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell, and an individual named Touhy (referenced as an Epstein victim who filed FOIA requests). It also references organizations including Radar Online, the New York Times, the Bureau of Prisons (BOP), and the DOJ's Civil Division. The names of the DOJ officials sending and receiving the emails have been redacted.

What does this document reveal?

This document reveals the DOJ's internal process for tracking FOIA requests about Epstein and Maxwell. It shows that by March 2021, multiple FOIA requests and resulting lawsuits existed, including from Radar Online and the New York Times. It also indicates that the DOJ's FOIA tracking database only covered requests directed to their specific office, not requests to other components like the FBI that the Civil Division might defend in court.

What was the Radar Online FOIA case mentioned in this document?

Radar Online filed a FOIA lawsuit against the FBI in 2017 seeking records from the FBI's investigation of Jeffrey Epstein. The case (Radar Online LLC v. FBI) was litigated in the Southern District of New York. In September 2023, a federal judge ruled against Radar Online, allowing the FBI to keep files hidden due to Ghislaine Maxwell's ongoing appeal at the time.

EFTA00018732 - EFTA00018733

Internal DOJ email thread from March 2021 discussing how to compile a comprehensive list of all FOIA requests related to Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell received by the Department of Justice.

This is an internal Department of Justice email exchange from March 10, 2021, where DOJ officials are coordinating to assemble a complete list of every FOIA request their office has received relating to Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. The emails discuss searching their FOIA tracking database, reaching out to the Civil Division for cases they may have litigated, and reference specific ongoing cases including NYT v BOP and a Radar Online FOIA lawsuit. The document provides insight into how the DOJ was tracking and managing the numerous FOIA requests surrounding the Epstein case.

Key Highlights

•DOJ officials working to compile comprehensive list of all Epstein/Maxwell FOIA requests
•References Radar Online FOIA case - a lawsuit filed in 2017 seeking FBI records on Epstein
•Mentions NYT v BOP (2020V00220) - New York Times lawsuit against Bureau of Prisons
•References 'Epstein victim Touhy requests' case (2019V01791)
•Notes that FOIA litigation can be brought in requester's home district or Washington DC

Frequently Asked Questions

Books for Further Reading

Perversion of Justice: The Jeffrey Epstein Story

Julie K. Brown

Investigative journalism that broke the Epstein case open

Filthy Rich: The Jeffrey Epstein Story

James Patterson

Bestselling account of Epstein's crimes and network

The Spider: Inside the Tangled Web of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell

Document Information

Bates Range

EFTA00018732 - EFTA00018733

Pages

Document Content

Page 1 - EFTA00018732

From: To:' < Subject: RE: Jeffrey Epstein/Ghislaine Maxwell/FOIA Date: Wed, 10 Mar 2021 23:23:55 +0000 You can send a round-robin to the Civ Div. In addition to Radar, I did an Epstein search in caseview and here are another couple civ div matters that I think you're familiar with: NYT v BOP, 2020V00220 Epstein victim Touhy requests, 2019V01791 FYI, FOIA litigation can be brought in the home district of the requester, or in DDC. From: Sent: Wednesday, March 10, 2021 5:45 PM To: Cc: Subject: RE: Jeffrey Epstein/Ghislaine Maxwell/FOIA Ok thanks, that's helpful to know. How would we go about determining whether the civil division litigated any cases based on FOIA requests to other components? From: Sent: Wednesday, March 10, 2021 5:44 PM To: ) < Cc: < ; Subject: RE: Jeffrey Epstein/Ghislaine Maxwell/FOIA Oh, sorry: our FOIA Tracking Database is designed to cover FOIA requests that are directed to our Office; it does not track FOIA requests to, e.g., the FBI, that end up in litigation in the SDNY and that our Civ Div defends. From: Senliagilagida6 021 5:40 PM To: l>; > Cc: < n Subject: RE: Jeffrey Epstein/Ghislaine Maxwell/FOIA Thanks, could you please check your records and let us know if there are any other cases? Fro,, s list, it seems like at least one case is missing (there is a civil case involving a FOIA request from Radar Online). From: Sent: Wednesday, March 10, 2021 5.23 PM To: Cc: < ; Subject: RE: Jeffrey Epstein/Ghislaine Maxwell/FOIA As we just discussed: Here is what we have in our FOIA tracking database regarding Epstein FOlAs. And also attached is the letter in PPI about discovery vs FOIA (see p. 8) EFTA00018732

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From: Sent: Wednesda March 10 20215:20 PM To: Subject: Jeffrey Epstein/Ghislaine Maxwell/FOIA Hope you're doing well.-am nd I are trying to assemble a list of every FOIA request our office has ever received (at any point) relating to Jeffrey Epstein and/or Ghislaine Maxwell. suggested that you'd be the best point of contact to help us figure this out. Could you please send us the following information: • A list of all FOIA requests our office has received; • For each case, whether a production was made in response to the request; and • Who the AUSA point of contact for the request is. That would be a big help. Please let us know if you need any information from us to run the search. Thanks very much, Assistant United States Attorney Southern District of New York New York, NY 10007 EFTA00018733