An internal DOJ email from August 2019 sharing transcript excerpts from Jeffrey Epstein's initial court appearances, where SDNY prosecutors explicitly denied that the case was directed to them by the Department of Justice or the Southern District of Florida.

This document is an internal email between U.S. Attorney's Office personnel dated August 7, 2019, attaching transcripts from Epstein's July 9, 2019 initial conference and July 15, 2019 bail hearing. The email highlights key passages where Assistant U.S. Attorneys from the Southern District of New York firmly denied conspiracy theories that the case was funneled to SDNY from elsewhere. Prosecutors stated the investigation "began in the Southern District of New York" and was conducted by the FBI, CBP, NYPD, and the U.S. Attorney's Office without coordination with the Southern District of Florida, which had controversially given Epstein a lenient plea deal in 2008.

Key Highlights

• •SDNY prosecutors explicitly stated under oath that no one at their table had spoken with anyone at the Southern District of Florida
• •Prosecutors denied DOJ coordination claims, stating the case was 'not shoveled to the Southern District of New York from anywhere else'
• •The document captures internal DOJ communication during a critical period just weeks before Epstein's death on August 10, 2019

Frequently Asked Questions