EFTA00032235 - EFTA00032236
An internal email chain from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York from August 21, 2019, discussing prosecutor communications with attorneys for former New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson regarding the Jeffrey Epstein investigation.
This document captures internal deliberations among federal prosecutors handling the Epstein case just weeks after his arrest and days before his death. The emails reveal prosecutors clarifying what they told Richardson's attorney about his legal status—that he was neither a target nor a witness requiring subpoena at that time, though they sought a proffer about any knowledge he had of the charged conduct. The exchange shows prosecutors coordinating their message before Richardson issued a public statement through his lawyer, Jeff Brown of Dechert LLP.
Key Highlights
- •Prosecutors classified Richardson as a 'subject' rather than a target or witness in the Epstein investigation as of August 2019
- •The U.S. Attorney's Office sought a proffer from Richardson about his knowledge of Epstein's charged conduct but did not intend to subpoena him at that time
- •Richardson publicly offered his assistance to the investigation through his attorney, leading to internal confusion among prosecutors about who had spoken to his legal team
- •The document shows internal miscommunication, with one prosecutor needing to correct another's 'apparent mis-recollection' of the conversation with Richardson's attorney
Frequently Asked Questions
Related Links
Document Information
Bates Range
EFTA00032235 - EFTA00032236
Pages
2
Document Content
Page 1 - EFTA00032235
From: ' )" To: ' Subject: RE: Richardson Date: Wed, 21 Aug 2019 16:21:45 +0000 No worries. I'll swing by to be a fly on the wall for this one. From: I < Sent: Wednesday, August 21, 2019 12:19 PM To: Subject: RE: Richardson Ugh, I have, I'm sorry I didn't advise. I spoke to Jeff on Sunday afternoon and I hadn't thought about it this week — I told him that anyone we don't have reason to know has no exposure (witness), or believe does have exposure (target), would be a subject, and that with respect to Richardson we didn't currently intend to subpoena or request to speak with him and that there weren't specific allegations against him for which we were currently seeking a response, but that an attorney proffer would be useful about any knowledge he has regarding the charged conduct. I further said that if we wanted to speak with Richardson going forward we'd go through counsel. I have contemporaneous notes and just spoke to and I'm going to call now to correct his apparent mis-recollection of our conversation. From: Sent: Wednesday, August 21, 2019 12:08 To: Subject: FW: Richardson >; I've never spoken to anyone who represents Bill Richardson. Have you guys? Am I missing something? From: (USANYS) Sent: Wednesday, August 21, 2019 12:05 PM To: < > Cc: (USANYS) Subject: FW: Richardson Has anyone talked to Jeff Brown and is this accurate? From: (USANYS) < > Sent: Wednesday, August 21, 2019 12:01 PM To: (USANYS) < >; Cc: (USANYS) [Contractor] Subject: Richardson >; (USANYS) < Richardson has given the following statement to the press, true and accurate?: (USANYS) Governor Bill Richardson offered his assistance in the Jeffrey Epstein investigation - through his lawyer, Jeff Brown of Dechert LLP - to the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York. In response to this offer, Mr. Brown was informed EFTA00032235
Page 2 - EFTA00032236
by the Assistant US Attorney responsible for the case that Governor Richardson is neither a target, subject, nor witness in the case and that there is no allegation against Governor Richardson that the government is actively investigating. "It's fair to conclude that the federal prosecutors investigating this matter do not believe the Governor participated in or witnessed the criminal activity Jeffrey Epstein is alleged to have committed," said Mr. Brown. Governor Richardson hopes that the investigation continues so that Epstein's victims can finally have their day in court and see the justice they deserve. Public Affairs United States Department of Justice U.S. Attorney's Office l Southern District of New York EFTA00032236
Entities Mentioned
Bill Richardson
PERSON • 3 mentions
Governor of New Mexico from 2003 to 2011
JB
Jeff Brown
PERSON
Jeffrey Epstein
PERSON • 3 mentions
American sex offender and financier (1953–2019)
Julie K. Brown
PERSON
American journalist
District Court for the Southern District of New York
ORGANIZATION
Public Affairs
ORGANIZATION
Academic discipline
U.S. Attorney's Office
ORGANIZATION
Statistics
Pages:2
Entities:7
Avg. OCR:0.9%
Sponsored