Florida Legislature passes bill to release state grand jury's Jeffrey Epstein investigation

Source: Associated Press

Florida Legislature passes bill to release state grand jury’s Jeffrey Epstein investigation

Updated 4:55 PM EST, February 21, 2024

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — The transcripts of a 2006 grand jury that investigated Jeffrey Epstein ‘s sexual assaults of underage girls would be released to the public under a bill heading to Florida’s governor after it was unanimously passed by the Legislature.

The bill, which passed the Senate on Wednesday after earlier passing the House, would take effect July 1 if signed by Gov Ron DeSantis, although a South Florida circuit judge might release the transcripts sooner as part of a lawsuit filed by the Palm Beach Post.

The Post sued the Palm Beach County state attorney and the court clerk in 2019 to obtain a court order to unseal the grand jury proceedings and reveal why the grand jury returned only minimal charges.

A circuit judge determined in 2021 that the court didn’t have the authority under state law to release the records. A state appeals court disagreed last year, citing a state law that says grand jury records can be made public if that is a “furtherance of justice.” The appeals court ordered the lower court to review, redact and release the material, but that hasn’t happened yet.

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Read more: https://apnews.com/article/jeffrey-epstein-grand-jury-records-39eb7cb47b3e45bd6a6e65a46e2726f0