The US Justice Department has once again secure the release of federal jury materials from the inquiry into the late financier, which resulted in his sex-trafficking charges in 2019.
The newly submitted motion, signed by the US attorney for the New York district, asserts that lawmakers made it clear when approving the disclosure of case documents that these legal files should be made public.
"The congressional action overrode existing law in a manner that enables the unsealing of the grand jury records," noted the federal authorities.
The filing asked the Manhattan federal court to act promptly in unsealing the materials, citing the 30-day period set after the legislation was approved last week.
However, this latest attempt comes after a prior request from the former administration was turned down by the presiding judge, who cited a "important and persuasive factor" for preserving the documents under wraps.
In his August ruling, Berman observed that the 70 pages of jury testimony and exhibits, featuring a slide deck, phone records, and letters from victims and their lawyers, pale in comparison to the authorities' vast repository of investigative documents.
"The prosecution's massive collection of case documents overwhelm the approximately seventy pages," noted the magistrate in his ruling, adding that the request appeared to be a "distraction" from making public files already in the prosecution's control.
The grand jury materials largely contain the statement of an government agent, who served as the only witness in the federal jury hearings and reportedly had "limited personal awareness of the case details" with testimony that was "largely unverified."
Judge Berman identified the "conceivable risks to survivors' security and confidentiality" as the persuasive factor for preserving the documents confidential.
A parallel motion to release grand jury testimony concerning the legal case of his accomplice was also rejected, with the judicial officer stating that the federal petition incorrectly implied the confidential documents contained an "unexplored treasure trove of unrevealed details" about the case.
The current motion comes shortly after the assignment of a fresh attorney to probe his associations with prominent Democrats and several months after the firing of one of the principal attorneys working on the cases.
When questioned about how the active inquiry might affect the publication of related documents in government possession, the Attorney General commented: "No further statements will be made on that because it is now a ongoing inquiry in the New York district."
A seasoned journalist with a passion for uncovering stories that matter in the Czech Republic and beyond.
