Judge limits Trump’s immigration crackdown with sweeping restraining order
A federal judge in Los Angeles late Friday issued a sweeping temporary restraining order (TRO) against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), ruling that the agency likely violated constitutional protections through its immigration enforcement practices in California.
In a 53-page order issued Friday, U.S. District Judge Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong, a Biden appointee, barred ICE from conducting detentive stops in the Central District of California unless agents have “reasonable suspicion” that a person is in the country unlawfully.
Frimpong’s ruling explicitly prohibits ICE from relying solely on race or ethnicity, speaking Spanish or English with an accent, location, or type of work when forming suspicion, citing the Fourth Amendment.
The order also requires ICE to keep and turn over detailed records of each stop and agents’ reasoning for them, develop official guidance for determining “reasonable suspicion,” and implement mandatory training for agents.
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Frimpong presided over a hearing Thursday where she considered granting the request that will have major implications for immigration enforcement in California, a state that has become a focal point in President Donald Trump’s aggressive deportation plans.
The judge heard arguments about whether to grant the TRO against ICE over allegations the agency is violating constitutional rights during its immigration arrests.
Frimpong said during the hearing on Thursday that she was leaning toward granting the TRO Friday.
“I think it’s important for the court not to burden otherwise lawful law enforcement activities,” the judge said.
The case was initially brought in June as a routine petition from three detainees, but it has ballooned into a weighty lawsuit challenging the way ICE operates.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass praised the federal court’s decision to issue a temporary restraining order halting what she described as “unconstitutional and reckless raids conducted under the Trump Administration.”
“Today, the Court ruled in favor of the United States Constitution, of American values and decency — this is an important step toward restoring safety, security and defending the rights of all Angelenos,” Bass shared in a statement.
Bass characterized the federal actions as aggressive and harmful and reaffirmed Los Angeles’ commitment to protecting its residents’ rights.
“Los Angeles has been under assault by the Trump Administration as masked men grab people off the street, chase working people through parking lots and march through children’s summer camps. We went to court against the administration because we will never accept these outrageous and un-American acts as normal,” she continued.
Immigration rights groups and local governments, including the cities of Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Culver, and West Hollywood, have all intervened in the case and Democrat-led states have filed an amicus brief in support of them.
The plaintiffs alleged in court papers that ICE is “indiscriminately” arresting people with “brown skin” at Home Depots, car washes, farms and more. Authorities made the arrests with no “reasonable suspicion” and sometimes mistakenly apprehended U.S. citizens in the process, all in violation of the Fourth Amendment, attorneys wrote.
The plaintiffs argued the Trump administration gave ICE an unrealistic quota of 3,000 arrests per day, causing officers to feel pressured to blow past legal requirements to achieve those numbers.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration is disputing the allegations and denies wrongdoing.
U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli responded to the ruling and vehemently opposed the allegations in the lawsuit.
“We strongly disagree with the allegations in the lawsuit and maintain that our agents have never detained individuals without proper legal justification,” Essayli wrote in a post on X.
“Our federal agents will continue to enforce the law and abide by the U.S. Constitution.”
Department of Justice attorneys wrote that immigration arrests, of which there have been nearly 3,000 across California since early June, have been carried out legally.
“Their request that immigration authorities be enjoined from relying on certain factors like occupation and location flies in the face of established law requiring immigration officials to consider the totality of the circumstances, including things like occupation and location,” the attorneys wrote.
The plaintiffs have also asked the judge to expand visitor access to a short-term detention facility in downtown Los Angeles.
The facility became the site of protests and unrest in early June, leading to authorities temporarily abandoning the building. The plaintiffs allege that detainees’ access to lawyers has been hindered while in the facility, in violation of the Fifth Amendment.
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Frimpong’s order reinforces their Fifth Amendment claim, requiring ICE to ensure immediate legal access for detainees. The temporary restraining order will remain in effect pending further litigation.
The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Longtime Biden staffer says she does not ‘recall’ details about WH in 6-hour grilling
Ashley Williams, a longtime ally of former President Joe Biden, met with House investigators behind closed doors for nearly six hours Friday as Republicans probe allegations the Democrat’s top aides hid his mental decline.
A source familiar with the transcribed interview told Fox News Digital Williams said she did not “recall” various things “an untold number of times.”
“Examples include she could not recall if she spoke with President Biden in the last week, if teleprompters were used for Cabinet meetings, if there were discussions about President Biden using a wheelchair, if there were discussions about a cognitive test, if she discussed a mental or physical decline of President Biden, if she ever had to wake President Biden up and how she got involved with his 2020 campaign,” the source said.
Williams told House investigators Biden is fit to be president today, the source said.
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In addition to whether senior aides covered up Biden’s alleged decline, House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., is looking into whether any presidential orders were signed via autopen without the former commander in chief’s knowledge.
Any allegations of wrongdoing so far have been denied by the ex-president’s allies.
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But Republican investigators have pointed to Biden’s disastrous June 2024 debate and subsequent revelations in the media that there were more concerns from Biden’s inner circle about his fitness for office than previously known.
Williams, however, argued he was in command of himself during that debate, the source said.
The former White House aide said nothing to reporters when entering or leaving the committee meeting room for her voluntary interview.
Fox News Digital reached out to Williams’ lawyers for their account of events inside the room.
It was a staff-led meeting, but Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, briefly stopped in for just under 30 minutes to show “solidarity” with the witness, the progressive told reporters afterward.
“I do think that it is important that I show up because if they are going to make allegations about the former commander in chief, egregious allegations they continue to wage, I want to make sure that I’m in the room to correct the record because a lot of times they like to mischaracterize things,” she said.
When asked by Fox News Digital if the interview was still ongoing as she exited, Crockett answered, “It’s still going. I’m leaving early. I’ve got to get to another thing.”
FAR-LEFT FIREBRAND SAYS SHE ‘NEVER HAD A CONCERN’ ABOUT BIDEN’S MENTAL STATE AS HOUSE PROBE HEATS UP
The source who spoke with Fox News Digital said Crockett had come in during the GOP’s questioning session and did not ask any questions herself. Fox News Digital reached out to her office for a response.
Williams is a longtime Biden ally whose time with the Democrat goes back to assisting second lady Jill Biden during the Obama administration, according to a 2019 profile of Biden staffers.
Williams later worked for Biden’s 2020 campaign and presidential transition team. She served as his trip director before being hired by the White House as deputy director of Oval Office operations and a special assistant to the president.
Williams ended her White House tenure as deputy assistant to the president, senior advisor to the president and director of strategic outreach, according to her LinkedIn page.
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Notably, the social media page also says Williams still works for the ex-leader as senior advisor in the Office of Former President Joe Biden.
She was subpoenaed by the House Oversight Committee last year during Republicans’ investigation into Biden’s cognitive health, but GOP investigators say the former White House blocked her from giving any information.
The Democratic staffer is the third person to appear before committee investigators in recent weeks.
Former Biden White House physician Kevin O’Connor appeared for a sworn deposition Wednesday after being subpoenaed by Comer.
Deputy FBI director reportedly absent from work after dispute over handling of Epstein docs
FBI deputy director Dan Bongino is considering resigning over the Justice Department’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files, a source told Fox News Digital, noting that Bongino took a day off from work on Friday due to his frustrations.
Bongino has not been seen in the office since Wednesday, a source told Fox News Digital. He has yet to make a final decision about his future, the source said.
The latest revelation comes on the heels of a heated argument between Bongino and U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi that occurred on Wednesday at the White House, two sources confirmed.
BONDI UNDER SIEGE AFTER DOJ REVEALS NO EPSTEIN CLIENT LIST
Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel have been in touch several times during the past few days and are on the same page, a source told Fox News Digital.
Sources close to Bondi say she has no intention of stepping down and is proud of the department and its work. Patel, too, says he is happy with his job and has no intention of leaving, a source in close contact with the director told Fox News Digital.
“President Trump has assembled a highly qualified and experienced law and order team dedicated to protecting Americans, holding criminals accountable, and delivering justice to victims. This work is being carried out seamlessly and with unity,” White House Principal Deputy Press Secretary Harrison Fields told Fox News Digital. “Any attempt to sow division within this team is baseless and distracts from the real progress being made in restoring public safety and pursuing justice for all.”
Earlier on Friday, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche also pushed back on reports of internal strife.
“I worked closely with @FBIDirectorKash and @FBIDDBongino on the joint FBI and DOJ memo regarding the Epstein Files,” Blanche posted on X. “All of us signed off on the contents of the memo and the conclusions stated in the memo.
“The suggestion by anyone that there was any daylight between the FBI and DOJ leadership on this memo’s composition and release is patently false.”
The Department of Justice (DOJ) and FBI on Sunday released a joint review that ended theories about an alleged Epstein client list, concluding there was no such list detailing the names of the world’s elite who allegedly took part in Epstein’s history as a sexual predator.
The DOJ also concluded the disgraced financier committed suicide in his New York City jail cell in 2019 while awaiting further sex trafficking charges.
The latest revelation comes on the heels of President Donald Trump’s quip to a White House reporter during a cabinet meeting, in which he called the late sex criminal and financier a “creep.”
“Can I just interrupt for one second?” Trump said after a reporter directed an Epstein question at Bondi. “Are you still talking about Jeffrey Epstein?”
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“This guy’s been talked about for years. You’re asking.… We have Texas, we have this, we have all of the things. And are people are still talking about this guy, this creep?” Trump asked. “That is unbelievable.”
Public outrage ensued following the release of a prison surveillance video that the administration used to prove that no one entered Epstein’s cell in the hours leading up to his death.
The 10-hour video, though, has one minute missing, which has fueled conspiracy theories that the administration is participating in a cover-up involving Epstein’s death.
“President Trump is proud of Attorney General Bondi’s efforts to execute his Make America Safe Again agenda, restore the integrity of the Department of Justice, and bring justice to victims of crime. The continued fixation on sowing division in President Trump’s Cabinet is baseless and unfounded in reality,” said White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.
Family confirms 8-year-old girl was killed in Texas’ Camp Mystic flooding
The parents of 8-year-old Kellyanne Elizabeth Lytal confirmed to Fox News Digital Friday that Texas Rangers identified her as one of the Camp Mystic girls killed in the Texas Hill Country floods.
The Lytal family described Kellyanne, who went missing on the Fourth of July, as a “shining light in this world.”
“She was kind, fearless, silly, compassionate, and a loving friend to everyone,” the family wrote in a statement to Fox News Digital.
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They added she “believed deeply in Jesus,” noting they “rejoice in the comfort of knowing she is in Heaven with our Lord and Savior.”
Camp Mystic, an all-girls private Christian retreat, reported 27 girls missing after the Guadalupe River flooded and waters rushed through the campground.
They are all presumed dead, and first responders continue to search for remains.
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“Even though she was taken from us way too early, we thank God for the eight magical years we got to share with her,” the Lytals wrote. “Our family wants to thank everyone for their prayers and support during this difficult time. We are forever grateful for the men and women who are assisting in the Search and Rescue efforts.”
At least 119 people died in the floods, and at least 176 people remain missing, according to officials.
‘WALL OF WATER’: TEXAN RECOUNTS CATASTROPHIC MIDNIGHT FLOOD SURGE THAT SWEPT AWAY 27 GIRLS AT CAMP MYSTIC
In Kellyanne’s honor, the family established the Kellyanne Elizabeth Lytal Memorial Foundation to give to charitable causes that were dear to her heart.
The fund is part of the Greater Houston Community Foundation, a tax-exempt organization.
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The Lytal family asked for continued prayers for all the families affected by the tragedy.
Former TV husband John Goodman speaks out about Roseanne Barr relationship
John Goodman opened up about his relationship with former co-star Roseanne Barr, years after her firing from the revival of their hit show, “Roseanne.”
During a recent interview with the Hollywood Reporter, the 73-year-old actor revealed he and the 72-year-old actress “haven’t talked for about seven or eight years.”
“I’d rather doubt if she wants to talk to me,” Goodman shared.
Goodman and Barr played on-screen spouses Dan and Roseanne Conner in the hit sitcom “Roseanne” for nine seasons, from 1988 to 1997. In 2018, the two reunited for a revived 10th season of “Roseanne,” along with other main cast members from the show’s original run.
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The nine-episode season debuted on ABC in March 2018, and the show was quickly renewed for an 11th season after the success of its premiere episode. However, Barr was fired from “Roseanne” in May 2018 after she tweeted a racist remark about Valerie Jarrett, a former advisor to former President Obama.
Though Barr issued several apologies for her remarks, the planned 11th season of “Roseanne” was also canceled. In June 2018, ABC announced it would proceed with the revival, which was retitled “The Conners.” The show returned in October of that year and featured every original cast member except Barr, whose character’s disappearance was explained by an off-screen death.
While speaking with THR, Goodman reflected on the close relationship he shared with Barr during the show’s original run.
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“We hit it off from jump street,” Goodman recalled. “She made me laugh, and I made her laugh, and, wow, it was so much fun.
“We’d get so many viewers for the show back then — 20, 30 million people,” he added. “Things are so different now, but it was a special time.”
During an interview with Fox News Digital last month, Barr revealed she doesn’t speak to any of her former “Roseanne” co-stars.
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“No, I’m not friends with none of them,” the comedian said. “They’re all in the past. I have pleasant memories of what fun we had, wish them all the best. And, no, we don’t talk. I’ve moved on from that horrendous ending and chapter of my life, but, you know, I don’t hold any bitterness or nothing to them, but my God, what fun we had on that show.
“And I was sorry they f—ed it all up with their greed and ridiculous stupidity to f— all that up. F— them, but I wish them well,” Barr added.
“The Conners” ran for seven seasons and aired its final episode in April. During his interview with THR, Goodman, who is starring on the HBO sitcom “The Righteous Gemstones,” shared his thoughts on saying goodbye to the character of Dan Conner.
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“I didn’t think [the ‘Roseanne’ reboot] was going to go beyond the initial five or six episodes. I thought it’d be a one-off thing, and then we got picked up, and Roseanne got fired,” Goodman said. “I thought that was it, and as soon as they dismissed the cast, I picked up ‘Righteous Gemstones.’
“Then we got to do the show again as ‘The Conners.’ I didn’t know how long it would last, but I sure enjoyed it while I was there.”
Charlie Kirk warns Republicans risk losing White House in 2028 if they don’t do this
Turning Point USA Founder Charlie Kirk cautioned Friday that the Republican Party risks losing support from the same young voters who propelled President Donald Trump to the White House if it fails to follow through on key promises.
“The biggest threat to the Republican Party in 2028 is if we do not deliver on our promises of [home]ownership for the next generation,” Kirk told Fox News Digital in an interview at the Turning Point Student Action Summit in Tampa, Florida. “The youth vote didn’t just vote for Donald Trump. Young voters put Donald Trump in the White House.”
Kirk discussed the future of the conservative movement, why Generation Z is trending rightward, and why tech giants are suddenly showing interest in engaging with Republicans.
I’M A YOUNG DEMOCRAT AND I’VE GOT TO ADMIT MY PARTY IS LOSING 2025 WHILE LOOKING AT 2028
The influential conservative media personality said there was no doubt that younger voters were trending conservative, and he believes that the shift was largely driven by losses from the COVID-19 pandemic. Canceled milestones like prom, graduation, and in-person learning had a huge impact on this generation, he said.
“There’s very low trust of institutions and the institutions have failed them,” Kirk told Fox News Digital. “Primarily, if you’re 18, 19, 20, 21 right now, that kind of portion of Generation Z, they were lied to during COVID and so much of their livelihood and so much of what they care about, and they’re deeply passionate about was taken from them abruptly… So they’re a little bitter about that.”
Kirk also pointed to skyrocketing prices and record-breaking illegal border crossings under the Biden administration as driving factors behind Gen Z’s growing alignment with Trump. But he warned that unless Republicans can deliver solutions, the party risks alienating this emerging bloc of voters by 2028.
“If we don’t fix the homeownership problem in this country, the cost-of-living crisis, and if we don’t give the next generation [a chance] at being owners and not renters, we are going to see what I call ‘Mamdani-ism’ spread across the country,” he predicted.
CHARLIE KIRK WARNS ‘MAMDANI EFFECT’ METASTASIZING IN THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY WITH ‘GRIEVANCE-BASED POLITICS’
Zohran Mamdani, the democratic socialist assemblyman from Queens, soared to victory in New York City’s Democratic primary mayoral race on a hard-left platform that included freezing rent, city-owned grocery stores, free buses, free childcare, raising corporate taxes and massively increasing the minimum wage.
“Mamdani-ism is the radical element of the Democratic Party, which is bitterness, discontent, the mobilization of grievances,” Kirk told Fox News Digital. “Where it is free stuff, populism weaponized against the American public.” He sees 2028 as a battle between two choices for America: an “optimistic” and patriotic vision where Americans take pride in ownership or one that follows more closely to Mamdani’s views.
Voters under 30 were the “decisive element” in the 2024 election, Kirk said, boosting Trump to victory in key swing states like Michigan and narrowing the gap in bluer places.
“So we must deliver for this cohort. We must show them that their lives are tangibly better, or else in 2028, we’re going to be in a much more competitive race than I’d like to be,” he said.
Big Tech has also seemed to notice the generational shift to the right, with several Silicon Valley leaders appearing to want a friendlier relationship with President Trump in his second term.
Meta was one of the tech companies sponsoring the conservative event in Tampa. Kirk said he’s “thrilled” that Silicon Valley seems more open to conservatives after years of tension and hostility between the two over social media censorship.
With Kirk and other Turning Point figures’ success on social media, he thinks it should be a “no-brainer” for tech companies to seek a friendlier relationship with young conservatives.
“7,000 students, this is your target demo,” he said. “And secondly, we want to dominate on these platforms because, honestly, we already are. I mean, my personal Instagram, I think we’re upwards of almost 6.4 million followers. We get billions of impressions a year. You know, were very viral around TikTok. So I can’t speak for Mark Zuckerberg, but we’re thrilled to have Meta, Rumble and any other tech companies as well.”
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Babysitter dead after Lufthansa CEO’s wife allegedly strikes her in resort town
The wife of Lufthansa airlines CEO Carsten Spohr is accused of running down a babysitter while on vacation on an Italian island before flying home to Germany while under investigation for vehicular homicide, according to reports.
Vivian Alexandra Spohr, 51, was driving a BMW X5 Tuesday when she struck Gaia Costa, 24, at a crosswalk in the upscale Italian resort town of Porto Cervo in Sardinia, according to Corriere News.
Spohr allegedly kept driving until she was waved down before she fainted, according to Italian news reports. She later tested negative for alcohol or drugs.
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First responders tried reviving Costa, but she died from severe head injuries, the reports said.
Spohr, who was being investigated for involuntary manslaughter, flew home to Berlin, the New York Post reported. However, she was not legally required to remain on the island and has promised to cooperate with investigators.
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“Vivian Spohr, who was involved in the tragic death, expresses her dismay and deep regret over this very serious accident,” her attorney, Angelo Merlini, told La Repubblica.
“She has placed herself at the complete disposal of the judicial authorities for the necessary investigations and, although aware that such a great personal loss cannot be remedied, will take steps to mitigate the consequences.”
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Fox News Digital has reached out to Lufthansa.
Martin Luther King’s daughter gets involved as Angel Reese controversy escalates
The daughter of civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr. has weighed in on the ongoing drama between WNBA star Angel Reese and former NFL quarterback and former ESPN host Robert Griffin III.
King’s daughter, Bernice King, responded to a post by Griffin that said, “We need more people ready to build bridges between us and not walls to divide us.
“The only way to find unity is talking through our differences in opinion and life experiences to find the best way forward.”
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King wrote, “I agree. That’s why I suggest you call Angel Reese and stop posting about her.”
King’s post prompted a wave of viral reactions and debate by online users.
Reese even shared a post from another user that referenced the situation.
“When MLK daughter gotta tell you to shut tf up talking about Angel,” said the post Reese shared.
Griffin claimed Thursday someone from the Chicago Sky star’s “inner circle” told him the WNBA forward “hates” Caitlin Clark.
Griffin wrote several paragraphs on social media, first coming to the defense of Reese after a racist image of her NBA 2K26 appeared. He said there was “no place for racism in the world” and that Reese “should never be called or depicted as a monkey.”
He added that he was quiet about Reese because of the hate he and his family received over the most recent discourse in May after a contentious moment between the two WNBA stars.
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“That will never be OK with me. I never attacked her or her family when I stated and backed up with clear basketball evidence that Angel Reese hates Caitlin Clark. It’s sports. Everybody won’t like each other,” he added. “People in Angel’s inner circle called me and told me I was right, and Angel Reese has grown to hate Caitlin Clark because of the media always asking her about Caitlin and being constantly compared to her.
“Some people made it about race, but I never did and never will. Instead of becoming the villain in anyone’s story, I decided to just not. All that being said, Angel Reese or any Black man or woman should never be called or depicted as a Monkey. Ever.”
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Reese appeared to respond to Griffin’s remarks in a separate post.
“lying on this app when everybody know the first and last name of everybody in my circle for clout is nastyyyy work,” she wrote.
Reese’s mother also claimed Griffin was lying about talking with the basketball player’s “inner circle.”
“Whomever U say ‘called’ U is not in her circle 2 speak on her feelings towards a media/fandom made up beef,” she wrote. “Just stay on that side bc the doors are closed over here.”
Griffin fired back.
“I spoke up in support of Angel Reese against racism not to start drama,” he wrote on X. “But I won’t let anyone twist the truth just because it’s inconvenient to them. Instead of trying to check me, just tighten up your circle.
“They calling me and saying you hate Caitlin Clark, not the other way around. I have zero interest in being the villain in anyone’s story. I just want to have fun, tell the truth and celebrate sports. But I won’t pretend or lie just to protect feelings.”
Griffin made the initial claim that Reese “hates” Clark after the Sky and Fever stars got into a heated skirmish in May.
Jeffrey Epstein’s accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell keeps fit behind prison bars
EXCLUSIVE IMAGES: Jeffrey Epstein continues to haunt the public conscience, years after he died while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges in a federal jail in New York.
He’s been dead since August 2019, but his convicted accomplice and former lover Ghislaine Maxwell has been quietly keeping fit in prison, exclusive new images show.
Fox News Digital spotted a lithe Maxwell jogging in the yard at a federal prison in Tallahassee Thursday evening.
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She even fanned the flames of claims that the federal government is wrong about its conclusion that he killed himself in his cell in an interview with the Guardian from behind bars in 2023.
“What better way to argue that the system is fixed than to say that your co-defendant was murdered by the system that’s trying to put her in jail?” asked Randolph Rice, a Maryland attorney and legal analyst.
She’s not the only one close to the former financier turned pedophile who believes his death wasn’t self-inflicted – his brother also vehemently rejects the official version of events.
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But the Justice Department and FBI in a memo last week upheld the finding that he hanged himself. The government also said he had no “incriminating ‘client list'” and that additional files related to the case against him are not appropriate for release.
Here’s a timeline of events in a case that continues to draw attention as the public seeks answers.
2008 – A slap on the wrist
Epstein received a punishment of 13 months for soliciting prostitution from a minor in Palm Beach, Florida. The deal gained intense scrutiny years later after the Miami Herald uncovered details about the crime – so concerning that Florida lawmakers years later passed a bill that allows for the release of secret grand jury files in certain cases.
JEFFREY EPSTEIN DIED BY SUICIDE, DID NOT HAVE CLIENT LIST: DOJ MEMO
In a court order authorizing the release of the documents, Circuit Judge Luis Delgado warned that the contents were disturbing and revealed the case involved more underage victims than the one known accuser.
“It is widely accepted that Epstein is a notorious and serial pedophile,” the order reads. “The testimony taken by the Grand Jury concerns activity ranging from grossly unacceptable to rape – all of the conduct at issue is sexually deviant, disgusting, and criminal. The details in the record will be outrageous to decent people.”
July 6, 2019 – Arrested again
Public fury over the Miami Herald report led to a new investigation and new sex trafficking charges, involving dozens of victims, some as young as 14.
Authorities arrested him at Teterboro Airport in New Jersey in connection with trafficking cases in Florida and New York – two states where he had multimillion-dollar mansions.
Aug. 10, 2019 – Epstein’s death
Although he had a pending bail appeal, authorities at the Metropolitan Detention Center in New York City found him dead in his cell, with a sheet wrapped around his throat, hanging from the bunk bed.
His death was officially ruled a suicide by hanging, but Epstein’s brother Mark hired renowned forensic pathologist Dr. Michael Baden to observe the official autopsy. He told Fox News at the time that three injuries to Epstein’s throat were more consistent with homicidal strangulation than suicidal hanging.
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“Those three fractures are extremely unusual in suicidal hangings and could occur much more commonly in homicidal strangulation,” he said in October 2019. “I’ve not seen in 50 years where that occurred in a suicidal hanging case.”
July 2020 – Ghislaine Maxwell arrested
About a year later, the feds arrested Maxwell, Epstein’s longtime lover, on charges that she procured underage girls as part of his trafficking ring. She was convicted at trial, sentenced to 20 years and is appealing.
Her ongoing appeal could be a reason for the government to withhold additional evidence that hasn’t already come out in court, legal experts say, but last week’s memo did not reference her case.
“The Government could have worries about prejudicing the appeal process by influencing public opinion or the appellate court,” Rice said. “The Government may also be concerned that releasing more information could taint the judicial process, which could strengthen her argument that the case has been politicized or improperly influenced by the media.”
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January 2024 – Court documents unsealed
A federal judge ordered thousands of pages of documents from a civil case brought by Epstein and Maxwell victim Virginia Giuffre unsealed. The documents linked dozens of prominent people in entertainment, business, politics and academia to Epstein – but not to his criminal activities. The vast majority of those figures were not accused of wrongdoing, and the few who were had already been publicly linked to Epstein before the document dump.
Giuffre died of suicide in Australia earlier this year.
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Her lawsuits and Maxwell’s public trial played major roles in bringing much of the known information about Epstein to light.
February 2025 – New attorney general weighs in
Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a televised interview with FOX News that she had a stack of Epstein-related files on her desk waiting for review before they could be released to the public.
EPSTEIN VICTIMS NUMBERED OVER 1,000 – FAR MORE THAN PREVIOUSLY KNOWN, FEDERAL INVESTIGATORS SAY
July 2025 – The review is complete, but few details emerge
Last week, the Justice Department and FBI released a joint memo announcing the review had been completed. However, the document revealed barely any new information.
Authorities said that most of the unreleased files pertain to minors or victims who appear to be minors, and that more than 10,000 videos and images included “illegal child sex abuse material and other pornography” that would not be released.
The government published hours of surveillance video that authorities said support the conclusion that Epstein killed himself – but there’s also a missing window due to a flaw in the system, raising new questions.
Read the memo:
The memo also revealed that Epstein had more than 1,000 victims, far more than previously known.
The 2019 indictment alleged he had trafficked dozens of young women and girls. A victims’ compensation fund paid out by his estate sent millions to more than 150 accusers.
Details about the hundreds of additional victims remain unclear. The FBI declined to comment.
Rice, however, urged caution when reading into the raw number.
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“The number of victims can grow when you start thinking about the actual victims’ family members, mom and dad, brothers and sisters – and all of a sudden you can triple or quadruple the list of victims,” he said.
Maxwell, 63, is due for release in July 2037.
Epstein’s been dead since 2019, but the saga continues.