Extra

The case of Jeffrey Epstein is not just a sordid tale of sex trafficking and privilege—it is a window into a justice system rigged to protect the powerful at the expense of the vulnerable. And despite his death nearly six years ago, the true story remains buried beneath a fog of sealed files, silenced voices, and unanswered questions. Julie K. Brown, the tenacious journalist who helped reopen the Epstein case through sheer investigative will, recently outlined nine critical questions we still need answered. Every one of them demands public reckoning. 

Why did the FBI wait nearly a decade to act after Epstein’s infamous 2008 sweetheart deal? Why were his victims ignored in violation of federal law? Why did the Department of Justice allow him to be placed in a jail so riddled with “coincidences” that even seasoned correctional officers called it suspect? Why hasn’t Ghislaine Maxwell—convicted of trafficking girls to unnamed, unindicted men—been compelled to testify about the clients she and Epstein serviced? And what happened to the troves of hard drives, videos, and surveillance footage seized from Epstein’s homes—materials rumored to contain evidence of high-profile sexual abuse? What powerful names are being protected, and why? 

The American public doesn’t need conspiracy theories. We need transparency. The idea that Epstein died alone in his cell with broken cameras, absent guards, a removed cellmate, and no suicide watch—just as the walls were closing in—is not a theory. It's a collection of verified facts that no responsible government would allow to go unexamined. Yet that’s exactly what has happened. The Department of Justice issued a summary report calling it suicide and closed the book. The files remain sealed. The abusers remain anonymous. And justice remains undone. 

This is a case that involved minors being raped and trafficked across borders. And yet not a single man who participated in Epstein’s operations has been prosecuted. Not one. The world knows the names that floated around his private jets and mansions—from British royalty to American tech billionaires, financiers, presidents, and prime ministers. Are we truly to believe they were just… bystanders? 

We have seen a multi-tiered justice system before. But the Epstein saga might be the most flagrant example in modern memory. He weaponized his wealth to buy silence, legitimacy, and even immunity. His connections reached into intelligence agencies, Ivy League universities, Wall Street banks, and global political offices. These institutions were not innocent enablers. Many were direct beneficiaries—financially, socially, and politically—of Epstein’s web of exploitation. The complicity goes beyond individuals. It is systemic. The U.S. legal system allowed this predator to walk free for over a decade. The Bureau of Prisons failed to uphold even the most basic duties of care. The Justice Department's refusal to release the full investigative report into Epstein's death is a disgrace to any democracy claiming to uphold transparency and accountability. This is not just about Epstein. It is about whether the United States still has the will to hold its most powerful citizens to the same laws that govern everyone else. It is about whether our institutions are still capable of self-correction—or whether the rot has gone too deep. We must demand: 

• Full declassification and public release of all seized materials from Epstein’s residences. 

• Congressional hearings into the Justice Department’s handling of the case. 

• Prosecution of all known accomplices and clients—without fear or favor. 

• An independent investigation into the failures of the FBI and Bureau of Prisons. 

Until these steps are taken, Epstein's victims—many of whom have suffered in silence for years—will never see justice. 

And the message sent to every survivor of sexual abuse will be chilling: If your abuser is rich enough, connected enough, and white enough, the system will protect him. Jeffrey Epstein may be dead. But the cover-up jis very much alive.