August 13, 2026 · Constitutional Order & Rule of Law
· Court proceeding
Confirmed
Judge Warns Justice Department Lawyers They Could Face Contempt Over Withheld Epstein Files
At an Aug. 13 status conference in Washington, U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan told Justice Department lawyers that the explanations they had given for withholding Jeffrey Epstein records were not sufficient and that contempt proceedings could follow. “The public has a right to know what the hell is going on in this case,” Sullivan said. The case, brought by journalist Katie Phang, seeks release of FBI documents and the lifting of redactions. Sullivan questioned why agents’ handwritten interview notes and foreign-language materials had not been produced, and why the department had not published its required explanations of redactions in the Federal Register.
Sullivan spent roughly half an hour recounting his own decision to hold prosecutors in contempt in the Ted Stevens case, telling the lawyers such a mark “could hurt” them for the rest of their careers while repeating that no one was in trouble.
Asked whether he could offer more, department lawyer Andrew Block said, “I have nothing else to say.” The department said it is protecting victims’ privacy and that unmasking some names would violate a separate court order.
Sullivan spent roughly half an hour recounting his own decision to hold prosecutors in contempt in the Ted Stevens case, telling the lawyers such a mark “could hurt” them for the rest of their careers while repeating that no one was in trouble.
Asked whether he could offer more, department lawyer Andrew Block said, “I have nothing else to say.” The department said it is protecting victims’ privacy and that unmasking some names would violate a separate court order.