Judge orders DOJ to either unredact more Epstein files or explain why it can't

A judge on Thursday ordered the Justice Department to either release unredacted versions of several files on the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein or explain why it can't do so, following a lawsuit accusing Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche of improperly redacting documents. U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan gave the government until Thursday, July 2, to comply. The documents in question include eight emails with either the sender or recipient blacked out, a draft indictment of Epstein with the names of potential co-conspirators obscured and a 2019 email that mentions several co-conspirators whose names were redacted. Sullivan also ordered the Justice Department to either release the interview notes behind several FBI documents summarizing unverified allegations against President Trump, or explain why it couldn't release them. The government was also ordered to release a log listing every redaction it has made to the files it has published on Epstein, as required by law. The court order follows months of controversy over the Justice Department's handling of the files, which were released in response to a federal law. Millions of records have been made public since December, including photos, emails and law enforcement documents from the federal investigations into the disgraced financier and his 2019 death in pretrial custody. Lawmakers and Epstein survivors have raised questions about missing or heavily redacted records. …