(NewsNation) — A federal court Thursday released an additional round of documents totaling more than 300 pages relating to the late billionaire Jeffrey Epstein.
The court began releasing the previously secret documents Wednesday that disclose the names of more than 150 people associated with the disgraced financier who killed himself in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.
The documents come from a settled civil lawsuit that Virginia Giuffre, who alleges she was a victim of sex trafficking, filed against British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell in 2015.
The documents are being unsealed on a rolling basis, with two being held back until at least Jan 22. The records may include the names of those who worked for Epstein or only had weak ties to the financier as well as potential victims and witnesses. Appearing in the documents does not mean someone is connected to any wrongdoing.
The documents released Thursday include emails sent between Giuffre and Sharon Churcher, a Daily Mail reporter, in 2011. That’s the year Giuffre first went public with her allegations in a series of articles by Churcher.
Maxwell’s attorneys had sought to depose Churcher, arguing she worked with Giuffre to fabricate claims in order to sell Giuffre’s book. Churcher was fighting a subpoena by arguing her communications were covered under New York’s shield law that protects journalists from revealing information learned in the newsgathering process.
Also included is the 2016 deposition of Joseph Recarey, the Palm Beach, Florida, detective who led the criminal investigation into Epstein in the early 2000s. Recarey testified that some girls were recruited as masseuses by Maxwell and others, most of them underage.
Overall, Thursday’s documents focused on legal squabbles over Giuffre’s lawsuit and her connections to Churcher. They didn’t offer much new insight into individuals in Epstein and Maxwell’s world or the sexual abuse the two were alleged to have perpetrated.
The names of those mentioned so far in the documents range from politicians to Hollywood actors, including some of the nation’s most rich and powerful.
Among those named in the initial documents include former President Bill Clinton, former President Donald Trump, Michael Jackson, David Copperfield, Leonardo DiCaprio and Cameron Diaz.
Many of the names belong to people who had already been publicly connected to Epstein as his longtime associates or friends, including his former lawyer Alan Dershowitz, who was mentioned in the documents 137 times. Dershowitz pushed hard for all of the court documents to be released to clear his name.
It’s imperative to note the list does not imply that everyone named is accused of wrongdoing or illegal and immoral behavior.
The Associated Press and NewsNation digital producers Devan Markham and Katie Smith contributed to this report.
