(NewsNation) — As a federal court continues to release previously secret documents disclosing the names of people associated with late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, attorney Gloria Allred said the disgraced financier’s victims want the truth.
“Here’s what my clients want … They want to know everything they can about what happened to them and why,” Allred told “On Balance” host Leland Vittert on Thursday.
Allred said she represents 20 victims of Epstein, who was awaiting trial for allegedly orchestrating a child sex trafficking ring before he was found dead in his jail cell of an apparent suicide in 2019.
She said not every victim, especially those who were underage at the time, is willing to testify.
“Either it’s too painful for them to have to remember what was done to them, they feel ashamed, they feel sometimes maybe it was their fault, it was stupid. Of course, they weren’t stupid. They were victimized,” Allred said.
One of Epstein’s accusers, Virginia Giuffre, says Epstein and his then-girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell set up sexual encounters with high-profile individuals starting when she was 17. She says this included royalty, politicians, businessmen and other rich and powerful men, including Britain’s Prince Andrew. All of the men denied the allegations.
The documents being unsealed on a rolling basis this week are from a settled civil lawsuit that Giuffre filed against Maxwell in 2015. They disclose the names of more than 150 people associated with Epstein, including 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. The list does not imply that everyone named is accused of wrongdoing or illegal and immoral behavior.
Allred thinks Epstein “had a motive” for linking himself to high-profile people.
“He wasn’t innocent. He used the power and the prestige and the fact that he knew these people, these very famous people, these wealthy people, to essentially … take these victims and lure them into his spider’s web of deceit, suggesting he could get them educational opportunities, into the most famous educational institutions in our country, to get them careers, perhaps in fashion, to get them in the entertainment community,” Allred said.
As for what she’s read of the documents so far, Allred thinks they paint a clear picture about Epstein’s character.
“I see who Jeffrey Epstein really was from his own words. He was controlling. He was manipulative. He had a scheme. He harmed them. He was dangerous,” Allred said.
Allred added that Epstein accusers want “as much accountability and as much justice as is possible.”
Allegations against Epstein first publicly surfaced in 2005. He pleaded guilty to sex charges in Florida and served 13 months in jail. Much of that time was spent in a work-release program as part of a deal. He ultimately registered as a sex offender.
Federal prosecutors revived the case against Epstein after a series of stories by the Miami Herald in 2018. In 2019, authorities arrested Epstein again. While awaiting trial for allegedly orchestrating a child sex trafficking ring, Epstein was found dead in his jail cell of an apparent suicide.
Less than one year after Epstein’s death, Maxwell was arrested at a New Hampshire estate. She was convicted in 2021 and is now serving a 20-year prison sentence for multiple charges including sex trafficking, conspiracy and transportation of a minor for illegal sexual activity.
The Associated Press and NewsNation digital producers Tyler Wornell and Katie Smith contributed to this report.