(MENAFN) According to reports, the US Justice Department has requested authorization from two judges in the Southern District of New York to make public grand jury transcripts and related exhibits tied to the prosecutions of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. The move comes ahead of a 30-day deadline set under recently enacted legislation requiring the release of the so-called Epstein files.

As stated by reports, attorney Jay Clayton — appointed by US Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate Democrats linked to Epstein — submitted a motion asking the courts overseeing the Epstein and Maxwell matters to permit the publication of redacted grand jury material. The filing argued: "In the light of the (Epstein Files Transparency) Act’s clear mandate, the Court should authorize the Department of Justice to release the grand jury transcripts and exhibits and modify any preexisting protective orders that would otherwise prevent public disclosure by the Government of materials the disclosure of which is required by the Act.”

The newly passed law was recently signed by President Donald Trump.

Epstein died in his New York City jail cell in August 2019 while awaiting trial. He had previously pleaded guilty in 2008 to charges involving the procurement of a minor for prostitution.

Maxwell, his longtime associate, was found guilty in December 2021 of offenses involving the recruitment of underage girls — some as young as 14 — for Epstein. She received a 20-year federal prison sentence in June 2022. Reports also noted that in October of this year, the US Supreme Court declined her attempt to overturn her conviction related to grooming minors for Epstein.

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