Judge rules Epstein jury documents stay sealed

NEW YORK — Transcripts of the secret grand jury testimony that led to the sex trafficking indictment of Jeffrey Epstein’s former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell won’t be released, a judge decided Monday.

Judge Paul A. Engelmayer said in a written ruling the government had suggested the materials could be released publicly “casually or promiscuously,” which would risk “unraveling the foundations of secrecy upon which the grand jury is premised” and eroding confidence by persons called to testify before future grand juries.

“And it is no answer to argue that releasing the grand jury materials, because they are redundant of the evidence at Maxwell’s trial, would be innocuous," he added.

The judge noted the Justice Department had requested public disclosure of the entire proceedings befo