DEMOCRACY DEFENDERS FUND FILES FOR INTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS RELATED TO GHISLAINE MAXWELL’S TRANSFER
Press Release | August 7, 2025
Third Set of FOIAs filed as Trump Administration’s Handling of Epstein-Trump Files Continues to Unravel
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, Democracy Defenders Fund (DDF) submitted another series of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to the federal government seeking records of any communications between top leadership at the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Bureau of Prisons (BOP) related to the transfer of Ghislaine Maxwell to Federal Prison Camp (FPC) Bryan in Texas. The records request, which builds on two earlier requests on the Epstein-Trump files and the DOJ’s handling of references to Donald Trump or Mar-a-lago in the files, follows the abrupt transfer of Maxwell to the minimum security prison camp. Maxwell was moved in the days following her recent meeting with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche.
In the filing, DDF requests records that would provide insight on the role DOJ leadership played in Maxwell’s transfer and why and how it was determined that she, as a convicted sex offender, could be housed in a minimum security level institution.
“We should be profoundly skeptical about the recent meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell--followed by her transfer to much more favorable conditions of confinement. Given the reports that President Trump and his top aides were aware he is in the Epstein files, we must ask: are we in the middle of a cover-up," said Amb. Norm Eisen (ret.), executive chair of Democracy Defenders Fund. “Nearly every day new revelations leak regarding the handling of the Epstein files and his and others' underlying wrongdoing. Absent full transparency, the public will continue to question the President and DOJ's motivations–and, consequently, the government’s integrity. We need to know if our leaders are willing to use the levers of power to conceal the misdeeds of their cronies--or themselves.”
DDF is requesting communications, correspondence, or documents relating to the transfer of Maxwell by Attorney General Pam Bondi, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, Federal Bureau of Prisons Director William K. Marshall III, or any employee or contractor of the DOJ, including the BOP.
The FOIAs were sent on an expedited basis and can be viewed here:
Links to DDF's prior FOIA requests concerning communications and records related to the Epstein files can be found here:
Request for records relating to the DOJ’s investigations of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell that mention President Trump and his Mar-a-Lago residence:
https://cfce73f5-6016-42c8-9343-fa96f8863f56.usrfiles.com/ugd/cfce73_02cb204c540246c09ad1f15480687520.pdf
Requests for records of any communications between top DOJ leadership on how they should address references to Donald Trump or Mar-a-lago in the Epstein Files: https://fb1cd5ab-5a51-475c-87d1-10904a61146d.usrfiles.com/ugd/fb1cd5_38e108e26fc64442a70911edb73317dc.pdf
Each FOIA request includes a demand for an agency-wide preservation hold on potentially responsive documents in anticipation of potential litigation.
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Democracy Defenders Fund brings together a nonpartisan team to work with national, state, and local allies across the country to defend in real-time the foundations of our democracy.