A federal judge said the U.S. Attorney's office in southern Florida violated the rights of victims in a sexual abuse case.
The defendant is billionaire Jeffery Epstein. He sexually abused dozens of underage girls between 1999 and 2007. But he struck a non-prosecution agreement with the U.S. Attorney's office to avoid federal charges. As part of the deal, he pleaded guilty to just two prostitution counts in state court. He served 13 months in a county jail facility that allowed him to leave six days a week to work out of his office.
At the time, the U.S. District Attorney for southern Florida was Alex Acosta, the current Secretary of Labor.
The victims were kept out of the loop while Epstein's attorneys and federal officials negotiated the seemingly cushy deal. And a federal judge said that decision violated the victims rights.
The Crime Victims' Rights Act guarantees them the right to confer with the attorneys involved, and the right to be notified of any plea deal or deferred prosecution agreement.
The judge wrote, "While the Government spent untold hours negotiating the terms and implications of the [non-prosecution agreement] with Epstein’s attorneys, scant information was shared with victims. Instead, the victims were told to be 'patient' while the investigation proceeded."
The judge criticized the government for leading the victims on and making them believe that a federal investigation was ongoing when it was already over. However he didn't dole out a punishment. Instead, the judge gave both sides 15 days to discuss with each other how they want to remedy the violation.
The plea deal has been investigated before, and Acosta denies any wrongdoing. Sen. Ben Sasse, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Oversight Subcommittee, has called on the Department of Justice to reopen the case.
