Epstein files: DOJ says it’s taken down ‘several thousand documents’ that mistakenly identified victims
In this handout, the mug shot of Jeffrey Epstein, 2019. (Photo by Kypros/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — Department of Justice officials say they have taken down “several thousand documents and media” from its website containing files on the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein that “may have inadvertently included victim-identifying information due to various factors, including technical or human error,” according to a letter filed on the dockets of two federal judges Monday.
The government’s update comes after attorneys for Epstein’s victims asked the judges late Sunday to urgently order that the DOJ site be taken down because of redaction failures exposing the names or personal information, they said, of “nearly 100 individual survivors whose lives have been turned upside down by the DOJ’s latest release.”
The DOJ’s letter — submitted by Jay Clayton, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York — also notes that the Justice Department has “further expedited its processes” for responding to Epstein victims’ concerns and for removing documents to be reexamined for additional redactions.
The letter gives no indication that the government intends to pull the site offline, but it says they are continuing to engage with victims and their counsel to identify and remove materials, and are “making further enhancements” to best address victims’ concerns while also complying with the disclosure requirements of the Epstein Files Transparency Act that mandates the release of the files.
“As of the writing of this letter, all documents requested by victims or counsel to be removed by yesterday evening have been removed for further redaction, and the Department is continuing to process any new requests and to run its own searches to identify any other documents that may require further redaction,” Clayton wrote. He noted that the DOJ had also removed a “substantial number” of documents identified independently by the department.
Clayton wrote that the DOJ has “iteratively revised its protocols” and has “teams of personnel” monitoring requests by victims and their lawyers.
The Justice Department is not “relying solely” on the victims to identify specific documents, Clayton said. A team worked through the weekend, according to the letter, running “supplemental searches to identify missed redactions.”
“The first 24 hours of engagement on these issues, as well as the Department’s own internal review of its processes, following the release of documents on Friday led to significant enhancements to and streamlining of the Department’s processes for addressing victim concerns,” Clayton wrote.
Three million pages from the DOJ’s files on Epstein were being released to the public, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said Friday. Blanche said in total there were 6 million pages of Epstein documents in the DOJ’s files, but that nearly 3 million pages were being withheld for various reasons including the presence of child sexual abuse material and the obligation to protect victims’ rights.
Ed Martin, former Interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, departs following a meeting at the White House on January 9, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Al Drago/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — The Washington, D.C., Bar initiated disciplinary proceedings against Justice Department pardon attorney Ed Martin over allegations he improperly threatened to withhold federal funding from Georgetown University’s law school and then attempted to sideline an investigation into his conduct while serving as D.C.’s top federal prosecutor last year, according to a disciplinary petition.
In a two-count petition filed last week with the D.C. Court of Appeals Board of Professional Responsibility, attorneys with the D.C. Bar’s Office of Disciplinary Counsel alleged that Martin engaged in “conduct that seriously interferes with the administration of justice,” including by allegedly demanding that a judge suspend the attorney investigating his actions.
“Mr. Martin knew or should have known that, as a government official, his conduct violated the First and Fifth Amendments to the Constitution of the United States,” the disciplinary petition said.
According to the complaint, Martin – while serving as the interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia last year – threatened to withhold federal funding and freeze hirings from Georgetown University Law Center over allegations that the school was promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) measures.
After sending letters to the dean of Georgetown’s law school about DEI programming last year, Martin allegedly told the school’s interim president that their answers about DEI would “bear directly on Georgetown University’s status as a 501(c) nonprofit and its receipt of nearly $1 billion of federal tax money.”
“He demanded that Georgetown Law relinquish its free speech and religious rights in order to continue to obtain a benefit, employment opportunities for its students,” the petition said. “His demand did not provide Georgetown Law fair notice of what is allegedly prohibited because he did not define ‘DEI,’ cited no authority for his demand, and did not describe what actions, and what timetable, might satisfy his demand.”
After a retired judge reported Martin’s conduct to the Office of Disciplinary Counsel, Martin allegedly attempted to sideline the investigation by sending a letter directly to the chief judge and senior judges on the D.C. Court of Appeals, according to the complaint.
“In that letter, he stated that he would not be responding to Disciplinary Counsel’s inquiry, complained about Disciplinary Counsel’s ‘uneven behavior,’ and requested a ‘face-to-face meeting with all of you to discuss this matter and find a way forward.’ He copied the White House Counsel ‘for informational purposes because of the importance of getting this issue addressed,'” the complaint said.
The complaint alleges that Martin – after being told to not directly communicate with judges – sent another letter to the chief judge demanding that the court suspend the investigator probing his conduct and dismiss the case against him.
With the charges filed, D.C.’s Board on Professional Responsibility is expected to refer the petition to a hearing committee.
Martin’s interactions are just one among a series of controversies from his brief tenure as Washington’s top federal prosecutor from January to May 2025 before his temporary appointment to the position lapsed and he failed to gain enough support from Republican senators for his confirmation to the post.
He was then appointed to four separate senior positions in the Justice Department before sources said he was effectively demoted earlier this year after multiple other incidents where he faced admonishment from leadership for his conduct.
Martin remains in his role as pardon attorney, according to the DOJ, and has used the post to float controversial clemency recommendations to the White House while frequently citing the phrase, “No MAGA left behind.”
The ethics complaint was filed the same week that the DOJ proposed new regulations that would seek to give Attorney General Pam Bondi the authority to suspend state bar investigations, arguing the policy is necessary to combat the “weaponization” of the complaint process. It’s not immediately clear what legal basis the department would have to intervene in state-level proceedings, however.
Martin and a DOJ spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the complaint.
Georgetown Law’s then-Dean William Treanor previously responded to Martin’s letter, affirming the school’s speech protections under the First Amendment. He accused Martin of mounting “an attack on the University’s mission as a Jesuit and Catholic institution.”
Jacob Lake, Arizona, Burned trees from the Dragon Bravo Fire. The wildfire burned 145,000 acres on the north rim of the Grand Canyon and in Kaibab National Forest. (Photo by: Jim West/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Several regions in the West could be facing worsening drought conditions, increased wildfire risk, and reduced water supplies due to record-breaking temperatures and minimal winter snowpack.
Much of the West has been coping with prolonged drought conditions that are now being worsened by historically low seasonal snowpack and persistent record-breaking temperatures. With mountain snowpack sharply reduced, the region’s water supplies are facing mounting challenges and elevated wildfire risk is occurring earlier than usual.
More than half of the West continues to experience drought conditions of varying intensity, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. The ongoing drought was compounded by the region’s warmest winter on record, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
The drought and record-warm winter were followed by unprecedented, record-breaking heat in March, further intensifying conditions across the region.
Rounds of rain and mountain snow are expected to impact parts of the West in the coming weeks.
However, a full recovery is unlikely in the near term, meaning many detrimental impacts could persist, or even intensify, through the rest of the year. However, the long-term outlook remains uncertain, with the strength of the upcoming monsoon season and the potential development of El Niño and other influential factors.
Record low snowpack Every major river basin and state in the West is experiencing a snow drought, a period of abnormally little snowpack for the time of year, according to NOAA.
The snow drought has significantly worsened in recent weeks following the unprecedented record-breaking March heat in the region. Snowpack is a significant indicator of drought conditions but not the only one.
Many major river basins, including the Colorado River Basin, are experiencing record-low season-to-date snowpack levels. A key metric in assessing these conditions is snow water equivalent, the amount of water contained within the snowpack. It serves as a critical indicator of the West’s water supply, helping determine how much runoff will flow into rivers and reservoirs during the spring melt.
When there is a snow drought in the West, it means “there will be a lack of available water due to the low snowpack to meet the water supply demands of the critical economic sectors we have,” Jason Gerlich, regional drought early warning system coordinator for the NOAA-National Integrated Drought Information System, told ABC News.
While many areas received average or above-average precipitation in the fall and early winter, warmer temperatures led much of it to fall as rain rather than snow, resulting in unusually low snowpack, which typically acts as a natural reservoir.
“If winter precipitation is falling as rain instead of snow, our relationship with water in the West becomes even shakier,” said Casey Olson, a climate scientist with the Utah Climate Center. “A gallon of winter rain that immediately runs off downstream is not nearly as helpful come July as a gallon of snowpack that melts in April or May. They are not equivalent gallons of precipitation in terms of our ability to use them when we need them the most.”
Snowpack across the western United States typically peaks in late March or early April, marking a critical point in the region’s water supply outlook. While additional mountain snowfall remains possible through April, and in some higher elevations, into May, recovery to normal snowpack is not climatologically possible at this point, Gerlich noted.
Drought on its own already stresses water supplies, agriculture, and ecosystems. But when winter fails to deliver significant mountain snow, those impacts can intensify. In some states, up to about 75 percent of water supplies can come from melting snow, according to the USGS.
Mounting water supply concerns The Colorado River provides water for more than 40 million people and fuels hydropower resources in seven states: California, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming, according to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. Major reservoirs in the Colorado River Basin remain well below average, the agency’s latest data shows, heightening concerns about water availability across the region.
Lake Powell, the second largest reservoir in the United States, is one of them. Water levels have dropped roughly 7 feet so far this year and are forecast to continue a gradual decline through the months ahead. Despite the recent drop, the reservoir remains more than 8 feet above its record low set in April 2023.
However, current projections suggest that level could be approached, or even challenged again, by late summer if dry conditions persist.
Denver Water, the city’s public water utility, announced water restrictions for the first time since 2013 on Wednesday, seeking a 20% reduction in water use.
“The snowpack within Denver Water’s collection system has deteriorated significantly and continues to decline,” said Nathan Elder, Denver Water’s manager of water supply. “Snowpack levels in both basins are now the lowest observed in the past 40 years, with accelerated melting underway.”
Experts warn that restrictions are likely to expand in multiple states as the year progresses, barring significant changes.
Wildfire concerns increase; Long-term risk remains uncertain A large portion of the West will likely face an elevated wildfire risk this spring and summer driven by low snowpack, dry soils, and above-average temperatures, leaving vegetation drier and more flammable than usual.
However, experts say the long-term wildfire outlook for the region is less certain than it might seem and the risk could vary in intensity in the coming months, depending on conditions.
“Low snowpack and fire don’t have a one-to-one relationship, but low snowpack can lead to an early start to the fire season,” Gerlich said.
The record-breaking March heat further dried the landscape, priming it for wildfires earlier than usual. Parts of Colorado, Wyoming and New Mexico have already seen impactful wildfires this year. Experts say the long-term wildfire outlook hinges on how several key conditions develop over the next few months.
“One positive right now is that the last few years have resulted in limited growth of the fine fuels that are quick to burn, so that does help temper fire risk for areas in the West, however, the lack of snowpack this year presents conditions through the high timber forests where fire risk this summer could be very high,” Olson added.
The latest outlook from the National Interagency Fire Center shows an overall near-average risk of significant wildland fires across the West through May with a more widespread above-average risk unfolding across the Four Corners region, including parts of Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Arizona in June.
“The Southwest looks to continue with the warm and dry seasonal pattern. One source of optimism is for the possibility of an active monsoon pattern this summer,” said Olson. “An active monsoon system in general should provide some relief to portions of the Southwest states, the question remains exactly where that relief would focus, and we won’t have a good handle on that until later this spring.”
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine delivers remarks during the NCAA Football Championship celebration at Ohio Stadium on January 26, 2025, in Columbus, Ohio. (Jason Mowry/Getty Images)
(CLARK COUNTY, Ohio) — Schools and county offices in Ohio’s Clark County received multiple bomb threats targeting the Haitian community on Monday, prompting classes in Springfield to be canceled for the day, according to Gov. Mike DeWine.
There is no credible threat to the public at this time, according to the FBI’s Cincinnati office, which said it is “aware of a number of hoax threats in Central Ohio.”
The emailed threats were directed at schools and public facilities, according to Springfield Mayor Rob Rue. County offices began receiving threats referencing pipe bombs around 7:45 a.m. Monday, DeWine said.
“These are threats that also referenced Haitians,” DeWine said during a press briefing on Monday. “The whole essence of the threats were the Haitians should be out, get rid of the Haitians.”
Duffel bags were found outside the Clark County Municipal Court and Public Safety Building in Springfield, DeWine said.
Police responded and no suspicious devices were found, according to Springfield Police Division Chief Allison Elliott. There are “no substantiated threats to the community,” the chief said in a statement.
The Springfield City School District said it is closing all buildings on Monday “out of an abundance of caution.”
“This is a despicable act,” DeWine said. “It’s caused kids to miss a whole day of school today.”
“We will do whatever we need to do to keep the schools open,” he later said.
Several streets that closed off in downtown Springfield have since reopened, officials said.
The governor said threats were also received in other parts of the state with “similar rhetoric,” but it’s unclear if they were from the same people. The threats were also emailed, according to Elliott.
The FBI is investigating.
“While we have no information to indicate a credible threat, we are currently working with our local, state, and federal law enforcement partners to gather, share, and act upon threat information as soon as it comes to our attention,” the FBI Cincinnati said in a statement.
The region is no stranger to these kinds of threats. In September 2024, several bomb threats rattled Springfield after then-presidential candidate Donald Trump and running mate JD Vance doubled down on false claims that Haitian immigrants were abducting and eating pets.
These latest threats come as the Trump administration fights in court to end Temporary Protected Status for hundreds of thousands of Haitians.
Addressing Monday’s threats, Rue said the community “has faced a familiar situation that understandably caused concern.”
“I want to be clear, there is no immediate or credible threat to the public at this time,” Rue said in a statement. “These matters are being taken seriously and addressed with the highest level of caution and professionalism.”
