The House Oversight Committee has subpoenaed Ghislaine Maxwell and documents connected to the Epstein case. While Maxwell’s sworn deposition is set for August 11, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche is scheduled to first interview her today.
Maxwell, 63, is currently serving a 20-year sentence at Federal Correctional Institution Tallahassee for sex trafficking in connection with Jeffrey Epstein.
It is considered highly unusual for the Deputy Attorney General to personally conduct or lead an interview with a convicted witness like Ghislaine Maxwell. Senior DOJ officials rarely, if ever, participate directly in inmate or cooperator interviews. Such interviews are typically carried out by career prosecutors, FBI agents, or specialized task force members.
Before assuming the role of Deputy Attorney General, Blanche gained prominence as a high-profile defense attorney, most notably representing Donald Trump in his 2024 criminal trial in New York City.
After the Wall Street Journal reported in May that Attorney General Pam Bondi informed President Trump that his name appeared in the Epstein files, some critics have questioned whether Blanche’s meeting with Maxwell is intended to negotiate a possible deal or to genuinely seek information about what Maxwell knows regarding the contents of the files.
For example, it has been reported that Maxwell compiled a booklet of birthday wishes for Jeffrey Epstein’s 50th birthday. According to the Wall Street Journal, former President Trump contributed a written message as part of this booklet. Trump has filed a lawsuit against the WSJ for this reporting.
In the House Oversight Committee letter to Maxwell, she is framed as a “pivotal fact witness” whose testimony will guide potential reforms in federal anti-trafficking policy and plea-deal oversight. The committee’s prison interview tactic is unusual but not unprecedented. Committee Chairman James Comer (R) used the same approach in 2024 to grill incarcerated financier Jason Galanis during the Biden impeachment inquiry, a move Democrats then decried as grandstanding.
With a 20-year sentence, Maxwell has no incentive to testify, although it’s been reported that she would be willing.
The subpoena for the Epstein files cleared the Oversight panel by 8-2 voice vote with three Republicans joining Democrats.
Documents related to the federal investigation into Jeffrey Epstein, including files that may contain information on his network, associates, and activities are subject to the subpoena. It is intended to compel the DOJ to turn over these records to the committee as part of a broader inquiry into how federal agencies handled the Epstein and Maxwell cases.
Once served, the DOJ is legally compelled to respond. However, it can raise objections or move to quash or narrow the request—especially regarding documents protected by federal law, such as grand jury materials
Just yesterday, a federal judge in Florida denied the DOJ’s request to unseal grand jury material from its 2005 and 2007 Epstein probes, citing strict legal limits on the release of such information. The judge stated that only under rare, specific exceptions could those highly secret records be disclosed—and this standard was not met.
Many of the most sought-after materials (e.g., possible “client lists” or secret testimonies) remain sealed. The committee cannot access these grand jury records without a successful court challenge or special legal waiver.
The DOJ may still provide other investigative files, correspondence, and non-grand jury evidence. The committee’s subpoena is likely to cover these items, which are not subject to the same secrecy laws.
Despite a bipartisan push to vote on the House acquisition of the Epstein files from some Congress members, House Speaker Mike Johnson sent members of the House home a few days early in order to avoid a vote on the subject.
