Effort to Unseal Epstein Grand Jury Records Likely to Fall Short, Say Former Prosecutors | Crime Alert 6AM 07.22.25

The Justice Department is moving to unseal grand jury transcripts in the federal sex trafficking cases of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. But former federal prosecutors say the move is unlikely to reveal much—if anything—new. 

A 22-year-old man has been charged with murder in the shooting deaths of a longtime American Idol music supervisor and her husband in Los Angeles.

A New York City man who stabbed two teenage tourists at Grand Central Terminal on Christmas Day has been sentenced to up to 29 years in prison. 

In Los Angeles… a man with a violent criminal record is accused of driving into a crowd on a sidewalk in East Hollywood, injuring 36 people

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Crime Alert. I'm John Lemley. The Justice Department is moving
to unsealed grand jury transcripts in the federal sex trafficking
cases of Jeffrey Epstein and Gilaine Maxwell, but former federal
prosecutors say the move is unlikely to reveal much, if anything.
New Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche submitted the request urging

(00:22):
federal judges to release transcripts from grand jury proceedings that
led to charges about Epstein and Maxwell. Blanche said the
goal is greater transparency for the American public, but former
Manhattan Assistant US Attorney Sandra Chrissoff called the move quote
a distraction, suggesting its more political theater than meaningful action.

(00:45):
She told the Associated Press that, in her words, it
really is nothing. Epstein died by suicide in a federal
jail cell in August twenty nineteen, just one month after
his arrest on federal sex trafficking charges U sixty six. Maxwell,
now sixty three, is serving a twenty year sentence following

(01:05):
her twenty twenty one conviction for recruiting underage girls for Epstein.
Chrisoff and other former federal prosecutor Joshua Neptalis say the
grand jury transcripts likely contain little beyond the bare minimum
needed to secure indictments. Both described a longstanding practice in
the Southern District of New York present narrowly tailored cases

(01:28):
to grand juries, using agent testimony, not lengthy witness accounts.
Nephtalis estimated the transcripts may only span a few hundred pages,
possibly as few as sixty. Chrisoff added the Southern District
strategy as to quote spoon, feed the indictment to the jury,
leaving out deeper details the public might expect. Judges may

(01:51):
ultimately deny the Justice Department's request. In Maxwell's case, legal
appeals remain active, including a petition before the US Supreme Court.
In Epstein's the concern is over the privacy of victims,
many of whom have never been publicly identified. As chrisof
put it, this is not a decade's old case. It's ongoing,

(02:13):
and for now much of it remained sealed.

Speaker 2 (02:16):
Thanks John for the latest crimestice news. Go to crime
online dot com and please join us for our daily
podcast crime stories, more crime and justice news after this
now with the latest crime and justice breaking news, Crime Online.

Speaker 1 (02:33):
John Lemley, a twenty two year old man has been
charged with murder in the shooting deaths of a longtime
American Idol music supervisor and her husband in Los Angeles.
Police say Raymond Boudarian was burglarizing the Encino home of
Robin Ka and Thomas de Luca on July tenth, and
shot the couple when they returned unexpectedly. Officers found the

(02:55):
victims both seventy during a welfare check. Boudarian tested the
next day. He faces two counts of murder and one
of first degree burglary. Arraignment is set for August twentieth.
Kay had worked on American Idol for more than fifteen
years and was active on the upcoming season. A New

(03:16):
York City man who stabbed two teenage tourists at Grand
Central Terminal on Christmas Day has been sentenced up to
twenty nine years in prison. Thirty eight year old esteban
as sono Ossway, also known as Stephen Hutcherson, was convicted
last month of assault and other charges. Prosecutors say he
used a fork to scratch a woman, then stabbed a

(03:38):
sixteen year old girl in the back and a fourteen
year old in the leg, before dropping the knife and
surrendering All three victims, visiting from Paraguay, survived. The older
teens suffered injuries to her lung and diaphragm. Witnesses say
osno Osway made racially charged remarks before the attack, though

(03:58):
no hate crime charges were included in his conviction. Just
weeks earlier, he had pleaded guilty to assault in a
separate case. Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg called the attack horrific
and said New Yorkers deserved to feel safe in transit spaces.
In Los Angeles, a man with a violent criminal record
is accused of driving into a crowd on a sidewalk

(04:21):
in East Hollywood injuring thirty six people. Twenty nine year
old Fernando Ramirez of San Clemente was behind the wheel
when his Nissan Versus struck pedestrians, a food cart, and
a valet stand outside the Vermont Hollywood Venue. Police save
Ramirez was attacked by bystanders and later found to have
been shot. It's unclear whether the shooting happened before or

(04:45):
after the crash. The gunman remains at large. Ramirez, who's
on parole, has at least eleven prior criminal cases, including
a twenty nineteen felony battery conviction and an open domestic
battery case from twenty twenty five two. He's expected to
face new charges of assault with a deadly weapon.

Speaker 2 (05:04):
Thanks John for the latest crime insice news. Go to
crime online dot com and please join us for our
daily podcast, Crime Stories, where we do our best to
find missing people, especially children, and solve unsolved homicides. With
this crime alert, I'm Nancy Grace.