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1.53 MB
Extraction Summary
6
People
6
Organizations
7
Locations
3
Events
3
Relationships
6
Quotes
Document Information
Type:
Newspaper article clipping
File Size:
1.53 MB
Summary
This document is a newspaper clipping from February 2019 detailing former prosecutor Jeffrey Sloman's public defense of Alexander Acosta regarding the lenient 2008 plea deal given to Jeffrey Epstein. Sloman attributes the deal to 'legal impediments' and terrified victims, rather than corruption or pressure from Epstein's high-profile lawyers. The article notes the reopening of a DOJ investigation into the case following the Miami Herald's 'Perversion of Justice' series.
People (6)
| Name | Role | Context |
|---|---|---|
| Julie K. Brown | Author/Reporter |
Reporter for the Miami Herald who wrote the article and the 'Perversion of Justice' series.
|
| Jeffrey Epstein | Subject |
Wealthy New York hedge fund manager, sex offender, lives on Little St. James Island.
|
| Alexander Acosta | Former U.S. Attorney / U.S. Secretary of Labor |
Former prosecutor who crafted the plea deal; his role is being defended by Sloman.
|
| Jeffrey H. Sloman | Former Prosecutor / Attorney |
Former second in command under Acosta; wrote op-ed defending the handling of the Epstein case.
|
| Donald Trump | President (at time of article) |
Mentioned as a friend of Jeffrey Epstein.
|
| Bill Clinton | Former President |
Mentioned as a friend of Jeffrey Epstein.
|
Organizations (6)
| Name | Type | Context |
|---|---|---|
| The Virgin Islands Daily News |
Newspaper where this article appeared.
|
|
| Miami Herald |
Newspaper that published the original 'Perversion of Justice' series and Sloman's op-ed.
|
|
| U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami |
Office where Acosta and Sloman worked during the original case.
|
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| Justice Department |
Opened an investigation into prosecutorial misconduct.
|
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| Palm Beach Sheriff's Department |
Rules barred the work release privileges Epstein received.
|
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| Congress |
About 30 members demanded a probe into the case.
|
Timeline (3 events)
2001-2006
Epstein ran a sex pyramid scheme targeting underage girls.
Palm Beach estate
Jeffrey Epstein
Underage victims
2008-2009
Plea deal negotiation and execution; Epstein pleads guilty to state charges.
Miami / Palm Beach
2019-02
Justice Department announces investigation into prosecutorial misconduct.
Washington D.C.
Locations (7)
| Location | Context |
|---|---|
|
Location of the U.S. Attorney's Office and Miami Herald.
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|
|
Location of Epstein's home and the crimes.
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Location of one of Epstein's homes.
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Epstein's residence off St. Thomas.
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Nearby location to Little St. James.
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Region of publication.
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Referenced regarding political polarization.
|
Relationships (3)
Sloman was second in command under Acosta at the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Described as a friend.
Described as a friend.
Key Quotes (6)
"Given the obstacles we faced in fashioning a robust federal prosecution, we decided to negotiate a resolution."Source
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Quote #1
"We did not reach this decision lightly and it came only after significant and often rancorous internal debate."Source
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Quote #2
"As additional details about Epstein's crimes have emerged, it is clear to me that we should have pushed for much harsher terms."Source
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Quote #3
"That said, some have mistakenly suggested that our office kowtowed to Epstein's high-priced defense lawyers or, worse, that his lawyers corrupted or intimidated us into submission ... nothing could be further from the truth."Source
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Quote #4
"legal impediments"Source
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Quote #5
"terrified"Source
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Quote #6
Full Extracted Text
Complete text extracted from the document (4,516 characters)
Saturday, February 16, 2019
VIRGIN ISLANDS
The Virgin Islands Daily News 7
VIRGIN ISLANDS
The Virgin Islands Daily News 7
Top aide of Epstein prosecutor in sex case defends former boss
By JULIE K. BROWN
Miami Herald
Miami Herald
MIAMI — A former top prosecutor involved in the Jeffrey Epstein sex case is defending his old boss, Alexander Acosta, whose decision to craft a secret plea deal with the wealthy New York hedge fund manager has come under federal scrutiny.
Epstein, who also has homes in Palm Beach, Fla., and New York, lives on Little St. James Island off St. Thomas.
In his first public comments on the 10-year-old case, Jeffrey H. Sloman — who at the time was second in command under Acosta at the U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami — said prosecutors resolved the case based on the facts and evidence, and what he called "legal impediments," including the belief that many of Epstein's teenage victims were too "terrified" to cooperate in the case.
"Given the obstacles we faced in fashioning a robust federal prosecution, we decided to negotiate a resolution," said Sloman, now in private practice. "We did not reach this decision lightly and it came only after significant and often rancorous internal debate."
[Caption: Jeffrey Epstein]
[Caption: Alexander Acosta]
[Caption: Alexander Acosta]
In a lengthy opinion piece submitted to the Miami Herald Editorial Board, Sloman alleges that scrutiny of Acosta's role in the controversial case is being fueled by politically motivated critics who failed to raise significant issues with it when Acosta was nominated and confirmed as the U.S. secretary of labor in 2017.
Sloman's comments come two weeks after the Justice Department announced it had opened an investigation into whether there was prosecutorial misconduct in the case involving Epstein, who ran a sex pyramid scheme from his Palm Beach estate that targeted scores of underage girls from 2001 to 2006.
Jeffrey H. Sloman — who at the time was second in command under Alexander Acosta at the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Miami — said prosecutors resolved the case based on the facts and evidence, and what he called “legal impediments,” including the belief that many of Jeffrey Epstein’s teenage victims were too “terrified” to cooperate in the case.
About 30 members of Congress demanded the probe following a Miami Herald series of stories, "Perversion of Justice," that detailed how federal prosecutors, led by Acosta, stitched together an unusual immunity deal that allowed Epstein to escape what could have been a life sentence in federal prison.
Instead, Epstein — whose friends included President Donald Trump, Bill Clinton and other politically connected people — was allowed to quietly plead guilty to prostitution charges in state court. He served 13 months in the county jail, where he was allowed liberal work release privileges rarely given to sex offenders in Florida and barred by the Palm Beach Sheriff's Department's own rules.
He was released in 2009, but his victims — who were 13 to 16 years old at the time — are still fighting more than a decade later to have his non-prosecution agreement overturned.
In his op-ed, Sloman called Acosta "an outstanding public servant ... at risk of becoming collateral damage in Washington's latest polarized conflagration," adding, "I won't let it happen without first being heard."
"As additional details about Epstein's crimes have emerged, it is clear to me that we should have pushed for much harsher terms," Sloman wrote. "That said, some have mistakenly suggested that our office kowtowed to Epstein's high-priced defense lawyers or, worse, that his lawyers corrupted or intimidated us into submission ... nothing could be further from the truth."
Sloman did not directly address the chief complaint brought by Epstein's victims, who are now in their late 20s and early 30s. Those who spoke to the Herald said they felt betrayed by federal prosecutors, who sealed the non-prosecution agreement from public view so that they wouldn't find out about it before he was sentenced. It would be almost a year before they were successful in having it unsealed. By then, it was too late to try to derail it.
They allege, in a federal lawsuit filed against the government, that prosecutors deliberately kept the deal secret — in violation of federal law — to prevent them from appearing at Epstein's sentencing to possibly undo the deal. Nor did Sloman address why prosecutors also gave immunity to a number of Epstein's co-conspirators, who have never been identified.
See EPSTEIN, page 8
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