File not found.
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_018923.jpg
4 MB
Extraction Summary
6
People
7
Organizations
5
Locations
4
Events
5
Relationships
5
Quotes
Document Information
Type:
Newspaper article in fbi file (form fd-350)
File Size:
4 MB
Summary
This document is an FBI form containing an August 4, 2006, editorial from The Palm Beach Post by Elisa Cramer, which is highly critical of the state attorney's handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case. Cramer argues that Epstein, 53, should have faced charges for sex with minors (ages 14-17) rather than a single solicitation charge, questioning the decision to offer a plea deal and not proceed to a jury trial. The article highlights evidence that Epstein knew the girls' ages, his defense team's tactics to discredit victims, and raises concerns about a two-tiered justice system for the wealthy.
People (6)
| Name | Role | Context |
|---|---|---|
| Jeffrey Epstein | Accused |
Subject of the article. A 53-year-old Manhattan money manager and part-time Palm Beach resident accused of paying for...
|
| Elisa Cramer | Author / Editorial Writer |
Author of the editorial for The Palm Beach Post, criticizing the handling of the Epstein case.
|
| Barry Krischer | State Attorney |
The State Attorney whose office handled the prosecution of Epstein. The author questions why he didn't pursue more se...
|
| Alan Dershowitz | Defense Attorney |
A Harvard law professor hired by Epstein. He provided prosecutors with information from victims' myspace.com pages to...
|
| Jack Goldberger | Defense Attorney |
A defense attorney hired by Epstein. He denied that Epstein knew the girls' ages and denied knowledge of alleged witn...
|
| Mike Edmondson | Spokesman |
Spokesman for State Attorney Barry Krischer. He commented on the case and the justice system.
|
Organizations (7)
| Name | Type | Context |
|---|---|---|
| FBI |
The document is on an FBI form FD-350, with classification number 31E-MM-108062.
|
|
| The Palm Beach Post |
Newspaper that published the editorial.
|
|
| Palm Beach police |
Investigating agency that urged more serious charges against Epstein, such as unlawful sex acts with a minor.
|
|
| State Attorney's Office |
The prosecuting office, led by Barry Krischer, which offered Epstein a plea deal and took the case to a grand jury.
|
|
| Harvard |
University where Alan Dershowitz is a law professor.
|
|
| myspace.com |
Social media website where teenagers allegedly discussed marijuana and alcohol, and where a recruiter for Epstein had...
|
|
| HOUSE_OVERSIGHT |
Appears in the footer of the document, likely referring to a House of Representatives oversight committee that collec...
|
Timeline (4 events)
December 2004
A 16-year-old girl went to Mr. Epstein's house to "work" after being asked if she needed money for Christmas gifts.
Epstein's House, Palm Beach, FL
Jeffrey Epstein
16-year-old girl
July 2006 (inferred from "last month")
Jeffrey Epstein was indicted by a grand jury on one felony count of solicitation of prostitution.
Palm Beach, FL
Jeffrey Epstein
Grand Jury
Undisclosed
The State Attorney's office offered Epstein a plea deal for five years of probation with no criminal record.
Undisclosed
Parents of at least one teenage victim complained to police about being followed and intimidated by two men who were determined to be private investigators.
Victim's parents
Private investigators
Locations (5)
| Location | Context |
|---|---|
|
Location of Epstein's part-time residence and where the alleged crimes occurred.
|
|
|
City of publication for The Palm Beach Post.
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|
|
Described as a 7,234-square-foot property where police found evidence.
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|
|
Epstein is described as a "Manhattan money manager."
|
|
|
Home of the 20-year-old woman who told police she recruited girls for Epstein.
|
Relationships (5)
Article states Epstein hired Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz.
Article states Epstein hired defense attorney Jack Goldberger.
Article alleges Epstein invited girls (ages 14, 15, 16, 17) to his home and paid them for sex acts.
The woman told police she recruited girls for Mr. Epstein.
Mike Edmondson is identified as Mr. Krischer's spokesman.
Key Quotes (5)
"He was over 50. And they were girls."Source
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_018923.jpg
Quote #1
"That should count for something — the difference between prostitution and pedophilia."Source
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_018923.jpg
Quote #2
"He's never denied girls came to the house."Source
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Quote #3
"Whether wealth buys a different standard of justice across the country ... the answer to that would, of course, be yes."Source
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_018923.jpg
Quote #4
"In this case, it is not the victims' credibility but the state attorney's that deserves questioning."Source
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_018923.jpg
Quote #5
Full Extracted Text
Complete text extracted from the document (4,855 characters)
FD-350 (Rev. 5-8-81)
(Indicate page, name of
newspaper, city and state.)
20B / The Palm Beach Post
West Palm Beach, FL
Date: 8/4/2006
Edition:
newspaper, city and state.)
20B / The Palm Beach Post
West Palm Beach, FL
Date: 8/4/2006
Edition:
Title: He was over 50
And they were girls
And they were girls
Character
or
Classification: 31E-MM-108062
Submitting Office: MM
or
Classification: 31E-MM-108062
Submitting Office: MM
Mount Clipping in Space Below)
He was over 50. And they were girls
If the women whom Palm Beach police say a part-time town resident invited to his home and paid for sex acts were, in fact, women, the solicitation charge against Jeffrey Epstein might feel more sufficient. But, according to police records, they weren't. He was over 50. And they were girls.
[Image of Elisa Cramer]
Elisa Cramer
Elisa Cramer
14.
15.
16.
17-year-old girls.
That should count for some-thing — the dif-ference between prostitution and pedophilia.
15.
16.
17-year-old girls.
That should count for some-thing — the dif-ference between prostitution and pedophilia.
So, it is baffling that Mr. Epstein, who was indicted last month by a grand jury on one felony count of solicitation of prostitution, has not been charged, as Palm Beach police strenuously urged, with unlawful sex acts with a minor and lewd and lascivious molestation.
Conviction of crimes against minors would mean steeper penalties than the maximum five-year prison term Mr. Epstein faces if convicted of the single count of felony solicitation. It also would help carry a message of intolerance to perverts who prey on girls.
Prosecutors did not pursue charges against Mr. Epstein reflecting the age of the victims because they assumed a jury would view the girls not as victims but as promiscuous, untrustworthy, willing participants. The presumption is offensive.
Mr. Epstein, a 53-year-old Manhattan money manager who has hired Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz and defense attorney Jack Goldberger, has denied knowing how old the girls were.
Jury should have decided if Epstein is a pedophile.
But police interviews with five alleged victims and 17 witnesses under oath, as well as phone messages, a high school transcript and other items that police found from searching Mr. Epstein's trash and 7,234-square-foot waterfront home, provide evidence that he knew the girls were teenagers.
One girl couldn't show up when Mr. Epstein wanted because she had soccer. Another time, Mr. Epstein had to wait for his "massage" session because the girl he wanted was still in class.
Why didn't State Attorney Barry Krischer let a jury decide whether to believe the teenagers — including a 16-year-old who went to Mr. Epstein's house to "work" in December 2004 after being asked whether she needed to make money for Christmas gifts?
Prosecutors gave greater weight to the details Mr. Dershowitz provided about the girls in an apparent effort to assail their character. Mr. Dershowitz pointed out to prosecutors that some of the teenagers had talked on myspace.com about marijuana and alcohol use.
The 20-year-old Royal Palm Beach woman who told police she recruited girls for Mr. Epstein has a Web page on myspace.com that features one girl using the name "Pimpin' Made EZ."
Although no charges of witness tampering have been filed, the parents of at least one of the teenage victims complained to police of being followed and intimidated by two men. Police determined that their vehicles were registered to two private investigators. Mr. Goldberger denied knowing anything about it.
Police also note in their reports that the state attorney's office offered Mr. Epstein a plea deal that would have placed him on probation for five years, allowing him ultimately to walk away with no criminal record at all.
I asked Mr. Krischer's spokesman, Mike Edmondson, why the case was referred to a grand jury instead of Mr. Epstein being charged and facing a trial before a jury. And shouldn't the victims' credibility be a factor to determine whether a crime's been committed, not whether a jury will convict? (After all, as Mr. Goldberger told The Palm Beach Post of Mr. Epstein, "He's never denied girls came to the house.")
Especially, I asked Mr. Edmondson to explain: Why shouldn't the public look at this case and think there are two kinds of justice — one for the wealthy and one for the rest of us?
Mr. Edmondson said he could not comment on the case because it is active, but on the latter point, he offered, for the sake of "philosophical debate": "Whether wealth buys a different standard of justice across the country ... the answer to that would, of course, be yes."
But in this case, he said, "regardless of the battery of attorneys, the outcome would be the same. Every issue that was debated in public was debated in our office before this case went to the grand jury."
In this case, it is not the victims' credibility but the state attorney's that deserves questioning.
Elisa Cramer is an editorial writer for The Palm Beach Post. Her e-mail address is elisa_cramer@pbpost.com
[Handwritten notes:]
8/4/06
[squiggle]
31E-MM-108062
-9
8/4/06
[squiggle]
31E-MM-108062
-9
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_018923
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