The Justice Department said unsealing grand jury transcripts related to Epstein's case is necessary given "longstanding and legitimate" public interest in the case.

The Trump administration asked federal judges on Friday to unseal grand jury transcripts from the prosecutions of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, citing public demand for transparency and renewed scrutiny of how the Justice Department handled the high-profile sex-trafficking cases.

The records are at the center of President Trump’s effort to manage fallout from the Epstein case. But unsealing them is complex and requires a judge to sign off.