Court Records
Filing II 132529617 E-Filed 08/12/2021 10:20:22 AM
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIFTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT
IN AND FOR PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS, LLC,
Publisher of THE PALM BEACH POST,
Plaintiff,
v.
DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of
Palm Beach County, Florida; SHARON R.
BOCK, as Clerk and Comptroller of Palm
Beach County, Florida.
Defendants.
CASE NO.: 2019-CA-014681
DIVISION: AG
A.
AMENDED MEMORANDUM OF LAW IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANT DAVE
ARONBERG'S AMENDED MOTI FOR ATTORNEYS' FEES ‘
j
7
\Defendant, DAVE ARONBERG, as e tt ey of Palm Beach County, Florida, (the
cos
"State Attorney"), by and through co I w, hereby submits the following Amended
Memorandum of Law in Support ded Motion for Attorneys' Fees, as follows:
E,,,, y L NE & BACKGROUND
1. On Nove 2019, Plaintiff filed a Complaint against the State Attorney and
Clerk seeking to rivate right of action under Fla. Stat. § 905.27, in the interest of
"furthering to compel disclosure of the testimony, minutes, and other evidence presented
in 20 alm Beach County grand jury, as to Jeffrey Epstein, (the "Requested Materials").
[DelExA-1).
2. On November 26, 2019, the State Attorney and his office received an engagement
letter and attorney-client contract from the undersigned, which was later executed. [Def.ExA-2].
°** FILED: PALM BEACH COUNTY, FL ABRUZZO, CLERK. 08/12/2021 10:20:22 AM ***
EFTA02734027
3. On December 6, 2019, the State Attorney filed his Motion to Dismiss, which put
Plaintiff on notice that "Defendant Aronberg is not in custody or control of the [Requested
Materials] and is therefore not a proper parry to this action." [Def.Ex.A-3].
4. On January 17, 2020, Plaintiff filed its First Amended Complaint, which in addition
to its original claim under § 905.27 Fla. Stat., ("Count 11"), added a claim for Declaratory Relief,
("Count 1"), that sought an order declaring that the State Attorney and the lC efla close and
release the Requested Materials. [Def.Ex.A-4].
5. On January 24, 2020, the State Attorney filed an An
Amended Complaint and a Motion to Dismiss Count 11, which
[DelExA-5, p. 12].
6. On June 3, 2020,
e t
Marx held a hearing on the State Attorney's and
Clerk's Motions to Dismiss Co ef.ExA-6].
7. On June 0 the Court entered its Order Granting Defendants' Motions to
Dismiss Count 11 lainti s First Amended Complaint with Prejudice, leaving only Plaintiff's
Count 1 seek' aratory relief. [Def.Ex.A-7].
+Immediately thereafter, Plaintiff was served with a demand, pursuant to § 57.105
Fla. Stat., to voluntarily dismiss/withdraw the First Amended Complaint and the claims against
the State Attorney, along with a Motion for Attorneys' Fees ("§ 57.105 Demand"). [Def.Ex.A-8].
0 unt I of the First
ed Plaintiff that:
Defendant Aronberg and the Office of the State A the Fifteenth Judicial
Circuit are not in custody or control of the r t herein, and therefore
Defendant Aronberg is not a proper party so . In fact, Defendant, Sharon
R. Bock, as Clerk and Comptroller of Pa ch ounry, Florida, admits that it
is the custodian in possession of the d at are the subject of this action.( s e
2
EFTA02734028
9. In serving his § 57.105 Demand, the State Attorney properly put Plaintiff on notice
that he would seek sanctions by filing the § 57.105 Motion for Attorneys' Fees if Plaintiff failed
to dismiss the remainder of the First Amended Complaint within 21 days.
10. On June 23, 2020, Plaintiff's counsel sent a response to the § 57.105 Demand
refusing to withdraw the remainder of the First Amended Complaint. [Def.ExA-9].
11. After receiving Plaintiff's response and waiting the requisite "21 dafifter service
of the motion," the State Attorney's § 57.105 Motion for Attorneys' Fees with the Court
on July 1, 2020, ("First Motion for Attorneys' Fees"). [Def.Ex.A-10
12. On August 18, 2020, the State Attorney filed hijS 4 tio or Summary Judgment,
ey. [DelEx.A-12]. [DelExA-11], which includes an Affidavit made by the
8ili13. On October 21, 2020, Plaintiff fl k ti of Dropping the State Attorney,
pursuant to Rule 1.250(b), Fla.R.Civ.P. [Def. .
14. On November 9, 2020, th to A mey filed his Amended Motion for Attorneys'
Fees, ("Amended Motion"), pursu t .105, Fla. Stat., seeking attorneys' fees in the amount
of $19,975.00, plus a multiplie f 2. f.ExA-141.
I. LEGAL STAND
As follow, orida tatutes § 57.105(1) authorizes awards of attorneys' fees as sanctions:
(1) the court's initiative or motion of any party, the coun shall award a
reke attorney's fee, including prejudgment interest, to be paid to the
g party in equal amounts by the losing party and the losing party's attorney
on y claim or defense at any time during a civil proceeding or action in which
the court finds that the losing party or the losing parry's attorney knew or should
have known that a claim or defense when initially presented to the court or at any
time before trial:
(a) Was not supported by the material facts necessary to establish the
claim or defense; or
(b) Would not be supported by the application of then-existing law to
those material facts.
3
EFTA02734029
"Section 57.105 does not require a finding of frivolousness to justify sanctions, but only a
finding that the claim lacked a basis in fact or law" and "does not require a party to show complete
absence of a justiciable issue of fact or law." County Conservation Alliance v.
County, 73 So. 3d 856, 865 (Fla. 1st DCA 2011) (finding that "Courts are not at liberty to disregard
the legislative mandate that courts shall impose sanctions in cases without foundation in material
fact or law. The word "shall" in § 57.105, Fla. Stat., evidences the legislative intt impose a
mandatory penalty to discourage baseless claims, by placing a price tag n losing parties who
engage in these activities. Section 57.105 expressly states courts "sh ttoniey's fees for
bringing, or failing to dismiss, baseless claims or defenses.").
c)
tIn determining an award of sanctions under § 57 t al court's findings "must be
itc based on substantial competent evidence" and the t . c ust make an inquiry into what the i tt
ites „losing party knew or should have known due' -establishment process, both before and c p.
after the suit was filed." See Trust Mort LC erlanti, 193 So. 3d 997 (Fla. 4th DCA 2016).
II. THE STATE ATTORNE
OF THE 21-DAY SAF
WAS THE AMENDE
TOn"Section 57.105( 'da Statutes creates an opportunity to avoid the sanction of
attorney's fees by 'ng safe period for withdrawal or amendment of meritless allegations and
claims." Day ilynson, 268 So. 3d 762, 769 (Fla. 4th DCA 2019). Specifically, the relevant
portio tatute states:
DED MOTION IS NEITHER IN VIOLATION
R PROVISION IN FLA. STAT. § 57.105(4), NOR
ON MOOT UPON FILING.
A motion by a party seeking sanctions under this section must be served but may
not be filed with or presented to the court unless, within 21 days after service of the
motion, the challenged paper, claim, defense, contention, allegation, or denial is not
withdrawn or appropriately corrected.
Fla. Stat. § 57.105(4). Likewise, "[t]he primary purpose of the safe harbor provision of §
57.105(4), Fla. Stat., is to provide the recipient of a motion for an award of costs and attorney's
4
EFTA02734030
fees with notice and the opportunity to withdraw or abandon a frivolous claim before sanctions are
sought." MC Liberty Express, Inc. v. All Points Servs., 252 So. 3d 397, 404 (Fla. 3d DCA 2018).
Here, Plaintiff contends that the State Attorney "did not serve his Amended Motion at any
time before filing it, and thus failed to comply with the 21-day notice provision...." [See, Plaintiff's
Memorandum of Law in Response to Amended Motion for Attorneys' Fees, p.6.]. Plaintiff claims
that for this reason the Amended Motion should be denied and cites in support, L Kame By
Design, LLC, 120 So. 3d 73, 75 (Fla. 4th DCA 2013) (holding that "if a p a subsequent
or amended motion for sanctions under section 57.105 and raises an at was not raised
in the original motion for section 57.105 sanctions, the sub t on must independently
comply with the twenty-one-day 'safe harbor' provision 7.105(4).").
itS inThe instant case is distinguishable from La . o, because the case was still active
Ps ,when the plaintiff's amended motion for att ' was filed and was not served on the
defendant in compliance with the 21-da e h or provision before it was filed with the court,
pursuant to § 57.105, the defends to notice and an opportunity to change its position
and withdraw its offending mo re being subject to sanctions.
Here, despite Pla ecision to drop the State Attorney as a party, the Florida Rules of
Civil Procedure he co of Florida are clean Because Rule 1.250 specifies that a party is
dropped "in i ner provided for voluntary dismissal in Rule 1.420(aX1)," dropping a party
theref ales as an adjudication on the merits." See, Siboni v. M, 52 So. 3d 779. 781
(Fla. 5th DCA 2010); Rule 1.420(a)(1) Fla. R. Civ. P. Notably, Plaintiff admits that "the entire
Notably, the court in Lego v. Kame By Design, LLC, 120 So. 3d 73, 75 (Fla. 4th DCA 2013),
despite finding that the plaintiff's amended motion for attorneys' fees was improper, the trial court
was instructed to rule as to the plaintiff's original motion for attorneys' fees as it was properly
served and filed pursuant to § 57.105, Fla. Stat.
5
EFTA02734031
action, which necessarily included Count I [of the First Amended Complaint], was dismissed as to
[the State Attorney] on October 21, 2020. [See, Plaintiff's Memorandum of Law in Response to
Amended Motion for Attorneys' Fees, p.7.]. Nonetheless, as a result of dropping the State Attorney
from the case, Plaintiff not only effectively made an admission that its allegations against the State
Attorney have no basis in fact or law, but also concluded the case as to the State Attorney and
thereby became the losing party in this action.
Consequently, unlike the fact scenario and timeline in Lago, bec .e r) concluded
the instant litigation by dropping the State Attorney from the act' n the filing of the
Amended Motion, it was impossible to give Plaintiff an oppo ' to pond and withdraw its Ac ts ,
ItCount 1 of the First Amended Complaint since Plaintiff r done so, thus there can be no
"Ss, violation of the 21-day safe harbor provision set h Stat. § 57.105(4). Based on the „S ot
ilw foregoing, the State Attorney's Amended Mot' violate the 21-day safe harbor provision in
because Plaintiff dropped him from th 'on 'or to the filing of the Amended Motion, and
therefore Plaintiff was not prejudi b e ing of the Amended Motion. Accordingly, as further
set forth below, Plaintiff has e ifseIf to § 57.105 attorneys' fees as sanctions for failing to
drop the State Attorney within the 21-day safe harbor period.
Addition nothing improper about the First Motion for Attorneys' Fees or the
Amended M d no argument or authority has been offered by Plaintiff that would make the
Amen n moot. In fact, amended motions for attorneys' fees are filed consistently as a
matter of course to include the entirety of fees in a lawsuit. Here, the State Attorney's total legal
fees were able to be calculated and submitted at the time of filing the Amended Motion.
Finally, despite Plaintiff's assertion that "[a] motion for sanctions must be supported by
the record evidence at the time it is filed" [and] "[b]ecause the First Motion was not so supported,
6
EFTA02734032
it fails under the [Sitatute, Plaintiff has failed to provide any supporting authority and there is no
statutory requirement or language in § 57.105 that supporting record evidence must exist to
properly serve a § 57.105 demand and motion for attorneys' fees. [See, Plaintiff's Memorandum
of Law in Response to Amended Motion for Attorneys' Fees, p.8.]. "The central purpose of §
57.105, Fla. Stat., is, and always has been, to deter meritless filings and thus streamline the
administration and procedure of the courts." v. Bailynson, 268 So. 3d
DCA 2019). In this vein, a § 57.105 demand and accompanying motion f
filed at any time after a lawsuit is initiated, even directly in response
regardless of whether any record evidence exists in support oft 5A
tConsequently, the foregoing indicates that the Sta o s First Motion for Attorney's
S ,Fees, as served and filed, is sufficient under § 57.10 s nctions from Plaintiff for its failureS ri
1/4to drop the State Attorney from the instant la i n the 21-day safe harbor provision after had
being notified why its First Amended C lain s no basis in fact or law. Furthermore, as set
1xh
li me
no obligation to serve his Amended Motion prior to
ready dropped him from the case when it was filed.
7 Fla. 4th
forth at length above, the State A
filing it with the Court as Plai
' fees can be
g of a complaint,
III. THE COMPETENT UBSTANTIAL EVIDENCE ON THE RECORD SHOWS
THAT T
RAISED
FAIT
EST
0
IS NO ARGUABLE BASIS IN LAW OR FACT FOR THE ISSUES
PLAINTIFF'S COUNT I, WHICH NOT ONLY LACK A GOOD
ENT FOR THE INTERPRETATION OF EXISTING LAW OR
ENT OF A NEW LAW WITH A REASONABLE EXPECTATION
BUT ALSO ARE NEITHER NOVEL OR COMPLEX.
Plaintiff relies on § 57.105(3Xa), which sets forth a scenario where sanctions are
improper under the Statute:
3) Notwithstanding subsections (1) and (2), monetary sanctions may not be
awarded:
(a) Under paragraph (Mb) if the court determines that the claim or
defense was initially presented to the court as a good faith argument for the
extension, modification, or reversal of existing law or the establishment of
7
EFTA02734033
new law, as it applied to the material facts. with a reasonable expectation
ofsuccess.
Notably, the § 57.105(3Xa) defense only applies to demands made under § 57.105(1Xb).
Accordingly, Plaintiff's attempt to prevent an award of sanctions here only applies to whether
Plaintiff or Plaintiff's attorney "knew or should have known" that the First Amended Complaint
"when initially presented to the court or at any time before trial... (b) would not be ported by
the application of then-existing law to those material facts necessary to estab eir laim." §
O
Regarding the disclosure of grand jury materials, Florida Stat 5.17(1) makes clear
that there is no arguable basis in law that the State Attorney vide he Requested Materials:
57.105(1)(b), Fla. Stat.
The notes, records, and transcriptions are confidenda and exempt from the
provisions of s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. the State Constitution and shall be
released by the clerk only on request by it jtiy for use by the grand jury or
on order of the court pursuant to s.
Florida Statutes § 90517(1). Based on t lea guage of § 905.17(1), Fla. Stat. there can be A tie
no good faith reasonable expectati
Requested Materials as he lac the 1 gaI authority to obtain and deliver the Requested Materials
demanded by Plaintiff in of the First Amended Complaint
Even if P tiff is ielded from § 57.105(1Xb) sanctions based on the § 57.105(3)(a)
defense, Plai nonetheless subject to sanctions under § 57.105(I)(a), because Plaintiff or
Plainti s "knew or should have known" that Count I "when initially presented to the
court or at any time before trial ... (a) was not supported by the material facts necessary to establish
the claim." Fla. Stat. § 57.105(1)(a). Specifically, based on Plaintiff's own research, statutory
constructive notice, the State Attorney's affidavit, all of the pleadings and correspondence in this
matter as well as through the State Attorney's office press release and social media accounts, and
s for the State Attorney to produce and disclose the
8
EFTA02734034
Chief Judge Marx's statements during the June 3, 2020 hearing, Plaintiff and Plaintiff's attorneys
knew or should have known that Count 1 of the Amended Complaint was not supported by the
material jams necessary to establish the claim." See. Fla. Stat. § 57.10.5(1)(a).
The material facts showing that Plaintiff has no reasonable expectation of success and is
unable to establish its claim for declaratory relief have been open, obvious, and apparent to
everyone involved in this matter from the start. The State Attorney's position has onsistent:
neither he nor his office has possession, custody, or control of the R aterials and
therefore the declaratory relief sought by Plaintiff seeks materials th Bible for him or
his office to produce and he is not a proper party to this action.c ) 1r] x.A-12 3-4]. Again,
itthese material facts negating Plaintiff's declaratory relie 'm inst the State Attorney were
it'Stnot only set forth in the June 8, 2020, § 57.105 D n r, but have been the basis for the
s.,State Attorney's defense in every pleading, fil' , 8 correspondence in this matter.
Accordingly, Plaintiff knew ors ha known that the First Amended Complaint was
not supported by the material f to establish the claim for declaratory relief. At the
very least, Plaintiff should ha that its First Amended Complaint was not supported by
the material facts after Ju rx's statements during the June 3, 2020 hearing on Defendant's
Motion to Dismis sinti s Count 11. During that hearing, Chief Judge Marx drew a bright line
as to when P knew or should have known that Count 1 of the Amended Complaint had no
basis aw since the relief sought thereby is impossible for the State Attorney to perform.
Specifically, Chiefludge Marx made several unequivocal statements on the record putting Plaintiff
on notice, if they weren't already, that the State Attorney does not have and cannot produce the
Requested Materials. [Def.Ex.A-6, pgs. 3:18 - 4:1; 5:17-19; 8:4-22; 10:21 - 11:1; 11:12-15; 16:12
- 17:3; 17:6-9; 17:23 - 18:2].
9
EFTA02734035
Additionally, Plaintiff's argument for novelty and complexity fails as to Count I, regardless
of Plaintiff's reliance on "Constitutional provisions and interpretive case law, along with Fla. Stat.
§ 905.27" ... "to propose a good faith interpretation of existing law in support of its declaratory
relief claim in Count I." [See, Plaintiff's Memorandum of Law in Response to Amended Motion
for Attorneys' Fees, p.10.]. The simple fact of the matter is that Count I is neither novel or complex
because Count I merely seeks declaratory relief and the State Attorney's lat session,
custody, or control in conjunction with § 905.17(1) creates an impossibilit nuance as to
Count I. Here, § 905.17(1) is abundantly clear that only the Clerk ca nd jury materials
pursuant to a court order. The record is likewise clear that not ha State Attorney never
had possession, custody, or control of the Requested Mate also lacks any legal authority
to obtain and deliver the Requested Materials.
Thus, there is no arguable "good fait • i 7aww' and/or fact as to Plaintiff's Count I.
Likewise, under no set of facts does Plai • ha reasonable expectation of success against the
State Attorney in obtaining the R rials because he does not have possession, custody,
or control over them. In , P miff acknowledged, admitted, and acquiesced to the
impossibility of the State y providing the Requested Materials when he was dropped from
the action. Consegitly, actions against Plaintiff are appropriate under § 57.105, Fla. Stat.
CONCLUSION
n the foregoing, Defendant, Dave Aronberg, as State Attorney of Palm Beach
County, Florida, respectfully requests the Court enter an order granting his Amended Motion for
Attorneys' Fees as well as such other and further relief as the Court deems just or proper.
SCHOLZ & WYLER, LLC
Is/ Douglas A. Wyler
10
EFTA02734036
Arthur I. =, Esq.
Fla. Bar No.: 10249
Richard J. Scholz, Esq.
Fla. Bar No.: 0021261
Douglas A. Wyler, Esq.
Fla. Bar No.: 119979
961687 Gateway Blvd., Suite 201-I
Fernandina Beach, Florida 32034
([Phone Redacted]
([Phone Redacted] Fax
Primary: jacobsscholzJaw4, t.net
AttorneysforDefendaj YtJronberg
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I HEREBY CERTIFY that on this 12th day of August, y of the foregoing has
been electronically filed with the Florida E-File Portal for n all parties of record herein.
A. Wyler
11
EFTA02734037
Def.Ex.A-1
EFTA02734038
"" CASE NUMBER: 502019CA0146890=MB Div: AG'""
Filing # 98869063 E-Filed 11/14/2019 11:06:37 AM
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT, 15th
JUDICIAL CIRCUIT, IN AND FOR
PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
CASE NO.:
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS, LLC,
Publisher of THE PALM BEACH POST
Plaintiff,
v.
DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of
Palm Beach County, Florida, SHARON R.
BOCK, as Clerk and Comptroller of Palm
Beach County, Florida,
Defendants.
SUMMONS
DEFENDANT: Dave Aronberg, as State Attorney of
Palm Beach County, Florida
401 N. Dixie Highway
West Palm Beach, Florida 33401
C
A lawsuit has been filed against you. You have 20 calendar days after this summons is
served on you to file a written response to the attached Complaint with the Clerk of this
Court. A phone call will not protect you. Your written response, including the case
number given above and the names of the parties, must be filed if you want the Court to
hear your side of the case. If you do not file your response on time, you may lose the
case, and your wages, money, and property may thereafter be taken without further
warning from the Court. There are other legal requirements. You may want to call an
attorney right away. If you do not know an attorney, you may call an attorney referral
service or a legal aid office (listed in the phone book). If you choose to file a written
response yourself, at the same lime you file your written response to the Court you must
also mail or take a copy of your written response to the: Stephen A. Mendelsohn,
Esquire, Greenberg Traurig, P.A., 5100 Town Center Circle, Suite 400, Boca Raton,
Florida 33486, Telephone: ([Phone Redacted].
FILED: PALM BEACH COUNTY, FL, SHARON R. BOCK, CLERK, 11/14/2019 11:06:37 AM
EFTA02734039
THE STATE OF FLORIDA
TO EACH SHERIFF OF THE. STATE: You are commanded to serve this Summons and
a copy of the Complaint in this lawsuit on the above named Defendant.
DATED on November , 2019 NOV15 2110
IMPORTANTE
Sharon R. Bock
As Clerk & Comptroller of the Court
By:
iiitiy C
mouy
Usted ha sido demandado legalmente. liane 20 Dias, contados a partir del recibo de esta
notification, para contester la demanda adjunta, por escrito, y presentada ante este tribunal. Una Hamada
telefonica no la protegera Si usted desca que el tribunal considere su defense, debe presentar su respuesta
por escrito, incluyendo el numero del casa y los nombres de las partes interesadas. Si usted no contesta la
demanda a tiempo, pudiese panier cl caso y podria sen despojado de sus ingresos y propiedades, o mincie
de sus derechos, sin prcvio aviso del tribunal. Existen otros requisitos legates. Si lo data, puede usted
consultas a un abogado inmediatamente. Si no conoce a un abogado, puede (lamas a une de las oscines de
asistencia legal que aparecen en le guis telefonica.
Si desea responder a la demanda por su cucnta. al...mibo ticmpo en que presents su respuesta ante
el tribunal, debera usted envier por CARCO o entregar unis Copia de su respuesta a la persona denominada
abajo come "PlaintifnPlaintiffs Attorney" (Demandante o Abogado del Demandante).
IMPORTANT
Des poursuites judiciares ont etc entreprises contre vous. Vous avez 20 jours consecutifs a partir
de la date de rassignation de cette citation pour deposer une reponse ecrite a la plainte ci-jointe aupres de cc
tribunal. Un simple coup de telephone est Suffisant pour vous proteger. Vous etcs oblige de deposer
votre reponse ecrite, avec mention du numero de dossier ci-dessus et du nom des parties nominees ici, si
vous souhaitez que le tribunal entende voue cause. Si vous ne deposez pas votre repense ecrite dans le
sciai requis, vous risquez de peste la cause ainsi que votre salaire, votre argent, et vos biens peuvent erre
saisis par la suite, sans aucun preavis ulterieur du tribunal. Il y a d'autres obligations juridiques et vous
pouvez requerir les services immediate d'un avocat. Si vous ne connaissez pas d'avocat, vous pourriez
telephoner a un service de reference d'avocats ou a un bureau d'assistance juridique (figurant a l'annuaire de
telephones).
Si Nous choisissez de deposer vous-meme une repense cerne, il vous faudra egalcment, en meure
temps que cette fonnalite, faire parvenir ou expedier une copie de votre reponse tente au
"Plaintift7Plaintiffs Attorney" (Plaignant ou a son avocat) nomme ci-dessous.
2
EFTA02734040
Filing # 98869063 E-Filed 11/14/2019 11:06:37 AM
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE
FIFTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT IN AND
FOR PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS, LLC,
Publisher of THE PALM BEACH POST,
Plaintiff
v.
DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of
Palm Beach County, Florida; SI-IARON R.
BOCK, as Clerk and Comptroller of Palm
Beach County, Florida,
Defendants.
CASE NO.:
COMPLAIN 7'
CA Florida Holdings, LLC, publisher of The PS Beach Post, for its Complaint against
Dave Arenberg, the State Attorney for Palm Beach County, Florida, in his official capacity ("State
Attorney"), and Sharon R. Bock, the Clerk of the Court for Palm Beach County, Florida, in her
official capacity ("Court Clerk"), alleges as follows:
JURISDICTION
I. Thi an action within the exclusive jurisdiction of the Circuit Court pursuant to
Fla. Stat. Sec I 1 (2)(a).
PARTIES
2. The Palm Beach Post is a daily community newspaper published by Plaintiff CA
Florida Holdings, LLC, with offices located at 2751 S. Dixie Highway, West Palm Beach, Florida.
3. Defendant Dave Aronberg is the duly elected State Attorney for the Fifteenth
Judicial Circuit in and for Palm Beach County, Florida, pursuant to Fla. Stat. Section 27.01 and
EFTA02734041
has authority in grand jury proceedings pursuant to Fla. Stat. section 27.03. He is sued herein in
his official capacity as his office is in possession of documents that are the subject of this action.
4. Defendant Sharon R. Bock is the duly elected Clerk and Comptroller of Palm Beach
County, Florida. She is sued herein in her official capacity as her office is in possession of
documents that are the subject of this action.
INTRODUCTION
5. In what is now widely if belatedly recognized as a colossal miscarriage of justice —
which led to the further needless victimization of countless young girls and women — a wealthy,
politically connected, and powerful financier was not held accountable for, nor even forced to
confront, allegations of serious sex trafficking crimes. 8i"Whi elt 's that Jeffrey Epstein's 2008 \ I4kii
kc, deal with the State of Florida was not consistent w " S ence gathered against him, what
remains
, Icire
li; „ shrouded in mystery is how that evide se nted — and the extent to which it was s tin
presented - to the grand jury that returned indi ent far more limited in scope than expected
and deserved.
6. Through this acfi Palm Beach Post seeks public access to the testimony,
minutes, and other evidence presented in 2006 to the Palm Beach County grand jury empaneled
during the first Epstein sex abuse investigation. Typically, access to such materials is limited, for
example, in order to prevent the flight of those whose indictment may be contemplated and their
ability to conceal or destroy evidence; to ensure jurors' candor in deliberations: and to protect an
accused who is later exonerated. However, these factors are inapplicable here. Also, Florida law
expressly authorizes the disclosure of grand jury proceedings under certain circumstances,
including, as here, in the furtherance of justice. Fla. Stat. § 905.27(1 )(c).
7. It can no longer credibly be maintained that continued blanket secrecy over the
proceedings that led to the egregiously flawed 2006 Epstein indictment is warranted under the law.
2
EFTA02734042
To the contrary, transparency is required to promote public understanding of the criminal justice
system and public confidence in the fair administration of justice. As detailed below, Epstein was
accused of sexually abusing and trafficking dozens of women and girls in south Florida (among
other locations) over a period of several years while exploiting his wealth and political connections
to obstruct the administration of justice at every turn. Public disclosure of the Epstein grand jury
proceedings will shed light on the extent to which those in our government entrusted with the
solemn responsibility of enforcing our criminal laws equally as to all citizens fidfilled their duties
in this instance. Justice will be furthered where it is either (1) demonstrated that Epstein was treated
like others accused of similar heinous crimes, or (2) as appears more likely to be the case, those
who chose to give Epstein favorable — "unusual," in the words of the Town of Palm Beach Police
Chief — treatment, are exposed and held accountable. From what limited information is now in the
public domain, the State Attorney's referral to the grand jury — which would be out of the ordinary
for this type of case — gives rise to a strong inference of favoritism and corresponding disregard
for the rights of the minor victims of Epstein's sex trafficking. Access to the grand jury materials
will allow the public to determine whether the grand jury process. and the secrecy that comes with
it, was used to further justice or, instead, operated to shield Epstein and his co-conspirators from
the consequences of their criminal activities. Accordingly, F]a. Stat. Section 905.27 authorizes the
disclosure of Epstein's 2006 grand jury proceedings.
8. - Even in the absence of such a statutory basis, this Court is empowered to order
public disclosure pursuant to its inherent authority and supervisory powers over the grand jury.
Indeed, courts throughout the country in the past several decades have ordered the disclosure of
high-profile grand jury proceedings pursuant to their inherent authority where the public's interest
in those proceedings has outweighed the general need for secrecy. This is particularly so where,
3
EFTA02734043
as here, many of the details of Epstein's criminal misdeeds have already been made available in
the public domain through extensive news reporting by, among others, The Palm Beach Post; by
the many civil suits brought against Epstein and his co-conspirators; and by the victims themselves.
9. In recognition of the sensitivity of the materials being sought, and in the interest of
protecting any victims who wish to remain anonymous, The Palm Beach Post has no objection to
copies of the testimony, minutes, and other evidence presented in 2006 to the Palm Beach County
grand jury first being submitted to this Court for in camera review, where they may be redacted,
as appropriate, to protect those who deserve such protection.
FACTUAL BACKGROUND
10. The following facts were gathered, in lar , from documents obtained by
The Palm Beach Post through various Florida Public ReS:Alsg w requests, documents unsealed
or publicly available in other related judicial proceedings, and information and documents in the
public record.
A. First Epstein Sex Crimes Investigation, Indictment, and Plea Agreement:
2005- 2008.
11. The investigation into Epstein's sex crimes began more than fourteen years ago,
when a 14-year-old girl's stepmother reported to police in the Town of Palm Beach, Florida, that
Epstein and othensvi\worked for him arranged for her to give Epstein a "massage." Epstein
required the girl to strip, exposed himself and masturbated while touching her. The girl was paid
$300. Epstein was 52 years old at the time.
12. Following this initial report in 2005, the Town of Palm Beach Police, and later. in
2006, the FBI, investigated Epstein. Interviews under oath with five additional alleged victims and
seventeen witnesses revealed that the events described by the l4-year-old girl occurred, with
disturbingly similar details, with each of the other victims.
4
EFTA02734044
13. Both the victim/witness interviews, as well as evidence retrieved following a search
of Epstein's home, showed that some of the girls involved were under the age of 18. The police
search of Epstein's residence also found two hidden cameras and, throughout the house, large
numbers of nude photos of girls, including victims whom the police had not interviewed in the
course of their investigation.
14. In March 2006, a State grand jury was scheduled at which all of the victims were
expected to testify. The proceeding was postponed, however, due to meetings between the State
Attorney's office and Epstein's prominent criminal defense lawyer and personal friend, Alan
Dershowitz.
15. Another grand jury was convened in April 2.le, butFanceled the day before it was
to begin receiving evidence.
(I) Police Chief ReiterAtitt to the State Aftorney.
16. On May 1, 2006, Town of Palm Beach Police Chief Michael Reiter wrote a
"personal and confidential" letter to then Palm Beach County State Attorney, Barry Krischer,
stating:
1 must renew my prior observation to you that I continue to find your office's
treatment of [the Epstein] cases highly unusual. It is regrettable that I am forced to
communicate in this manner, but my most recent telephone calls to you and those
of the lead detective to your assigned attorneys have been unanswered and
messages remain =returned. After giving this much thought and consideration.
I must urge you to examine the unusual count that your office's handling of this
matter has taken and consider if good and sufficient reason exists to require your
disqualification from the prosecution of these cases. (Emphasis supplied)
17. Chief Reiter's letter to State Attorney Krischer enclosed the Town of Palm Beach
Police Department's probable cause affidavits charging Epstein and two of his assistants with
multiple counts of unlawful sex acts with a minor and one count of sexual abuse, and requested
5
EFTA02734045
that either an arrest warrant be issued for Epstein or the State Attorney directly initiate the charges
against him, which would be public.
(2) The Jul' 2006 State Grand Jury Presentation.
18. Instead, State Attorney Krischer elected to refer the case to a grand jury, which is
mandatory for capital cases but rarely used for all other crimes. According to an official
spokesperson, this was the first time that a sex crimes case was presented to a grand jury in Palm
Reach County.
19. In July 2006, after State Attorney Krischer presented testimony and evidence from
one victim, the grand jury returned an indictment on a sole count of solicitation of prostitution.
There is no mention in the indictment of the victim being a minor.
20. On information and belief, a second 'n's victims was supposed to testify,
before the grand jury, but was unable to attend A Stse a school exam.
21. No reasonable explanation has been provided as to why the numerous other known
victims were not presented as witnesses and crime victims to the grand jury convened in July 2006.
Nor has any reasonable explanation been provided as to why State Attorney Krischer, who was
initially eager to investigate and prosecute Epstein for his crimes, over time lost the desire to do
so.
22. n «formation and belief, during the grand jury appearance of the single victim
who testiliEd. e State Attorney presented evidence that vilified the victim and attacked her
credibility, including soliciting testimony regarding underage drinking and questionable personal
behavior that was unrelated to the charges against Epstein. Further upon information and belief,
this information was initially brought to the attention of the State Attorney's office by Epstein's
defense counsel.
6
EFTA02734046
(3) The FBI's Investiaation and Enstcin's Non-Prosecution
Agreement With Federal Authorities.
23. On information and belief, following the deficient July 2006 indictment, and with
Chief Reiter's encouragement, the FBI began its own investigation of Epstein.
24. Records unsealed in 2015 revealed that the FBI compiled reports on "34 confirmed
minors" that were victims of Epstein's sexual predations. Based on evidence gathered by the FBI,
a 53-page indictment was prepared by the U.S. Attorney's Office in June 2007. However, at the
request of Epstein's lawyers, the indictment was never presented to a federal grand jury.
25. Instead, then U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Alexander Acosta,
negotiated a plea deal with Epstein's team of lawyers to grant immunity to Epstein (along with
four named co-conspirators and any unnamed potential co-conspirators) from all federal criminal
charges.
26. Throughout the remainder of 2007 and through the first half of 2008, Epstein's
lawyers and the U.S. Attorney continued negotiating the plea arrangement. Upon information and
belief, Epstein's lawyers insisted that (I) the victims not be notified, (2) the deal be kept
confidential and under seal, and (3) all grand jury subpoenas (including one that had already been
issued for Epstein's computers) be withdrawn.
27. On June 30, 2008, Epstein pled guilty to State charges: one count of solicitation of
prostitution and one count of solicitation of prostitution with a minor under the age of 18. He was
sentenced to 18 months in jail, followed by a year of community control or house arrest, and was
adjudicated as a convicted sex offender required to register twice a year in Florida.
28. The plea deal, called a non-prosecution agreement ("NPA"), allowed Epstein to
receive immunity from federal sex-trafficking charges that could have sent him to prison for life.
7
EFTA02734047
On information and belief based on public records, former State Attorney Krischer communicated
with then U.S. Attorney Acosta concerning the NPA's negotiation with Epstein's lawyers.
29. Indeed, Epstein was not incarcerated in a Florida prison for the State crimes for
which he was convicted. Instead, he was placed in a private wing of the Palm Beach County
Stockade, where, after 3 1/2 months, he was allowed to leave the jail on "work release" for up to
12 hours a day, 6 days a week. His private driver provided his transportation to and from "work."
30. Epstein was released five months early.
31. Upon information and belief, Epstein violated the terms of his probation, but was
not prosecuted.
(4) The Crime Victims' Rights Act Litigation.
32. Epstein's victims only learned after the actsbout his plea in State court and filed
i tan emergency petition to force federal prosecu ply with the Crime Victims' Rights Act
(18 U.S.C. § 3771, "CVRA"), which mandates certain rights for crime victims, including the right
to be informed about plea agreements and the right to appear at sentencing. U.S. District Judge
Kenneth A. Marra recently ruled that federal prosecutors violated the CVRA by failing to notify
Epstein's victims before allowing him to plead guilty to only the two State offenses.
33. The prosecution's failure to keep the victims apprised, among other things, also
contravenes thCr iiida Constitution, Article 1, § 16(b) and Fla. Stat. § 960.001.
flowing publicity exposing the extraordinary leniency of the plea deal, dozens of
civil suits were brought against Epstein, most of which Epstein's lawyers settled out-of-court.
35. In 2010, Epstein was registered as a "level three" (i.e., high risk of repeat offense)
sex offender in New York, a lifelong designation. In 2011, the New York County District
Attorney's office unsuccessfully sought to lower his registration to low-risk "level one."
8
EFTA02734048
36. Upon information and belief, during the course of the Town of Palm Beach and FBI
investigations, Epstein retained private investigators to follow, harass, and photograph his victims
and their families, as well as Chief Reiter and the Town of Palm Beach detective who investigated
the case against Epstein.
37. Upon information and belief, Epstein's victims were threatened against cooperating
with law enforcement and told that they would be compensated only if they did not cooperate with
law enforcement.
B. Second Epstein Sex Crimes Investization, Indictment, Suicide: 2019.
38. On July 6, 2019, Epstein was arrested on federal sex trafficking charges.
39. Upon information and belief, the United States government's investigation of new
allegations and charges stemmed, in part, from continued press investigations into and reporting
on the mishandling of the 2006 charges and the civil suits that followed.
40. In a July 8, 2019, letter to the federal district court by the U.S. Attorney for the
Southern District of New York, Epstein was described as "a serial sexual predator who preyed on
dozens of minor girls over a period of years." The letter emphasized that "the Government has real
concerns — grounded in past experience with this defendant — that if allowed to remain out on bail,
the defendant could attempt to pressure and intimidate witnesses and potential witnesses in this
case, including victims and their families, and otherwise attempt to obstruct justice." It also
described the results of the FBI's search of Epstein's Manhattan townhouse: evidence of sex
trafficking in the form of "hundreds — and perhaps thousands — of sexually suggestive photographs
of fully- or partially-nude females," including underage females. In a locked safe, compact discs
were found with handwritten labels including the descriptions: "Young [Name) + [Name]," "Mist
nudes 1," and "Girl pics nude."
9
EFTA02734049
41. On July 8, 2019, prosecutors with the Public Corruption Unit of the U.S. Attorney's
office for the Southern District of New York charged Epstein with sex trafficking and conspiracy
to traffic minors for sex. The grand jury indictment alleges that "dozens" of underage girls were
brought into Epstein's mansions for sexual encounters. A few days later, owing to public outcry
over the NPA with Epstein entered into by the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida,
Alexander Acosta, who by then was serving as U.S. Secretary of labor in the Trump
administration, resigned from office.
42. Epstein was denied bail and was placed into pretrial detention at the federal
Metropolitan Correction Center in lower Manhattan.
43. On August 10, 2019. Epstein was found dead in his cell at the Metropolitan
Correctional Center. His cause of death was determined to be suicide.
C. The August 27, 2019, SDNY Hearing; Epstein's Victims Speak
44. On account of his death, prosecutors sought to dismiss the indictment against
Epstein, while maintaining that they would continue to investigate his co-conspirators.
45. United States Senior District Judge Richard M. Berman ordered a hearing on
August 27. 2019, on the prosecutors' decision to dismiss the indictment and allowed victims to
speak at the hearing.
46. In the course of the hearing, more than two dozen victims delivered their personal
stories of pain, frustration, and sexual abuse at the hands of Epstein. Several victims spoke of
violent rape by Epstein. Many more victims were present in the courtroom but did not testify.
47. While some questioned the reasoning behind the court's decision to give the victims
voice after Epstein's death, District Judge Bennan noted that "a public hearing is [the] preferred
vehicle of resolution," emphasizing that "public hearings are exactly what judges do. Hearings
promote transparency and they provide the court with insights and information which the court
10
EFTA02734050
may not otherwise be aware of" Indeed, even Epstein's defense lawyer noted at the hearing that
the court "is the institution that most people have confidence in, in these very troubled times."
48. At the August 27th hearing. the girls, now women, spoke about their "exploitation
and coercion," and to the fact that many of them "were in very vulnerable situations and in extreme
poverty, circumstances where [they] didn't have anyone on [their] side, to speak on [their]
behalf...." One victim lamented that "as a victim, [she] never got to see what the agreement was
or why the special treatment got approved" in the Florida case years earlier. Another noted how
"completely different" the investigators leading to the 2019 federal indictment were from the
prosecutors in the Florida case, both in their treatment of her and their investigation of her
victimization by Epstein.
)11‘949. A former federal judge in attendance eth ugust 27th hearing emphasized that
S
k nin
S ic"transparency is one of the overriding objectiv • inal justice system."
t)th50. Nearly all of the victims e conviction that the secrecy that shielded
Epstein has caused them "irreparable harm" and that an opportunity to address his criminal
wrongdoings. and those of the individuals who enabled his sexual racketeering, would allow for
at least some measure of justice to be served after his death. Indeed, one victim stated: "Any efforts
made to protect Epstein's name and legacy send a message to the victims that he wins and that he
is untouchab ther victim expressed fear that this is a world "where there are predators in
power, a where people can avoid justice if their pockets run deep enough." In short, the
"unusual" treatment Epstein received in Florida in 2006 based on his wealth, social status, and
connections severely eroded the public's faith in the integrity and impartiality of the criminal
justice system.
11
EFTA02734051
D. The Palm Beach Post's Standing and the Public Interest.
51. Plaintiff, The Palm Beach Post, is a community newspaper serving readers in Palm
Beach County and the Treasure Coast vicinity.
52. The Palm Beach Post has been a Pulitzer Prize winner and nominated as a finalist
three other times.
53. Beginning in 2004, The Palm Beach Post has extensively investigated and reported
on the allegations against, the law enforcement investigation of, and the crimes committed by,
Epstein and his co-conspirators. The Newspaper's reportage has included publication of the
following articles:
• "The Man Who Had Everything: Jeffrey Epstein Craved Big Homes, Elite Friends
v s ' tors Say, Underage Girls.," published on August 14, 2006, reporting that:
, a local community college student, admitted in a sworn statement to
police that "she had taken at least six girls to visit Epstein, all between the ages of 14
and 16;" Palm Beach Police "interviewed five alleged victims and 17 witnesses;"
"Dershowitz, the Harvard law professor, traveled to West Palm Beach with information
about the girls," including social media discussions about "their use of alcohol and
marijuana;" after meeting with Epstein's legal team, "prosecutors postponed their
decision to take the case to a grand jury;" Palm Beach Police subsequently "received
complaints that two of the victims or their families had been harassed or threatened;"
"relations between police and prosecutors were fraying" as the investigation continued;
and "one girl who was subpoenaed —the one who said she had sexual intercourse with
Epstein — never showed up" to testify before the grand jury.
• "Trump Snags Gosman Estate for S41 Million" published on November 16, 2004,
reporting on the bidding war between Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein for the
purchase of a "43,000-square-foot, seven-bedroom estate on 6 oceanfront acres along
the storied 'Raider's Row' " in Palm Beach.
• "Indictment: Billionaire Solicited 3 Times" published on July 25, 2006, reporting that
"Billionaire money manager and Palm Beach part-time resident Jeffrey Epstein
solicited or procured prostitutes three or more times between Aug. 1 and Oct. 31 of last
year, according to an indictment charging him with felony solicitation of prostitution."
The article further reported that "Epstein's case is unusual in that suspected prostitution
johns are usually charged with a misdemeanor, and even a felony charge is typically
made in a criminal information — an alternative to an indictment charging a person with
the commission of a crime."
12
EFTA02734052
• "After Long Probe, Billionaire Faces Solicitation Charge" published on July 26, 2006,
reporting that "Palm Beach police thought there was probable cause to charge Epstein
with unlawful sex acts with a minor and lewd and lascivious molestation." The article
further reported that "Police Chief Michael Reiter was so angry with State Attorney
Barry Krischer's handling of the case that he wrote a memo suggesting the county's
top prosecutor disqualify himself," and identified a 20-year-old on-the-record female
source who said "she gave Epstein a massage in the nude, then brought him six girls,
ages 14 to 16, for massage and sex-tinged sessions at his home."
• "Police Say Lawyer Tried to Discredit Teenage Girls" published on July 29, 2006,
reporting that "[gamed Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz met with the Palm
Beach County State Attorney's Office and provided damaging information about
teenage girls who say they gave his client, Palm Beach billionaire Jeffrey Epstein,
sexually charged massages" and that "[t]he state attorney's office said it presented the
Epstein case to a county grand jury this month rather than directly charging Epstein
because of concerns about the girls' credibility."
• "Expert: Ignorance of Age Isn't Defense In Sex Cases" published on August 5, 2006,
reporting that "[r]ather than file charges, the state attorney's office presented the case
to a county grand jury" which "indicted Epstein last week on a single, less serious
charge of felony solicitation of prostitution," and that "[t]he case raised eyebrows
because the state attorney's office rarely, if ever, kicks such charges to a grand jury."
• "Epstein Camp Calls Female Accusers Liars" published on August 8, 2006, reporting
that "[a] state attorney's spokesman would say only that the office refers cases to the
grand jury when there are issues with the viability of the evidence or witnesses'
credibility."
• "Palm Beach Chief Focus of Fire In Epstein Case" published on August 14, 2006,
reporting that Chief Reiter "pressed for Epstein to be charged with the more serious
crimes of sexual activity with minors" and "slammed State Attorney Barry Krischer in
blunt language seldom used by one law enforcement official with another because of
what he perceived as that office's mishandling of the case."
• "Delays In Epstein Case Unusual, Lawyers Say" published on March 13, 2007,
reporting that "[n]early eight months after Palm Beach tycoon Jeffrey Epstein was
charged with felony solicitation of prostitution. there has been no discernible progress
in his case."
• "Woman Sues Billionaire Investor, Says They Had Sex When She Was 16" published
on October 18, 2007, reporting on a lawsuit brought in New York State court against
Epstein "by a young woman who says he had sex with her when she was 16 and had
sought his help becoming a model."
• "Palm Reacher Pleads In Sex Case" published on July 1, 2008, reporting that "Epstein,
55, pleaded guilty . . . to felony solicitation of prostitution and procuring a person under
the age of 18 for prostitution." resulting in "a lifelong obligation to register as a sex
13
EFTA02734053
offender," and that "[a's part of the plea deal, federal investigators agreed to drop their
investigation of Epstein, which they had taken to a grand jury."
• "Jeffrey Epstein: Scientist, Stuntman, `Sex Slave' Visit Jailed Tycoon" published on
August 13 2008 reporting that "[d]uring his first month of confinement" Epstein was
visited by , who allegedly escorted victims "upon their arrival at his Palm
Beach waterfront home to an upstairs room, where she prepared and
provided the oils for their encounters" with Epstein, and by
young woman whom Epstein purportedly described as his Yugoslavian sex slave."
• "Billionaire Sex Offender Leaves Jail Six Days a Week For Work" published on July
1, 2008, reporting that Epstein "is allowed to leave the Palm Beach County Stockade
six days a week on a work-release program."
• "Women Want Epstein Sex Plea Deal Unsealed" published on June 10, 2009, reporting
that attorneys for women suing Epstein in various courts "want his [non-prosecution]
agreement [NPA] with federal prosecutors unsealed" and were moving to unseal the
agreement in Circuit Court of the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, and that "Epstein now faces
at least a dozen civil lawsuits in federal and state courts filed by young women who
said they had sex with him and now seeking damages." On that date, The Palm
Reach Post moved to intervene in thelOtter for the purpose of obtaining public access
to the NPA, which was ordered disclosed by this Court on June 25, 2009.
• "Epstein's Secret Pact With Feds Reveals `Highly Unusual' Terms" published on
September 19, 2009, reporting that, owing to Epstein's non-prosecution agreement,
"federal prosecutors backed down and agreed to recall grand jury subpoenas if Epstein
pleaded guilty to prostitution-related felonies in tate c " " d not to
charge any of E stei s .ble co-conspirators: , Lesley
Groff and ." The article further reported that, according to an
attorney representing three of Epstein's victims, "none of the 30 to 40 wom[e]n
identified as victims in the federal investigation" were informed ahead of time about
the NPA.
• "Judge Rules Epstein Attorneys Can Subpoena Abortion Records" published on
January 27, 2010, reporting that "a judge . . . gave lawyers representing multi-
millionaire sex offender Jeffrey Epstein the right to subpoena abortion records from
women who are seeking millions in damages from the part-time Palm Beach resident."
• "Epstein Journal's Findings Could Resurrect Abuse Case" published on March 20,
2010, reporting that "[a] purloined journal that is said to contain the names of
`hundreds' of victims of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein could be used to reopen
the investigation into the multi-millionaire's appetite for teenage girls."
• "Epstein Paid Three Women $5.5 Million to End Underage Sex Lawsuits" published
on October 4, 2017. reporting that, according to court documents, Epstein "shelled out
$5.5 million to settle lawsuits with three of more than two dozen teens who sued him."
14
EFTA02734054
• "Judge Rules Feds' Agreement With Jeffrey Epstein Pact Violated Teen Victims'
Rights" published on February 22, 2019, reporting on a ruling by U.S. District Judge
Kenneth Marra that "Federal prosecutors violated the rights of Jeffrey Epstein's
teenage victims [under the Crime Victims' Rights Act] by failing to reveal they had
dropped plans to prosecute the billionaire on dozens of federal charges in connection
with the girls' claims that he paid them for sex at his Palm Beach mansion."
• "Epstein Indicted On Sex Charges/Part-Time Palm Beacher Pleads Not Guilty to Sex
Trafficking, Conspiracy Charges In Federal Court In Manhattan" published on July 9,
2019, reporting on Epstein's appearance in U.S. District Court for the Southern District
of New York in which he "pleaded not guilty to charges accusing him of creating a vast
network of girls as young as 14 that he exploited for his sexual pleasure at his homes
in Palm Beach and Manhattan."
A true and correct copy of the above news articles, in either the computerized format in which they
are maintained in The Palm Beach Post's electronic archives or the news print edition in which
originally published, is annexed hereto as Exhibit 1.
54. The press has a constitutional right of access to criminal proceedings, see, e.g.,
Richmond Newspapers Inc. v. Virginia, 448 U.S. 555, 573 (1980). including pre-trial criminal
proceedings. M. v. Graddick, 6% F.2d 796 (11th Cir. 1983). Indeed, "the integrity of the
judicial process, which public scrutiny is supposed to safeguard, is just as much at issue in
proceedings of this kind [pre- and post-trial] as at trial." Id. at 801; see also Miami Herald Publ.
Co. 426 So. 2d 1, 6-7 (Fla. 1982) (identifying the news media as a "public surrogate" in
matters concerning the closure of judicial proceedings). The press also has a First Amendment
interest in receiving information from willing speakers. See Va. Pharmacy Bd. v. Va. Consumer
Council, 425 U.S. 748, 756-57 (1976) ("Where a speaker exists . . . the protection afforded [by
the First Amendment] is to the communication, to its source and to its recipients both."); Pittman
v.., 267 F.3d 1269, 1283 n.12 (11th Cir. 2001) ("The Supreme Court has recognized that the
First Amendment offers protection to both speakers and those wishing to receive speech."); see
also Stephens v. Cty. of Albemarle, Va., 524 F.3d 485, 492 (4th Cir. 2008) (providing that a plaintiff
15
EFTA02734055
has "standing to assert a right to receive speech" by "show[ing] that there exists a speaker willing
to convey the information to her").
55. Because of the unique role performed by the press as a "public surrogate" a-,
426 So. 2d at 6-7) in protecting the right of access and its interest in reporting information about
criminal proceedings, news organizations "presumptively have a right to access judicial records,"
Comm 'r, Ala. Dep't of Corr. v. Advance Local Media, LLC. 918 F.3d 1161, 1166 (11th Cir. 2019),
and "standing to question the validity of an order restricting publicity because its ability to gather
news is directly impaired or curtailed.- M, 426 So. 2d at 4; see also Carlson'v. United States,
837 F.3d 753, 757-58 (7th Cir. 2016) ("[a]s a member of the public, [the Reporters Committee]
has standing to assert [its] claim" to grand jury materials because such materials are "public records
to which the public may seek access, even if that eff is 'mately unsuccessful"). c ‘ro
56. Here, the continued denial of access i rmation The Palm Beach Post seeks on
behalf of its journalists and the public it eyves questionably constitutes irreparable injury."
Gainesville Woman Care. LLC v. State of Florida. 210 So. 3d 1243. 1263 (Fla. 2017); see also
Zerilli v. , 656 F.2d 705, 711 (D.C. Cir. 1981) (noting that "the press' function as a vital
source of information is weakened whenever the ability of journalists to gather information is
impaired," as it is by Attorney General's refusal to disclose unredacted report and underlying grand
jury materials).
E. The Court's Supervision of the Grand Jury Process and Its Authority to Order
Public Disclosure of the Epstein Evidence.
57. The Florida Supreme Court has noted that "in states such as Florida, where the
grand jury is preserved, it is an important appendage of the court which impanels it. At the same
time it should not be forgotten that the judge of that court is equally important and he is generally
charged with the supervision of the grand jury's activities...lt is. therefore, of vital importance to
16
EFTA02734056
maintain the dignity and the integrity of both the grand jury and the presiding judge." State v.
Clemons, 150 So. 2d 231, 233-34 (Fla. 1963).
58. Chapter 905 of the Florida Statutes governs the empanelment and conduct of
Florida grand juries. The court gives the grand jury its initial charge and advises the grand jury
about its legal duties. Fla. Stat. § 905.18.
59. Florida Stat. Section 905.27(1) provides that "the testimony of a witness examined
before the grand jury . . . or other evidence received by it" may be disclosed "when required by a
court . . . for the purpose of: (a) Ascertaining whether it is consistent with the testimony given by
the witness before the court; (b) Determining whether the witness is guilty of perjury; or (c)
Furthering justice." Fla. Stat. § 905.27(1Xa)-(c).
60. Further, disclosure is appropriate pursuant to this Court's inherent authority over
grand jury proceedings because of the exceptional public interest in this case and the compelling
circumstances supporting transparency. Carlson v. United States, 837 F.3d at 766 ("a district court
has the inherent power to disclose [grand jury] materials in exceptional circumstances and . . .
historic importance can be a sufficient reason when there is little countervailing need for secrecy").
COUNT I
(Florida Stat. Section 905.27)
61. eon information learned by The Palm Beach Post through its Florida Public
Records' uests. law enforcement sources with direct knowledge of the grand jury evidence
and proceedings, judicial documents obtained from independent but related court proceedings. and
documents otherwise available in the public record, the State Attorney for Palm Beach County
presented truncated evidence of Epstein's criminal wrongdoing to the 2006 grand jury in a manner
17
EFTA02734057
that precluded his indictment for the serious crimes he committed, including sex trafficking and
sexual assault.
62. Pursuant to Florida Stat. Section 905.27, in order to further justice for Epstein's
victims and the public, and to provide public disclosure to illuminate whether Epstein received
unreasonably lenient treatment based on the available evidence, The Palm Beach Post requests
immediate public access to the testimony, minutes, and other evidence present Ar2006 to the
Palm Beach County grand jury. In a case of this magnitude and importance, wher e accused is
dead and so many of his crimes, as well as the identities and crimes of his co-conspirators, and the
identities of the victims have already been exposed, the need for grand jury secrecy is no more.
See United States v. Socony-Vacuton Oil Co., 310 U.S. 150,"234 (1940) ("[A]fter the grand jury's
functions are ended, disclosure is wholly proper where the ends of justice require it.").
WHEREFORE, The Palm Beach Post respectfully requests that this Court, pursuant to Fla.
Stat. Section 905.27(1) and the Court's inherent authority, order the State Attorney and the Clerk
of the Court to file with this Court copies of the testimony, minutes, and other evidence presented
in 2006 to the Palm Beach County grand jury during the first Epstein sex abuse investigation so
that, following an in camera inspection, it can be made available to The Palm Beach Post and the
public on an expedite( basis, and grant any other and further equitable or legal relief the Court
deems just a
18
EFTA02734058
Dated: November 14. 2019 Respectfully submitted,
+6s
ACTIVE 45678709v3
GREENBERG TRAURIG, P.A.
Attorneys for CA Florida Holdings, LLC,
Publisher of The Palm Beach Post
Stephen A. Mendelsohn, Esq.
5100 Town Center Circle, Suite 400
Boca Raton, Florida 33486
Telephone: ([Phone Redacted]
Facsimile: ([Phone Redacted]
By: is/ Stephen A. Mendelsohn
STEPHEN A. MENDELSOCSS
Florida Bar No. 849324
mcndeisohnitectlaw.e
[Email Redacted]
FLService®gtla A
By: /s/ Michael flip;
MICHAEL I RY IEL
(Pro 1th ficzapplication forthcoming)
54 t, ‘th Floor
York 12207
e: ([Phone Redacted]
e: ([Phone Redacted]
eielnamlavv.com
: Is! Vincent H Chiefib
VINCENT H. CHIEFFO
(Pro Hew Vice application forthcoming)
1840 Century Park East, Suite 1900
Los Angeles CA 90067
Telephone: ([Phone Redacted]
Facsimile: ([Phone Redacted]
chicffovaityilaw.com
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By: Is/ Nina D. Boraiian
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EXHIBIT 1
The Newspaper's Reportage on Jeffrey Epstein
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The Palm Beach Post REAL NEWS STARTS HERE
The Man Who Had Everything: Jeffrey Epstein craved big
homes, elite friends and underage girls By Andrew Marra
Posted Jul 17, 2019 at 6:02 AM
From the archives: When Palm Beach detectives started asking
questions and teenage girls started talking, a wave of legal resistance
followed.
Editor's Note: This article appeared in The Palm Beach Post on August 14, 2006, three weeks after
Jeffrey Epstein's arrest in Palm Beach County on a charge of felony solicitation of prostitution.
WINGED GARGOYLES guarded the gate at Jeffrey Epstein's Palm Beach mansion. Inside,
hidden cameras trolled two rooms, while he girljcame and went.
For the police detectives who sifted yFquglt the garbage outside and kept records of visitors, it
was the lair of a troubling target.
Epstein, one of the most mysterious of the country's mega-rich, was known as much for his
secrecy as for his love of fine things: magnificent homes, private jets, beautiful women,
friendships with the world's elite.
But at Palm Beach police headquarters, he was becoming known for something else: the
regular arrival of teenage girls he hired to give him massages and, police say, perform sexual
favors.
Epstein was different from most sexual abuse suspects; he was far more powerful. lie counted
among his friends former President Bill Clinton, Donald Trump and Prince Andrew, along
with some of the most prominent legal, scientific and business minds in the country.
When detectives stared asking questions and teenage girls started talking, a wave of legal
resistance followed.
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» NEW: Jeffrey Epstein: Lawyer said financier had sex with woman during work -
release
If Palm Beach police didn't know quite who Jeffrey Epstein was, they found out soon enough.
Epstein, now 53, was a quintessential man of mystery. He amassed his fortune and friends
quietly, always in the background as he navigated New York high society.
When he first attracted notice in the early 1990s, it was on account of the woman he was
dating: Ghislaine Maxwell, daughter of the late British media tycoon Robert ell.
In a lengthy article, headlined "The Mystery of Ghislaine Maxwell's Secret , the British
Mail on Sunday tabloid laid out speculative stories that the socialite' beau, was a CIA spook, a
math teacher, a concert pianist or a corporate headhunter.
9
"But what is the truth about him?" the newspaper wonder Maxwell, Epstein is both
flamboyant and intensely private."
<\-The media frenzy did not begin in full until a dtcSelcr. In September 2002, Epstein was
flung into the limelight when he flew Clinton and actors Kevin Spacey and Chris Tucker to
Africa on his private jet.
ti ir
Suddenly everyone wanted to kredi:iwh pstein was. New York magazine and Vanity Fair
published lengthy profiles. The New York Post listed him as one of the city's most eligible
bachelors and began descri ' g him in its gossip columns with adjectives such as "mysterious" bic.
and "reclusive."
Although Ep no interviews, the broad strokes of his past started to come into focus.
Building a life of extravagance
He was born blue-collar in 1953, the son of a New York City department employee, and
raised in Brooklyn's Coney Island neighborhood. He left college without a bachelor's degree
but became a math teacher at the prestigious Dalton School in Manhattan.
The story goes that the father of one of Epstein's students was so impressed with the man that
he put him in touch with a senior partner at Bear Stearns, the global investment bank and
securities firm.
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In 1976, Epstein left Dalton for a job at Bear Stearns. By the early 1980s, he had started J.
Epstein and Co. That is when he began making his millions in earnest.
Little is known or said about Epstein's business except this: He manages money for the
extremely wealthy. He is said to handle accounts only of $I billion or greater.
It has been estimated he has roughly 15 clients, but their identities are the subject of only
speculation. All except for one: Leslie Wexner, founder of The Limited retail chain and a
former Palm Beacher who is said to have been a mentor to Epstein.
Wexner sold Epstein one of his most lavish residences: a massive townhouse that dominates a
block on Manhattan's Upper East Side. It is reported to have, among its finer features, closed-
circuit television and a heated sidewalk to melt away fallen snow.
That townhouse, thought to be the largest private residence in Manhattan, is only a piece of
the extravagant world Epstein built over time.
%9 In New Mexico, he constructed a 27,000-square-foot hilltop mansion on a 10,000-acre ranch
outside Santa Fe. Many believed it to be the largest home in the state.
In Palm Beach, he bought a waterfront home on El Brill° Way. And he owns a 100-acre
private island in the Virgin Islands.
» PHOTOS: The players in the,, of Epstein saga
Perhaps as remarkable as hi avish homes is his extensive network of friends and associates at
the highest echelons of power. This includes not only socialites but also business tycoons,
media moguls, politicians, royalty and Nobel Prize-winning scientists whose research he often
funds.
'just like other people collect art, he collects scientists," said Nowak, who directs the
Program for Evolutionary Dynamics at Harvard University and was reportedly the recipient of
a $30 million research donation from Epstein.
Epstein is said to have befriended former Harvard President Larry Summers, prominent law
Professor Alan Dershowitz, Donald Trump and New York Daily News Publisher Mort
Zuckerman.
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And yet he managed for decades to maintain a low profile. He avoids eating out and was rarely
photographed.
"The odd thing is I never met him," said Dominick Dunne, the famous chronicler of the trials
and tribulations of the very rich. "I wasn't even aware of him," except for a Vanity Fair article.
Epstein's friendship with Clinton has attracted the most attention.
Epstein met Clinton as early as 1995, when he paid tens of thousands of dollars to join him at
an intimate fund-raising dinner in Palm Beach. But from all appearances, they did not become
close friends until after Clinton left the Oval Office and moved to New York.
Epstein has donated more than $100,000 to Democratic candidates' campaigns, including John
Kerry's presidential bid, the reelection campaign of New Mexico Gov. Bill and the
Senate bids of Joe , Hillary Rodham Clinton, Christopher Dodd and Charles
Schumer.
Powerful friends and enemies
A Vanity Fair profile found cracks in the veneer Epstein's life story. The 2003 article said he
left Bear Stearns in the wake of a federal probe and a possible Securities and Exchange
Commission violation. It also pointed out that Citibank once sued him for defaulting on a $20
million loan.
The article suggested that one of his business mentors and previous employers was Steven
Hoffenberg, now serving a prison term after "bilking investors out of more than $450 million
in one of the largest Ponzi schemes in American history."
As he amassed his wealth, Epstein made enemies in disputes both large and small. He sued the
man who in 1990 sold him his multimillion -dollar Palm Beach home over a dispute about less
than $16,000 in furnishings.
A former friend claimed Epstein backed out of a promise to reimburse him hundreds of
thousands of dollars after their failed investment in Texas oil wells. A judge decided Epstein
owed him nothing.
» Jeffrey Epstein: Model prisoner who swept, mopped floors, official says
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"It's a bad memory. I would rather not have ever met Jeffrey Epstein," said Michael Stroll, the
retired former president of Electronics and Sega Corp. "Suffice it to say I have
nothing good to say about him:
Among the characteristics most attributed to Epstein is a penchant for women.
He has been linked to Maxwell, a fixture on the high-society party circuits in both New York
and London. Previous girlfriends are said to include a former Ms. Sweden and a Romanian
model.
"He's a lot of fun to be with," Donald Trump told New York magazine in 2002. "It is even said
that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side. No
doubt about it, Jeffrey enjoys his social life."
Investigation leads to Epstein
Although he was not a frequenter of the Palm Beach social scene, he made his presence felt.
Among his charitable donations, he gave $90,000 to the Palm Beach Police Department and
$100,000 to Ballet Florida.
In Palm Beach, he lived in luxury. Three black Mercedes sat in his garage, alongside a
Harley-Davidson. His jet waited at a hangar at Palm Beach International Airport. At home, a
private chef and a small staff stood at the ready. From a window in his mansion, he could look
out on the Intracoastal Waterway and the West Palm Beach skyline. He seemed to be a man
who had everything.
But extraordinary wealth can fuel extraordinary desires.
» Epstei ants to leave jail for mansion in sex -trafficking case
In March 2005, a worried mother contacted Palm Beach police. She said another parent had
overheard a conversation between their children.
Now the mother was afraid her 14-year-old daughter had been molested by a man on the
island.
The phone call triggered an extensive investigation, one that would lead detectives to Epstein
but leave them frustrated.
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Ac"
The investigation began in full after the girl identified Epstein in a phota man who had
paid her. Police arranged for garbage trucks to set aside Epstein's trash so police could sift
through it. They set up a video camera to record the comings and goings at his home. They
monitored an airport hangar for signs of his private jet's arrivals and departures.
Detectives interviewed the girl, who told them a friend had invited her to a rich man's house to
perform a massage. She said the friend told her to say she was 18 if asked. At the house, she
said she was paid $300 after stripping to her panties and massaging the man while he
masturbated.
Police interview 5 alleged victims
Palm Beach police and the state attorney's office have declined to discuss the case. But a Palm
Beach police report detailing the criminal probe offers a window into what detectives faced as
they sought to close in on Epstein.
They quickly learned that the woman who took the 14-year-old girl to Epstein's house was
a Palm Beach Community College student from Loxahatchee. In a sworn
statement at police headquarters,, then 18, admitted she had taken at least six girls to
visit Epstein, all between the ages of 14 and 16. E1 paid her for each visit, she said.
During the drive back to her house, told detectives, "I'm like a Heidi Fleiss."
Police interviewed five alleged victims and 17 witnesses. Their report shows some of the girls
said they had been instructed to have sex with another woman in front of Epstein, and one said
she had direct intercourse with him.
In October, police searched the Palm Beach mansion. They discovered photos of naked, young-
looking females, just as several of the girls had described in interviews. Hidden cameras were
found in the garage area and inside a clock on Epstein's desk, alongside a girl's high school
transcript.
Two of Epstein's former employees told investigators that young-looking girls showed up to
perform massages two or three times a day when Epstein was in town.
They said the girls were permitted many indulgences. A chef cooked for them. Workers gave
them rides and handed out hundreds of dollars at a time.
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One employee told detectives he was told to send a down roses to one teenage girl after a high
school drama performance. Others were given rental cars. One, according to police, received a
$200 Christmas bonus.
The cops moved to cement their case. But as they tried to tighten the noose, they encountered
other forces at work.
In Orlando they interviewed a possible victim who told them nothing inappropriate had
happened between her and Epstein. They asked her whether she had spoken to anyone else.
She said yes, a private investigator had asked her the same questions.
» Jeffrey Epstein: Acosta, Krischer trade barbs over sweetheart deal
When they subpoenaed one of Epstein's former employees, he told them the same thing. He
and a private eye had met at a restaurant days earlier to go over what the man would tell
investigators.
t '.St•,-.%1C?Detectives received complaints that private eyes were posing as police officers. When they told
Epstein's local attorney, Guy Fronstin, he said the investigators worked for Roy Black, the
high-powered Miami lawyer who has defended the likes of Rush Limbaugh and William
Kennedy
While the private eyes were conducting a parallel investigation, Dershowitz, the Harvard law
professor, traveled to West Palm Beach with information about the girls. From their own
profiles on the popular Web site MySpace.com, he obtained copies of their discussions about
their use of alcohol and marijuana.
He took his research to a meeting with prosecutors in early 2006, where he sought to cast
doubt on the teens' reliability.
The private eyes had dug up enough dirt on the girls to make prosecutors skeptical. Not only
did some of the girls have issues with drugs or alcohol but also some had criminal records and
other troubles, Epstein's legal team claimed. And at least one of them, they said, lied when she
told police she was younger than 18 when she started performing massages for Epstein.
After the meeting, prosecutors postponed their decision to take the case to a grand jury.
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In the following weeks, police received complaints that two of the victims or their families had
been harassed or threatened. Epstein's legal team maintains that its private investigators did
nothing illegal or unethical during their research.
By then, relations between police and prosecutors were fraying. At a key meeting with
prosecutors and the defense, Detective Recarey, the lead investigator, was a no-show,
according to Epstein's attorney.
"The embarrassment on the prosecutor's face was evident when the police officeninscr
ffice and
showed up for the meeting: attorney Jack Goldberger said.
Later in April, Recarey walked into a prosecutor's office at the state atto
learned the case was taking an unexpected turn.
The prosecutor, Lanna Belohlavek, told Recarey the state attorney's office had offered Epstein
a plea deal that would not require him to serve jail time or receive a felony conviction.
-S ,Recarey told her he disapproved of the plea offer.
The deal never came to pass, however.
Future unclear after charge
On May 1, the department asked prosecutors to approve warrants to arrest Epstein on four
counts of unlawful sexual activity with a minor and to charge his personal assistant,
e , now 27, for her alleged role in arranging the visits. Police officials also wanted to
charge , the self-described Heidi Fleiss, with lewd and lascivious acts.
By then, the department was frustrated with the way the state attorney's office had handled the
case. On the same day the warrants were requested, Palm Beach Police Chief Michael Reiter
wrote a letter to State Attorney Barry Krischer suggesting he disqualify himself from the case if
he would not act.
Two weeks later, Recarey was told that prosecutors had decided once again to take the case to
the grand jury.
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It is not known how many of the girls testified before the grand jury. But Epstein's defense
team said one girl who was subpoenaed - the one who said she had sexual intercourse with
Epstein - never showed up.
The grand jury's indictment was handed down in July. It was not the one the police
department had wanted.
Instead of being slapped with a charge of unlawful sexual activity with a minor, Epstein was
charged with one count of felony solicitation of prostitution, which carries a maximum penalty
of five years in prison. He was booked into the Palm Beach County Jail early July 23 and
released hours later.
Epstein's legal team "doesn't dispute that he had girls over for massages," Goldberger said. But
he said their claims that they had sexual encounters with him lack credibility.
"They are incapable of being believed," he said. "They had criminal records. They had
accusations of theft made against them by their employers. There was evidence of drug use by
some of them."
What remains for Epstein is yet to be seen.
The Palm Beach Police Department has asked the FBI to investigate the case. It also has
returned the $90,000 Epstein donated in 2004.
In New York, candidates for governor and state attorney general have vowed to return a total
of at least $60,000 in campaign contributions from Epstein. Meanwhile, Epstein's powerful
friends have remained silent as tabloids and Internet blogs feast on the public details of the
police investi at
at maimsGoldberg ermain sins Epstein's innocence but says the legal team has not ruled out a future
plea deal. He insists Epstein will emerge in the end with his reputation untarnished.
"He will recover from this," he said.
Staff writer Larry and staff researchers Bridget Bulger, Angelica Cortez, Amy Hanaway and
Melanie Mena contributed to this story.
[Email Redacted]
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@AMarraPBPost
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273 / 278 - Tuesday, November 16, 2004
Edition: FINAL
Section: A SECTION
Page: IA
Source: By PAUL OWERS Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Illustration: PHOTO (C & 2 B&W) & MAP (B&W)
Memo: Ran all editions.
Dateline: WEST PALM BEACH
TRUMP SNAGS GOSMAN ESTATE FOR $41 MILLION
When it came time to bid Monday for the palatial Palm Beach digs of Abe Gosman, The
Donald was not about to be trumped.
"Nobody was going to outbid me," the brash developer-turned-TV-personality said from his
New York office.
Trump bested two other bidders with a $41.35 million offer for the 43,000-square-foot,
seven-bedroom estate on 6 oceanfront acres along the storied "Raider's Row."
But Trump, 58, proud possessor of Mar-a-Lago, has no plans to live in the Gosman home at
513 N. County Road. He wants to - what else? - sell it and make more money.
The star of the mega-hit The Apprentice said he intends to redevelop the site into a "super
luxury house" that would be the "finest anywhere in the United States." He might build
another house before flipping the entire package.
"I've known about this house for quite some time," Trump said. "It's probably the best piece
of land in Florida - and probably the country - for luxury real estate."
Altho p said he could subdivide the property into nine lots, Palm Beach Mis
Leslyies maid zoning regulations allow for only two houses - and maybe a third.
said she's not worried about Trump's plans.
"He's been a very good property owner in the town of Palm Beach," she said. "He does his
projects very well. He's a perfectionist."
Monday's auction took place at U.S. Bankruptcy Court in West Palm Beach as part of
Gosman's Chapter 7 bankruptcy case. Proceeds from the sale will go into escrow for eventual
distribution to creditors.
The auction began at exactly noon after Judge Steven dismissed an objection from
an attorney representing money manager Jeffrey Epstein. The lawyer argued unsuccessfully
that Trump was not a qualified bidder because his contract stipulated that he would not close
on the sale unless title insurance was in place beforehand.
With Trump listening via conference call, Epstein began the bidding at $37.25 million -
$250,000 higher than Trump's initial offer.
Mark Puke, son of the founder of home-building giant Pulte Homes, passed when his turn
came, letting lawyers for Trump and Esptein bid against each other until the price hit $38.85
million.
Pulte then bid $39.1 million, briefly raising the ire of Trump, who believed that Puke had
given up his right to bid by passing the first time.
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But allowed the offer to stand, and Puke and Trump went back and forth until
Pulte dropped out at $41.1 million. Epstein, a part-time Palm Beach resident, bowed out at
$38.6 million.
closed the bidding 10 minutes after it started, leaving Trump with the right to buy
the 29.000-square-foot home (a typical Palm Beach County single-family house is about
2,200 square feet). The property also has a tennis house, a pool house and 1930s-era service
quarters.
The closing could take place within a week but probably won't happen until next month.
Trustee Joe Luzinski and creditors said they were pleased with the outcome.
"We knew we were dealing with some substantial people . who were going to bid it up a
bit," Luzinski said.
"The system worked," said Charles Tatelbaum, a lawyer for creditor JPMorgan Chase Bank.
"In bankruptcy court, the idea is to get the most for creditors, and that's what happened."
The auction proved to be a bonanza for creditors, Luzinski said, noting that the highest offer
former listing agent Sotheby's International Realty received was $32 million. Sotheby's won't
receive a commission, he said.
Pulte, 42, of Boca Raton, said he figured Trump wouldn't back down Monday.
"I got the feeling he was willing to go a lot higher, and I didn't want to chase it," Pulte said.
Puke said Gosman asked him before the auction whether he would be willing to let him stay
in the mansion after the closing until he decides where he wants to move. Trump and
Luzinski said they have had no such discussions with Gosman.
Gosman, 75, had the house built after paying $12.1 million for the land in 1986.
The former health-care magnate declined interview requests before and after the auction
Monday. He was at the courthouse but left before the auction took place.
The $41.35 million price tag eclipses the $30.35 million sale of Lowell "Bud" Paxson's Palm
Beach home and guest house but falls short of the $45 million that Virginia home builder
Dwight Schar paid for Ron Perelman's 26,000-square-foot estate, Casa Apava, a designated
landmark.
Schar also paid $18.6 million for a lakefront lot across the street from the main house, for a
total of $63.6 million. Insiders say Schar spent a total of $70 million for his new property,
making it the priciest residential sale in U.S. history.
Gasman once had a fortune that Forbes magazine estimated at $480 million. He voluntarily
filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2001, listing assets of $250 million and
liabilities of $233.6 million.
When a judge ruled that Gosman had to give up all of his exempt assets to creditors if he
wanted to reorganize under Chapter 11, Gosman converted the case to Chapter 7 liquidation.
Last year, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Larry Lessen ruled that Abe and Lin Gosman's marriage is
invalid because Florida law does not recognize a Dominican Republic divorce that Lin
Gosman tried to obtain from another man, Michael Castre.
The judge's decision was a huge victory for creditors because it prevents Abe Gosman from
protecting assets by claiming joint ownership with his wife. Gosman's assets, which include
an extensive collection of artwork, could total as much as $70 million and will be sold later.
Without Lessen's ruling, Luzinski would have had a much harder time selling Gosman's
estate, said David Cimo, special counsel for the trustee.
"We would have been thwarted . . . or at least substantially impaired." Cimo said.
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The trustee alleged during a weeklong trial in May that Gosman fraudulently gave his wife
an ownership interest in his home and other belongings only to avoid losing them in
bankruptcy. Gosman has denied any wrongdoing, saying he made the property transfers in
1999, well before he filed for bankruptcy.
Lessen is expected to rule in the next two months whether Gosman made improper transfers,
a decision that will affect how much money will be available to creditors.
Cimo acknowledged that Monday wasn't the best of days for the Gosmans but said they were
willing to move forward, in part because the upkeep of the estate now exceeds their means.
"This is not a happy occasion for them, but at least we're moving to the next level," Cimo
said. "That's not a house you want to live in unless you're making large amounts of money
like Donald Trump."
paul_owers®pbpost.com
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The Palm Beach Post REAL NEWS STARTS HERE
Indictment: Billionaire Solicited 3 Times Posted Jul 1, 2008 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 2, 2019 at 2:30 PM
(EDITOR S NOTE: This story originally published in The Palm Beach Post on July 25,
2006)
Billionaire money manager and Palm Beach pan -time resident Jeffrey E0tein
solicited or procured prostitutes three or more times between Aug. 1 and Oct. 31
of last year, according to an indictment charging him with felony solicitation of
prostitution.
Epstein, 53, was booked at the Palm Beach Coun
was released on $3,000 bond.
at at :45 a.m. Sunday. He
Epstein's case is unusual in that suspected bts2ttution johns are usually charged
with a misdemeanor, and even a felony charge is typically made in a criminal
information - an alternative to ate tnnent charging a person with the
commission of a crime.
c 1/4
His attorney, Jack Goldberg, declined to discuss the charge.
State attorney's offic p3kesman Mike Edmondson also had little to say.
"Generally speaieing, there is a case that has a number of different aspects to it,"
Edmondson said of a prostitution -related charge being submitted to a grand jury.
"We first became aware of the case months ago by Palm Beach police."
Prosecutors and police worked together to bring the case to the grand jury, he
said.
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Palm Beach police confirmed that and said the department will release a report
today regarding its investigation.
Epstein has owned a five-bedroom, 7 1/2-bath, 7,234-square-foot home with a
pool and a boat dock on the Intracoastal Waterway since 1990, according to
property records. A man answering the door there Monday said that Epstein
wasn't home. A Cadillac Escalade registered to him was parked in the driveway,
which is flanked by two massive gargoyles.
Epstein sued Property Appraiser Gary Nikolits in 2001, contending that the
assessment of his home exceeded its fair market value. He dismissed his lawsuit
in December 2002.
A profile of Epstein in Vanity Fair magazine said he owns what are believed to
be the largest private homes in Manhattan - 51,000 square feet - and in New
Mexico - a 7,500-acre ranch. Those are in addition to his 70-acre island in the
U.S. Virgin Islands and fleet of aircraft.
Epstein's friends and admirers, according to the magazine, include prominent
businessmen, academics and scientists and famed Harvard law professor Alan
Dershowitz.
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The Palm Beach Post REAL NEWS STARTS HERE
After long probe, billionaire faces solicitation
charge Posted Jul 27, 2006 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 3, 2019 at 3:11 PM
(EDITOR'S NOTE: This story originally published in The Palm Beach Post on July 26,
2W6)
Palm Beach billionaire Jeffrey Epstein paid to have underage girls and young
women brought to his home, where he received massages and sometimes sex,
according to an investigation by the Palm Beach Police Department.
Palm Beach police spent months sifting through Epstein's trash and watching his
waterfront home and Palm Beach International Airport to keep tabs on his
private jet. An indictment charging Epstein, 53, was unsealed Monday, charging
him with one count of felony solicitation of prostitution.
Palm Beach police thought there was probable cause to charge Epstein with
unlawful sex acts with a minor and lewd and lascivious molestation.
Police Chief Michael Reiter was so angry with State Attorney Barry Krischer's
handling of the case that he wrote a memo suggesting the county's top
prosecutor disqqcfy himself.
"I must urge you to examine the unusual course that your office's handling of this
matter has taken and consider if good and sufficient reason exists to require your
disqualification from the prosecution of these cases," Reiter wrote in a May 1
memo to Krischer.
While not commenting specifically on the Epstein case, Mike Edmondson,
spokesman for the state attorney, said his office presents cases other than
murders to a grand jury when there are questions about witnesses' credibility and
their ability to testify.
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By the nature of their jobs, police officers look at evidence from a "one-sided
perspective," Edmondson said. "A prosecutor has to look at it in a much broader
fashion," weighing the veracity of witnesses and how they may fare under
defense attorneys' questioning, he said.
Epstein's attorney, Jack Goldberger, said his client committed no crimes.
"The reports and statements in question refer to false accusations that were not
charged because the Palm Beach County state attorney questioned the credibility
of the witnesses," Goldberger said. A county grand jury "found the allegations
wholly unsubstantiated and not credible," and that's why his client was not
charged with sexual activity with minors, he said.
Goldberger said Epstein passed a lie detector test administered by a reputable
polygraph examiner in which he said he did not know the girls were minors.
Also, a search warrant served on Epstein's home found no evidence to
corroborate the girls' allegations, Goldberger said.
According to police documents:
- A Palm Beach Community Colle student said she gave Epstein a massage in
the nude, then brought him six gi es 14 to 16, for massage and sex-tinged
sessions at his home.
- A 27-year-old woman who worked as Epstein's personal assistant also
facilitated the liaisons, phoning the PBCC student to arrange for girls when
Epstein was coming to town. And she escorted the girls upstairs when they
arrived, putting fresh sheets on a massage table and placing massage oils nearby.
- Police took sworn statements from five alleged victims and 17 witnesses. They
contend that on three occasions, Epstein had sex with the girls.
A money manager for the ultra-rich, Epstein was named one of New York's most
eligible bachelors in 2003 by The New York Post. He reportedly hobnobs with
the likes of former President Clinton, former Harvard University President
Summers and Donald Trump, and has lavish homes in Manhattan,
New Mexico and the Virgin Islands.
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He has contributed tens of thousands of dollars to Democratic Party candidates
and organizations, including Sen. John Kerry's presidential bid, and the Senate
campaigns of Joen, Hillary Clinton,MIS Dodd and Charles
Schumer.
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Goldberger is one of five attorneys Epsteika retained since he became the
subject of an investigation, Edmondson said. Among the others: Alan
Dershowitz, the well-known Harvard law professor and author, who is a friend
of Epstein. Dershowitz could not be reached for comment.
Police said the woman who enlisted young girls for Epstein was
20, of= Palm Beach. has worked at an Olive Garden restaurant in
Wellington and said she was a journalism major at Palm Beach Community
College when she was questioned by police last October. She has an unlisted
phone number and could not be reached for comment.
a said she met Epstein when, at age 17, a friend asked her if she would like
to make money giving him a massage. She said she was driven to his five-
bedroom, 7 1/2 -bath home on the Intracoastal Waterway, then escorted upstairs
to a bedroom with a massage table and oils. Epstein and were both naked
during the massage, she said, but when he grabbed her buttocks, she said she
didn't want to be touched.
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Epstein said he'd pay her to bring him more girls - the younger the better,
= told police. When she tried once to bring a 23-year-old woman to him,
Epstein said she was too old, said.
=, who has not been charged in the case, said she eventually brought six
girls to Epstein who were paid $200 each time= said. I'm like a Heidi
Fleiss," police quoted her as saying. The girls knew what to expect when they
were taken to Epstein's home= said. Give a massage - maybe naked - and
allow some touching.
One 14-year-old girl= took to meet Epstein led police to start
investigation of him in March 2005. A relative of the girl called to s
thought the child had recently engaged in sex with a Palm Beach man. e girl
then got into a fight with a classmate who accused her of being a prostitute, and
she couldn't explain why she had $300 in her purse.
The girl gave police this account of her meeting with Epstein:
She accompanied= and a second girl to Epstein's house on a Sunday in
February 2005. Once there, a woman she thought was Epstein's assistant told the
girl to follow her upstairs to a room featuring a mural of a naked woman, several
photographs of naked women on a shelf, a hot pink and sofa and a massage
table.
She stripped to her bra and panties and gave him a massage.
Epstein gave the 14-year-old $300 and she and the other girls left, she said. She
said = told her that Epstein paid her $200 that day.
Other girls told similar stories. In most accounts, Epstein's personal assistant at
the time, , now 27, escorted the girls to Epstein's bedroom.
whose most recent known address is in North Carolina, has not been
charged in the case.
Palm Beach police often conducted surveillance of Epstein's home, and at Palm
Beach International Airport to see if his private jet was there, so they would
know when he was in town. Police also arranged repeatedly to receive his trash
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from Palm Beach sanitation workers, collecting papers with names and phone
numbers, sex toys and female hygiene products.
One note stated that a female could not come over at 7 p.m. because of soccer.
Another said a girl had to work Sunday - "Monday after school?" And still
another note contained the work hours of a girl, saying she leaves school at 11:30
a.m. and would come over the next day at 10:30 a.m.
Only three months before the police department probe began, Epstein donated
$90,000 to the department for the purchase of a firearms simulator, said Jane
Struder, town finance director. The purchase was never made. The mac was
C
returned to Epstein on Monday, she said. O
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Palm Beach Daily News
Police say lawyer tried to discredit teenage
girls Posted Jul 29, 2006 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 3, 2019 at 2:00 PM
(EDITOR'S NOTE: This story originally was published in The Palm Beads Pond)?
29, 2000
Famed Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz met with the Patin Beach County
State Attorney's Office and provided damaging information about teenage girls
who say they gave his client, Palm Beach billionaire Jeffrey T1pa sexually
charged massages, according to police reports.
'ClThe reports also state that another Epstein attorn‘reed to a plea bargain that
would have allowed Epstein to have no I‘cr iialrecord. His current attorney k
denies this happened.
I tAnd the documents also reveal tha e ather of at least one girl complained that
private investigators aggressively followed his car, photographed his home and
chased off visitors.
Police also talked to somebody who said she was offered money if she refused to
cooperate witI\ the Palm Beach Police Department probe of Epstein.
The scat alto office said it presented the Epstein case to a county grand
jury this month rather than directly charging Epstein because of concerns about
the girls' credibility. The grand jury indicted Epstein, 53, on a single count of
felony solicitation of prostitution, which carries a maximum penalty of five years
in prison.
Police believed there was probable cause to charge Epstein with the more serious
crimes of unlawful sex acts with a minor and lewd and lascivious molestation.
Police Chief Michael Reiter was so angry that he wrote State Attorney Barry
Krischer a memo in May suggesting he disqualify himself from the case.
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The case originally was going to be presented to the grand jury in February, but
was postponed after Dershowitz produced information gleaned from the Web
site myspace.com showing some of the alleged victims commenting on alcohol
and marijuana use, according to the police report prepared by Detective=
Recarey.
a 20-year-old =Palm Beach woman who told police she
recruited girls for Epstein, also is profiled on myspace.com. Her page includes
photos of her and her friends, including one using the name "Pimpin' Made EZ."
who was not charged in the case, is a potential prosecution witness.
According to Recarey, prosecutor Lanna Belohlavek offered Epstein attorneys
Dershowitz and Guy Fronstin a plea deal in April. Fronstin, after speaking with
Epstein, accepted the deal, in which Epstein would plead guilty to one count of
aggravated assault with intent to commit a felony, be placed on five years'
probation and have no criminal record. The deal also called for Epstein to submit
to a psychiatric and sexual evaluation and have no unsupervised visits with
minors, according to Recarey's report. The plea bargain was made in connection
with only one of the five alleged victims, the report states.
Fronstin - who declined to comment on the case - was subsequently fired and
veteran defense attorney Jack Goldberger was hired. He denies there was any
agreement by any of Epstein's attorneys to a plea deal.
"We absolutely did not agree to a plea in this case," he said. Neither Belohlavek
nor a state attorney's spokesman could be reached for comment.
The parent or parents of alleged victims who complained of being harassed by
private investigators provided license tag numbers of two of the men. Police
found the vehicles were registered to a private eye in West Palm Beach and
another in Jupiter, according to Recarey's report.
"I have no knowledge of it," defense attorney Goldberger said.
The report also says a woman connected to the Epstein case was contacted by
somebody who was still in touch with Epstein. That person told her she would
be compensated if she didn't cooperate with police, Recarey's report says. Those
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who did talk "will be dealt with," the woman said she was told. Phone records
show the woman talked with the person who allegedly intimidated her around
the time she said, Recarey reported.
Phone records also show that the person said to have made the threat then
placed a call to Epstein's personal assistant, who in turn called a New York
corporation affiliated with Epstein, the report states.
The issue in the Epstein case is not whether females came to his waterfront
home, but whether he knew their ages.
"He's never denied girls came to the house," Goldberger said. But when Ep.
was given a polygraph test, "he passed on knowledge of age," the attorney said.
After the indictment against Epstein was unsealed this week, Police Chief Reiter
referred the matter to the FBI. "We've received the referral, and we're reviewing
it," said FBI spokeswoman Judy Orihuela in Miami.
The chief himself has come under attack from Epalawyers and friends in
New York, where he has a home. The New York Post quoted Epstein's
prominent New York lawyer, Gerald Lefcourt, as saying his client was indicted
only "because of the craziness of the police chief."
Reiter has declined to comment on the case.
Prosecutors have not presented a sex-related case like Epstein's to a grand jury
before, said Mike Edmondson, spokesman for the state attorney's office. "That's
what you do with a case that falls into a gray area: he said.
The state attorney's office did not recommend a particular criminal charge on
which to indict Epstein, Edmondson said. The grand jury was presented with a
list of charges from highest to lowest, then deliberated with the prosecutor out of
the room, he said.
"People are surprised at the grand jury proceeding," West Palm Beach defense
attorney Richard Tendler said. "It's a way for the prosecutor's office to not take
the full responsibility for not filing the (charge), and not doing what the Palm
Beach Police Department wanted. I think something fell apart with those
underage witnesses."
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Defense attorney Robert Gershman was a prosecutor for six years. "Those girls
must have been incredible or untrustworthy, I don't know," he said.
Other attorneys said Epstein's case raises the issue of whether wealthy, connected
defendants like Epstein - whose friends include former President Clinton and
Donald Trump - are treated differently from others. Once he knew he was the
subject of a criminal probe, Epstein hired a phalanx of powerful attorneys such as
Dershowitz and Lefcourt, who is a past president of the National Association of
Criminal Defense Lawyers.
Miami lawyer Roy Black - who became nationally known when he su N e fully
defended William Kennedy= on a rape charge in Palm Beacl a
c ts
involved at one point.
C Said defense attorney= Suskauer: "I think it's unfortunate the public may
get the perception that with power, you may be treated differently than the
average Joe."
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EFTA02734084
The Palm Beach Post REAL NEWS STARTS KERE
Expert: Ignorance of age isn't
defense in sex cases Posted Aug 5, 2006 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 3, 2019 at 1:38 PM
(EDITOR'S NOTE: This story originally published in The
Palm Beach Post on Aug. 5, 2006)
Even if Palm Beach money manager Jeffrey Epstein didn't
know that girls who police say gave him sexual massages at
his Intracoastal home were under the legal age, that alone
wouldn't have exempted him from crimin cha ges of
sexual activity with minors.
\tob"Ignorance is not a valid defense,"iad elde, a legal
skills professor who was a Lake City prosecutor for nearly
30 years, half of that time specializing in sex crimes against
children.
"There is no knowledge element as far as the age is
concerned," Dekle said.
After an 11-month investigation, Palm Beach police said
there was probable cause to charge Epstein, 53, with
unlawful sex acts with a minor and lewd and lascivious
molestation. They contend that Epstein - friend of the rich
and famous and financial patron of Democratic Party
organizations and candidates - committed those acts with
five underage girls.
In the past week, New York Attorney General and
gubernatorial candidate Eliot Spitzer has returned about
$50,000 in campaign contributions he received from
Epstein, and Mark , a candidate to replace Spitzer in
EFTA02734085
his current job, has returned S10,000 to him because of the
Palm Beach scandal, the New York Daily News has
reported.
Rather than file charges, the state attorney's office
presented the case to a county grand jury. The panel
indicted Epstein last week on a single, less serious charge of
felony solicitation of prostitution.
The case raised eyebrows because the state attorney's office
rarely, if ever, kicks such charges to a grand jury. And it
increases the difficulty of prosecuting child sex abuse cases;
especially when the defendant is enormously wealthy
can hire high-priced, top-tier lawyers.
At least one of Epstein's alleged victims told police he knew
she was underage when the two of them got naked for
massages and sexual activity. She was 16 years old at the
time and said Epstein asked her questions about her high
school, according to police r
A girl who said she met E when she was 15 said he
told her if she told anybody what happened at his house,
bad things could happen, the police reports state.
+ My daughter has kept a lot of what happened from me
because of sheer embarrassment," he said. "But she very
much looked 14. Any prudent man would have had second
thoughts about that."
Epstein's youngest alleged victim was 14 when she says she
gave him a massage that included some sexual activity. She
is now 16. The girl's father says he doesn't know whether
she told Epstein her age.
Defense attorney Jack Goldberger maintains that not only
did Epstein pass a polygraph test showing he did not know
the girls were minors, but their stories weren't credible.
The state attorney's office also implied that their credibility
was an issue when it decided not to charge Epstein directly,
but instead give the case to the grand jury.
EFTA02734086
"A prosecutor has to look at it in a much broader fashion," a
state attorney's spokesman said last week.
L
Epstein hired Harvard law Professor Alan bershowitz
when he became aware he was under investigation, and
Dershowitz gave prosecutors information that some of the
alleged victims had spoke of using alcohol and marijuana on
a popular Web site, according to a Palm Beach police
report.
Prosecutors typically consider two things in deciding
whether to charge somebody with sex-related offenses
against minors - whether there is sufficient evidence and
whether there is a public interest in doing so, Dekle said.
If two teens are in a sexual relationship and the boy turns
18 before the girl, he could be charged with a sex crime if
the sex continues. There would be no public interest in
pursuing that, Dekle said.
But where there is a large gap in ages - and especially in
cases of teachers with students - there is a public interest in
prosecuting, he said. Likewise if the accused has a track
record of sex with minors.
EFTA02734087
Still there is a "universal constant" in prosecuting these
cases, Dekle said. Men who exploit underage children for
sex often carefully choose their victims in ways that will
minimize the risk to them, he said.
Victims usually are from a lower social status, and they may
suffer from psychological problems, Dekle said.
"Lots of child sexual abuse victims have been victimized by
multiple people over a period of time. Then the act of abuse
produces behavior in the victims that further damages their
credibility? Examples include promiscuous behavior and
drug abuse.
Some of the alleged victims in the Epstein case returned to
his home multiple times for the massage sessions and the
$200 to $300 he typically paid them per visit. "That would
be a definite problem for the prosecutor,* said Betty Resch,
who prosecuted crimes against children in Palm Beach
County for five years and novyisyg private practice in Lake
Worth.
c ase"The victim becomes less ympathetic" to a jury, Resch said.
"But she's a victim nevertheless. She's a kid."
Most men charged with sex crimes against minors look
normal, Dekle said. A jury expecting to see a monster
seldom will. And the victims' ages work against them and in
favor of the defendant in a trial, Dekle said.
If a child and an adult tell different stories and both swear
they're telling the truth, adult jurors are more likely to
believe the adult, nettle said.
"You have all these things working against you in a child
sex abuse case. Prosecutors normally try to be very careful
in filing those cases because they know what they're getting
into. There is no such thing as an iron-clad child sexual
abuse case."
EFTA02734088
The Palm Beach Post Pik IDS STORM ERE
Epstein camp calls female accusers
liars Posted Aug 8, 2006 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 3, 2019 at 3:35 PM
(EDITOR'S NOTE: This story originally published in The
Palm Beach Post on Aug. 8, 2006)
Attorneys and publicists for Palm Beach financier Jeffr
Epstein went on the offensive Monday, contending tha
teenage girls who have accused Epstein of sexual
shenanigans at his waterfront home are liars and saying
that the Palm Beach Police Department is "childish?
"There never was any sex between Jeffrey Epstein and any
underage women," his lead attorney, Jack Goldberger, said
from Idaho where he was vacationing with his family.
Epstein did have young women come to his house to give
him massages, Goldberger said. "Mr. Epstein absolutely
insisted anybody who came to his house be over the age of
18. How he verified that, I don't know. The question is, did
anything illegal occur. The law was not violated here."
He had no explanation as to why Epstein would pay girls or
women with no massage training - as the alleged victims
said was the case - $200 to $300 for their visits. "The
credibility of these witnesses has been seriously
questioned: Goldberger said.
Epstein, 53, was indicted by a county grand jury last month
on a charge of felony solicitation of prostitution. After an
11-month investigation that included sifting through
Epstein's trash and surveilling his home, Palm Beach police
concluded there was enough evidence to charge him with
sexual activity with minors. When the grand jury indicted
EFTA02734089
Epstein on the less serious charge, Police Chief Michael
Reiter referred the case to the FBI to determine whether
there were federal law violations.
After a spate of stories about the case last week, New York
publicist Dan Klores - whose client list has included Paris
Hilton and Jennifer - said on Saturday that Epstein's
camp was ready "to get their story out."
They did that Monday via Goldberger and a Los Angeles
publicist for Miami criminal defense attorney Roy Black, .AL,
who also has represented Epstein in the case.
IS'
"We just think there has been a distorted view of thisce
in the media presented by the Palm Beach police,"
Goldberger said.
Reiter has consistently declined to conkekty the case
and did not respond to a request r comment Monday.
The implication that State Attorney Barry Krischer was
easy on Epstein by presenting the case to a grand jury
rather than filing charges directly against him is wrong,
Goldberger said.
EFTA02734090
The Palm Beach Police Department was "happy and
ecstatic" that the panel was going to review the evidence. "I
think what happened is they weren't happy with the result.
They decided to use the press to embarrass Mr. Epstein."
But records show that Reiter wrote Krischer on May I -
well before the case went to the grand jury - suggesting that
Krischer "consider if good and sufficient reason exists to
require your disqualification from the prosecution of these
Rather than flat-out decline to charge Epstein, Krischer 4,41
cases."
referred the case to the grand jury to "appease" the chie
Goldberger said.
)
A state attorney's spokesman would say only that the office
refers cases to the grand jury when there are issues with the
viability of the evidence or witnesses' credibility.
Both the state attorney and the grand jury concluded there
was not sufficient evidence that Epstein had sex with
minors, according to Goldberger. "It was just a childish
performance by the Palm Beach Police Department,"
Goldberger said.
The defense attorney said one of the alleged victims who
claimed she was a minor was in fact over the age of 18.
Another alleged victim who was subpoenaed to testify to
the grand jury failed to do so. Epstein's accusers, he added,
have histories of drug abuse and thefts. 'These women are
liars. We've established that."
But why would they all invent their stories about meeting
Epstein for sexual massages?
"I don't have an answer as to what was the motivation for
these women to come forward and make these allegations,"
Goldberger said.
EFTA02734091
News The Palm Beach Post (West Palm Beach, fl otilla) • 14 Aug 2006, Mon Page 7
Dawnloaded on Nov 11.2019
Palm 'Beath thief focus
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EFTA02734092
The Palm Beach Post REAL NEWS STARTS ME
Delays in Epstein case unusual,
lawyers say Posted Mar 13, 2007 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 3, 2019 at 3:48 PM
(EDITORS NOTE: This story originally published in The Palm Aic
Beach Post March 13, 2007)
A federal probe or a plea deal could explain the wait ineS
Palm Beacher's solicitation case.
Nearly eight months after Palm Beach tycoon Jeffrey
Epstein was charged with felony solicitation of prostitution,
there has been no discernible progress in his case. No
witnesses deposed. No trial date set. Nothing, save for
routine court hearings reset itliV explanation.
et"Usually that would b sual, said criminal defense
attorney Glenn Mitchell, ho has no involvement in the
case.
'As a general rule, it would be unusual for nothing to have
happened; agreed Michael Dutko, a criminal defense
attorney in Fort Lauderdale. He representsMa,
20, of Palm Beach, potentially a key witness in the
case.
A routine hearing for Epstein was pulled from the court
docket last week and reset for May 16. The delays and
inaction could be due to a potential federal probe of Epstein
or because a plea deal is in the works, attorneys say.
Unusual is the word that best describes everything about
the case against Epstein, 54, an enigmatic money manager
in New York City who counts Bill Clinton and Donald
Trump among his friends.
EFTA02734093
"Highly unusual" is how Palm Beach Police Chief Michael
Reiter described State Attorney Barry Krischer's handling
of the case in a bluntly critical letter to Krischer last year
before Epstein was indicted.
Reiter referred the matter to the FBI to determine whether
any federal laws had been violated. Epstein's allies
countered by attacking the chief personally and
professionally.
Reiter's department investigated Epstein for 11 months.
Police sifted repeatedly through his trash and conducted
surveillance on his five-bedroom, 7 1/2-bath, 7,234-sq
foot home on the Intracoastal Waterway.
Police said Epstein paid women and girls as young as 14 to
give him erotic massages at his home. Police thought there
was probable cause to charge him with unlawful sex acts
with a minor and lewd and lascivious molestation.
Epstein responded by hiring a phalanx of lawyers. One of
them, Harvard law professor and author Alan Dershowitz,
provided the state attorney's office with information about
alcohol and marijuana use by some of the girls who said
they were with Epstein.
Prosecutors then referred the case to the grand jury rather
charges directly against Epstein.
OpstAt.....\ ein's attorneys deny he had sex with underage girls.
The lawyers say the girls' stories are not credible. But if the
court file is any indicator, they've made no effort to depose
the girls.
Neither prosecutors nor defense attorneys have sought to
question , said Dutko, her attorney. She recruited
teenage girls to visit Epstein for massages and sexual
activity, Palm Beach police said, and presumably would be a
key witness.
EFTA02734094
Epstein's attorney Jack Goldberger did not return phone
messages.
A source close to the case suggested it is languishing
pending a decision by the FBI on whether to refer it to
federal prosecutors.
"We still have a pending case," FBI spokeswoman Judy
Orihuela said Monday.
State Attorney Krischer did not return a call for comment.
His spokesman, Mike Edmondson, declined to say whethe
Ofederal investigators are delaying the Epstein case. But,
added, "if another agency is looking at something,
wouldn't want to step on their toes."
Attorneys say inertia in a criminal case often points to a
pending plea deal.
/ 441/4.
"It would not surprise me if something has happened that's
not reflected in the court file," said Dutko, such as an
agreement that will be formalized later.
Defense attorney Marc Shiner said defense attorneys
sometimes put off overtly conducting discovery -- deposing
witnesses, requesting documents and the like -- because
doing so creates more work for harried prosecutors who
may become angry and not offer a plea deal.
"Sometimes defense lawyers, knowing that, will try and do
discovery without taking depositions," said Shiner, a former
prosecutor for 13 years.
Instead, they may conduct a below-the -radar probe such as
having a private investigator check out leads, he said.
Shiner and others say a plea deal for Epstein probably
would result in pretrial intervention, in which a defendant
may be ordered to undergo a psychological evaluation,
counseling or other conditions in return for dropping the
charge.
EFTA02734095
Edmondson, spokesman for State Attorney Krischer, said
there is no plea offer and no request for the prosecution to
show its cards.
"To my knowledge, it's never happened before on a filed
case," he said.
EFTA02734096
252 / 278 - Thursday, October 18, 2007
Edition: FINAL
Section: LOCAL.
Page: 5B
Source: The Associated Press
Illustration: PHOTO (B&W)
Memo: Ran all editions.
Dateline: NEW YORK
WOMAN SUES BILLIONAIRE INVESTOR, SAYS THEY HAD SEX WHEN SHE WAS 16
A billionaire investor, already facing jail in Palm Beach County on charges of soliciting underage
prostitutes, is being sued by a young woman who says he had sex with her when she was 16 and had
sought his help becoming a model.
The lawsuit, filed late Tuesday in Manhattan's state Supreme Court, says financier Jeffrey Epstein had
the teen perform a sex act when she brought photographs of herself for hint to review in his Upper
East Side mansion sometime in 2000.
Epstein, 54, a money manager, told the teen he managed fmances for Victoria's Secret and "could get
you into the catalog" if she were "nice" to him, court papers e papers say being "nice"
included maccages and other favors.
When the girl told Epstein, "I am 16 years old and just want model," he replied, "Don't worry, I
won't tell anybody," court papers say.
Epstein, said by London's Mail on Sunday to be a close friend of England's Prince Andrew, has been
indicted in Palm Beach on charges of soliciting underage prostitutes. That case is pending.
The girl visited Epstein "several times over the several months and engaged in bizarre and unnatural
sex acts" while she was a minor, the lawsuit says.
Epstein "repeatedly requested that (the girl) return with her 14-, 15-, and 16-year-old girlfriends.
stating, 'Come by with your friends your age next time. Don't bring Sherrie (a mutual friend in her
40s). I love girls your age.'"
The young woman, now 23, kept returning to Epstein because she has "mental issues," said her
lawyer, William I. Unroch. He refused to elaborate, but court papers say she was "disabled as a result
of severe mental disease and defect."
Epstein's lawyer in New York, Gerald Lefcourt, said, "The girl has admitted she is insane, but she can
read a newspaper and recognize the word 'rich.'"
Lefcourt also said the statute of limitations has expired for the woman's case criminally and civilly,
and will almost certainly be dismissed.
Ile refused to comment on Epstein's Florida charges.
Meanwhile, Unroch, 57, also acknowledged that his client was living with hint and was at the center
of a $10 million lawsuit he filed last year against a neighbor who said he was having sex with
underage girls. That case is pending.
"What she was doing at 22 is irrelevant to what happened to her when she was 16," Unroch said
Wednesday. He went on the say he hoped Epstein would agree to "do right" by his client and resolve
the case out of court.
EFTA02734097
The Palm Beach Post REAL, STARTS IRE
Palm Beacher pleads in sex case Posted Jul 1, 2008 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 3, 2019 at 1:47 PM
(EDITOR'S NOTE: This story originally published in The
Palm Beach Post on July 1, 2W8)
Jeffrey Epstein will serve 1 1/2 years on teen solicitation
charges.
He lives in a Palm Beach waterfront mansion and has kept
company with the likes of President Clinton, Prince
Andrew and Donald Trump, but investment banker Jeffrey
Epstein will call the Palm Beach Count}J i-h me for the
<c\
next 18 months.
Epstein, 55, pleaded guilty WS) , t felony solicitation of
prostitution and procuring a person under the age of 18 for
prostitution. After serving 18 months in jail, he will be
under house arrest for a year. And he will have a lifelong
obligation to register as a sex offender. He must submit to
an HIV test within 48 hours, with the results being
provided to his victims or their parents.
As part of the plea deal, federal investigators agreed to drop
their investigation of Epstein, which they had taken to a
grand jury, two law enforcement sources said.
Epstein was indicted two years ago after an 11-month
investigation by Palm Beach police. They received a
complaint from a relative of a 14-year-old girl who had
given Epstein a naked massage at his five-bedroom, 7,234-
square-foot, $8.5 million Intracoastal home.
Police concluded that there were several other girls brought
in 2004 and 2005 to an upstairs room at the home for
similar massages and sexual touching.
EFTA02734098
The indictment charged Epstein only with felony
solicitation of prostitution. The state attorney's office later
added the charge of procuring underage girls for that
purpose.
Prosecutor Lanna Belohlavek said of the plea: "I took into
consideration the length the trial would have been and
witnesses having to testify' about sometimes embarrassing
incidents.
Epstein may have made a serious mistake soon after he was
charged. He rejected an offer to plead guilty to one count of
aggravated assault with intent to commit a felony,
according to police documents. He would have gotten Ma.)
years' probation, had no criminal record and not hew)
registered sex offender, the documents indete.
Epstein arrived in court Monday with kasethree
attorneys. He wore a blue blazer, blue shirt, blue jeans and
and gray sneakers. After Circuit Judge Deborah Dale
Pucillo accepted the plea, he was fingerprinted. Epstein
then removed his blazer and was handcuffed for the trip to
jail while his attorneys tried to shield him from
photographers' lenses.
When he eventually is released to house arrest, Epstein will
have to observe a 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew, have no
unsupervised contact with anyone younger than 18 and
neither own nor possess pornographic or sexual materials
'that are relevant to your deviant behavior: the judge said.
Epstein will be allowed to leave home for work. The New
York-based money manager told the judge he has formed
the not-for-profit Florida Science Foundation to finance
scientific research. "I'm there every day: Epstein said.
The foundation was incorporated in November. Epstein
said he already has awarded money to Harvard and MIT.
EFTA02734099
When he is released from jail, there is a chance that Epstein
will be forced to move. Sex offenders are not allowed to live
within 1,000 feet of a school, park or other areas where
children may gather. No determination has been made as to
whether Epstein's home complies, but attorneys said it
likely does.
Sex offenders also typically must attend counseling sessions.
Belohlavek said that was waived for Epstein because his
private psychiatrist is working with him. The judge was
skeptical but agreed to it.
akAlk
Epstein's legal woes don't end with Monday's plea. The
arc four pending federal civil lawsuits and one in s
related to his behavior. At least one woman has su
New York, where he owns a 51,000-square,
mansion.
/SirciIt's validation of what we're sap vil cases," said
Miami attorney Jeffrey Her represents the alleged
victims in the federal laws t Palm Beach attorney
Ted Leopold represen eged victim in a civil suit in
state court. He sat pates amending that lawsuit to
add "a few othdr diem as well.
anhattan
Ir yIn the cri • case, police wcnt so far as to scour Epstein's
tras d c duct surveillance at Palm Beach International
A rp where they watched for his private jet so they
Id know when he was in town. They concluded that
+ pstein paid girls $200 to $300 each after the massage
sessions.
"I'm like a Heidi Fleiss," , now 22, told police
about her efforts in recruiting girls for Epstein.
There was probable cause to charge Epstein with unlawful
sex acts with a minor and lewd and lascivious molestation,
police concluded.
EFTA02734100
The state attorney's office said questions about the girls'
credibility led it to take the unprecedented step of
presenting the evidence against Epstein to a grand jury,
rather than directly charging him.
Palm Beach Police Chief Michael Reiter was furious with
State Attorney Barry Krischer, saying in a May 2006 letter
that the prosecutor should disqualify himself. "I continue to
find your office's treatment of these cases highly unusual,"
he wrote. He then asked for and got a federal investigation.
taS ,Epstein hired a phalanx of high-priced lawyers - including
aidHarvard law professor and author Alan Dershowitz -
public relations people who questioned Reiter's competenc
and the victims' truthfulness.
In addition to mansions in Palm Beach and Manhattan,
Epstein owns homes in New Mexico and the Virgin Islands.
He's a frequent contributor to Democratic Parry candidates.
He also donated $30 million Nard in 2003.
Former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer returned a $50,000
campaign contribution from Epstein after his indictment,
then resigned this year during his own sex scandal. And the
same Palm Beach Police Department that vigorously
investigated Epstein returned his $90,000 donation for the
purchase of a firearms simulator.
Staff writer Eliot Kleinberg and former staff researcher
Michelle Quigley contributed to this story.
EFTA02734101
The Palm Beach Post REAL NEWS swami
Jeffrey Epstein: Scientist,
stuntman, `sex slave' visit jailed
tycoon By LARR% / Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Posted Aug 13, 2008 at 12:01 AM
Updated Jul 16, 2019 at 4:54 PM
Tycoon Jeffrey Epstein mingled with an eclectic mix of
people, induding beautiful young women, before he g
into trouble for paying teenage girls to give him s
massages at his Palm Beach mansion.
Not much has changed, even though he now resides in a
dorm at the Palm Beach County Sheriffs Office's 17-acre,
967-bed stockade near the fairgrounds.
During his first month of confinement, Epstein was visited
by the female assistant who, girls told police, had escorted
them to the room at his mansion where they gave him
naked massages.
Also trekking to the jail was a young woman whom Epstein
purportedly described as his Yugoslavian sex slave.
The wealthy financier and science wonk also has been
visited by an expert on artificial intelligence, as well as a
man who is a mixed martial arts aficionado and sometime
movie stuntman.
The only other people to visit him at the jail, according to
records, are a Island man and an individual who
listed Epstein's Palm Beach address as his own.
Epstein, 55, pleaded guilty on June 30 to two prostitution -
related charges and was sentenced to 18 months in jail,
followed by a year of house arrest. Epstein paid teenage
EFTA02734102
girls $200 to $300 in 2004 and 2005 for massages in Ms
home that sometimes included sexual touching, Palm Beach
police said.
His jail visitors in July included:
- MEI 29, who some of the teen masseuses said
phoned them when Epstein was in town and escorted them
upon their arrival at his Palm Beach waterfront home to an
upstairs room, where she prepared the massage table and
provided the oils for their encounters with him.
visited Epstein three times in July, according to a jail
visitor's log. lists a Manhattan home address.
Reached by telephone, she declined to discuss Epstein.
23, whose family in Yugoslavia
Epstein paid money to so that he could bring her to the
United States to be his "sex slave," two teenage girls told
police. One girl told police that Epstein instructed
and her to kiss and have sex while he watched
and masturbated. Another said she engaged in sex with
at Epstein's urging. visited Epstein
in jail four times in 13 days. She lists her address as on the
Upper East side of Manhattan, not far from Epstein's
enormous apartment.
- Roger Schank, 62, founder of the Institute for Learning
Sciences at Northwestern University and an expert on
artificial intelligence, paid one visit to Epstein. Schank has
written numerous books on that subject and has a doctorate
degree from Yale University in linguistics. He was one of 19
people who applied to be president of Florida Atlantic
University in 2003. He became "chief learning officer° at the
online Trump University in 2005. Schank listed his address
as being in Stuart, and records show he also owns a home
in Lake Worth.
EFTA02734103
Epstein has financed a number of scientists over the years,
including Nobel Prize winners. He gave $30 million to
Harvard University in 2003. In November, he formed the
not -for-profit Florida Science Foundation, which he said
finances scientific research.
- Igor Zinoviev, a Russian mixed martial arts fighter, who
coaches a Chicago team in the International Fight League.
He also has worked as a personal trainer, celebrity
bodyguard and movie stuntman, according to the league's
Web site. The New Jersey resident visited Epstein seven
times in July.
Zinoviev, Schank and
comment.
could not be reached for
Staff researcher Niels Heimeriks contributed to this story.
4\ 9%1 I
.4
EFTA02734104
Palm Beach Daily News
Billionaire sex offender leaves jail
six days a week for work Posted Jul 1, 2008 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 4, 2019 at 9:27 AM
Palm Beath billionaire Jeffrey Epstein, who's serving 18
months in jail for soliciting an underage girl for
prostitution, is allowed to leave the Palm Beach County
Stockade six days a week on a work-release program.
Ted Barbera, spokeswoman for the Palm Beach County
Sheriffs Office, confirmed that Epstein, 55, has been in the
work -release program since Oct. 10.
"He works six days a week: Friday through Wednesday 10
a.m. to 10 p.m.," Barbera said via e-mail. "(He) works at his
local West Palm Beach office, monitored on an active GPS
system (he wears an ankle bracelet). Mr. Epstein hires a
permit deputy, at his expense, for his own security at his
workplace due g theinne he is out."
Miami attorney Jeffrey Herman represents six young
women who've sued Epstein, claiming he sexually abused
thettis Palm Beach home when they were minors.
He an said he received a letter about the work -release +
program from the U.S. Attorney's Office within the past
few days. But Herman says Epstein had been out on work-
release for several weeks before the notification.
"My clients expressed shock and disappointment," Herman
said. "I find it incredible that he's on work -release in the
community and my clients aren't notified of this and we get
this letter weeks after the fact."
Jack Goldberger, Epstein's criminal attorney, said the
EFTA02734105
arrangement is not unusual.
"He goes to work every single day and goes back to jail at
night, just like everybody else (in the program),"
Goldberger said.
Epstein pleaded guilty June 30 to two felony counts:
soliciting prostitution and procuring a person under 18 for
prostitution. As part of the plea agreement, Epstein must
serve one year of house arrest and register as a lifelong sex
offender.
EFTA02734106
The Palm Beach Post REAL *WS STARTS HIE
Women want Epstein sex plea deal
unsealed Posted Jul 1, 2008 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 2, 2019 at 2:23 PM
(EDITOR'S NOTE: This story originally published in The
Palm Beach Post June 10, 2009)
AS,Their attorneys will ask a judge to open Jeffrey Epstein'
records.
C )
When wealthy money manager Jeffrey Epstein of PAIS
Beach pleaded guilty last year to procuring teens for
prostitution, his case detoured around local, state rules
regarding the sealing of court doc erit,9 1s ,
At a plea conference on the traSharges, a judge, a defense
lawyer and a prosecutor huddled at the bench and decided
that a deal Epstein had struck with federal prosecutors to
avoid charges s ould be sealed, according to a transcript of
the hearing.
And so it
Butl ti orida rules of judicial administration, as well as rules
Ara (of the Palm Beach County court system, require public
notification that a court document has been or will be
sealed, meaning kept from public view. The rules also
require a judge to find a significant reason to seal, such as
protecting a trade secret or a compelling government
interest.
Yet no notification or reason occurred in Epstein's case,
according to court records.
EFTA02734107
Epstein's own attorneys, in federal filings, have referred to
his confidential deferred prosecution agreement with the
U.S. attorney's office, struck in September 2007, as
"unprecedented" and "highly unusual." And it was "a
significant inducement" for Epstein to accept the state's
deal, observed the state judge who accepted his plea,
County Judge Deborah Dale Pucillo.
Epstein now faces at least a dozen civil lawsuits in federal
and state courts filed by young women who said they had
sex with him and now are seeking damages.
Attorneys for some of those women want his agreement
with federal prosecutors unsealed and will ask Circuit Judge
Jeffrey Colbath to do so today.
"It is against public policy for these documents to be have
been sealed and hidden from public scrutiny. As a member
of the public, E.W. has a right to have these documents
unsealed: wrote former Circuit Judge Bill Berger, now in
private practice and representing one of the women.
The Palm Beach Post also will ask Colbath to unseal the
agreement. Post attorney Deanna Shulbnan will argue that
the public has a right to know the specifics of Epstein's deal.
According to various media accounts, Epstein moved in
circles that included President Clinton, Donald Trump and
Prince Andrew. "International Moneyman of Mystery,"
declared a 2002 New York magazine profile of Epstein.
Epstein, 56, is in the Palm Beach County Stockade, serving
an 18-month sentence after pleading guilty nearly a year
ago to felony solicitation of prostitution and procuring
teenagers for prostitution.
He is allowed out from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m., escorted by a
deputy, said Palm Beach County Sheriffs Office
spokeswoman Teri Barbera.
EFTA02734108
During a Palm Beach Police Department investigation, five
victims and 17 witnesses gave statements. They told of
young women brought by his assistants to Epstein's
mansion on El Brillo Way for massages and sexual activity,
and then being paid afterward.
At Epstein's plea conference last year, his attorney, Jack
Goldberger, and then-Assistant State Attorney Lanna
Belohlavek approached Pucillo in a sidebar conference.
Pucillo, who had left the bench nine years earlier, was
filling in temporarily as a senior judge.
According to a transcript, Goldberger told Pucillo that
Epstein had entered a confidential agreement with the U.S.
attorney's office in which federal prosecutors brokered not
pursuing charges against him if he pleaded guilty in state
court. Pucillo then said she wanted a sealed copy of the
agreement filed in his case, and Goldberger concurred that
he wanted it sealed. Belohlavek later signed off on it.
The Florida Supreme Court has expressed "serious concern"
and launched an all-out inquiry into sealing procedures
across the state following media reports in 2006 of entire
cases being sealed and disappearing from court records.
"The public's constitutional right of access to court records
must remain inviolate, and this court is fully committed to
safeguarding this right," justices wrote in their final report.
Epstein's office on Tuesday referred any questions to
Goldberger, who declined to comment. Pucillo also has
declined to comment.
EFTA02734109
The Palm Beach Post REAL WM STARTS HERE
Epstein secret pact with Feds
reveals "highly unusual" terms Posted Jun 10.2009 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 4, 2019 at 9:23 AM
(EDITOR'S NOTE: This story originally published in The
Palm Beach Post on September 19, 2009)
A secret non-prosecution agreement multimillionaire
financier Jeffrey Epstein struck with federal prosecutors is
being called "highly unusual" by former federal prosecutors
and downright outrageous by attorneys no}I(repggsenting
young women who serviced him.
<l)The deal reveals that the FBI and cheat- c ttorney's Office
investigated him for several federal crimes, including
engaging minors in commercial sex. The crimes are
punishable by anywhere from 10 years to life in prison.
But federal prosecutors backed down and agreed to recall
grand jury subpoenas if Epstein pleaded guilty to
prostitution -related felonies in state court, which he
ultimately did. He received an 18-month jail sentence, of
which he served 13 months.
The U.S. Attorney's Office also agreed not to charge any of
Epstein's possible co-conspirators:
Lesley Groff and
The deal was negotiated in part by heavyweight New York
criminal defense attorney Gerald Lefcourt.
Unsealed on Friday after attorneys for some of Epstein's
victims and The Palm Beach Post sought its release, it offers
the first public look at the deal Epstein's high-powered legal
counsel brokered on his behalf.
EFTA02734110
Marti of Stuart, a former federal prosecutor,
described the disparity in potential sentences as unusual,
but even more so a provision on attorney payment.
The first draft of the agreement in September 2007
required that Epstein pay an attorney -- tapped by the U.S.
Attorney's Office and approved by Epstein -- to represent
some of the victims. That attorney is prominent Miami
lawyer Bob Josefsberg.
But an addendum to the agreement signed the following
month struck Epstein's duty to pay Josefsberg if he and the
victims did not accept settlements -- capped at $150
and instead pursued lawsuits.
M t said it appears the government was trying to
balance the lesser sentence for Epstein with recovering
$150,000 for each victim. "I've never, ever seen anything
like that in my life," he said. "It's highly unusual.'
The deal does not say whether any victims were contacted
or consulted before the deal was made.
Attorney Brad Edwards of Fort Lauderdale, who represents
three of the young women, believes that none of the 30 to
40 woman identified as victims in the federal investigation
were told ahead of time._ said his clients received
letters from the U.S. Attorney's Office months after the deal
°signed, assuring them Epstein would be prosecuted.
+ "Never consulting the victims is probably the most
outrageous aspect of it," said. "It taught them that
someone with money can buy his way out of anything. It's
outrageous and embarrassing for United States Attorney's
Office and the State Attorney's Office."
Epstein now faces many civil lawsuits filed by the women,
who are represented by a variety of attorneys. In many, the
allegations are the same: that Epstein had a predilection for
teenage girls, identified poor, vulnerable ones and used
EFTA02734111
other young women to lure them to his Palm Beach
mansion. They walked away with between $200 and
$1,000.
Former Circuit Judge Bill Berger, also representing victims,
called the agreement a "sweetheart deal."
"Why was it so important for the government to make this
deal?" Berger asked rhetorically. "We have not yet had an
honest explanation by any public official as to why it was
made ... and why the victims were sold down the river."
Former federal prosecutor Ryon McCabe described the
agreement as "very unorthodox." Such agreements, he
are usually reserved for corporations, not individt
"It's very, very rare. I've never seen or heardra
procedure that was set up here," said Mctibe t who has no
involvement in any Epstein litiga
"He's essentially avoiding f ution because he
can afford to pay that many lawyers to help those victims
review their cases. ... If a person has no money, he couldn't
be able to strike a deal like this and avoid federal
prosecution."
The backroom deal with federal prosecutors is all the more
interesting in light of the legal powerhouses who have
worked for Epstein, including Harvard professor Alan
Dershowitz and Bill Clinton investigator Kenneth Starr.
Lefcourt is a past president of the National Association of
Criminal Defense Lawyers.
Epstein's local defense attorney, Jack Goldberger, issued a
statement Friday saying he had fought the release of the
sealed agreement to protect the third parties named there.
"Mr. Epstein has fully abided by all of its terms and
conditions. He is looking forward to putting this difficult
period in his life behind him. He is continuing his long-
standing history of science philanthropy."
EFTA02734112
The investigation triggered tensions between police and
prosecutors, with then -Palm Beach Chief Michael Reiter
saying in a May 2006 letter to then -State Attorney Barry
Krischer that the chief prosecutor should disqualify himself.
"1 continue to find your office's treatment of these cases
highly unusual," Reiter wrote. He then asked for and got
the federal investigation that ended in the sealed deal.
"The Jeffrey Epstein matter was an experience of what a Ai
many-million -dollar defense can accomplish," Reiter told AL
the Palm Beach Daily News upon his retirement.
,S P
O'S
EFTA02734113
187 / 278 - Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Edition: FINAL
Section: LOCAL & BUSINESS
Page: 3B
Source: By JANE MUSGRAVE Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Dateline: WEST PALM BEACH
JUDGE RULES EPSTEIN ATTORNEYS CAN SUBPOENA ABORTION RECORDS
In a decision that could spark a constitutional showdown over privacy rights, a judge
Tuesday gave lawyers representing multimillionaire sex offender Jeffrey Epstein the right to
subpoena abortion records from women who are seeking millions in damages from the part-
time Palm Beach resident.
Palm Beach County Circuit Judge Donald Hafele said the records could help Epstein rebut
the women's claims that they suffered psychological ills after being paid to give him
sexually-charged massages at his Palm Beach mansion when they were as young as 14.
Hafele told Epstein's attorneys they couldn't go on a fishing expedition. The medical records,
he said, can't be sought until the women are asked whether they have ever had an abortion,
how many and where. Further, he said, the records ould not be made public and might not
be admissible during trial.
But, he said, since the women claim Epstein, no 7, responsible for their emotional
distress, his attorneys can explore the impact of other events. Medical records. Hafele said,
are a better source of information than a person's memory.
Attorney Louis Silver, who represents the Presidential Women's Health Center, a West Palm
Beach clinic where abortions are performed, warned Hafele that he was stepping on shaky
constitutional grounds.
"These records are protected by our constitutional right of privacy," he said, referring to the
Florida Constitution.
After the hearing, Silver said an appeal won't be necessary until Epstein attorneys seek the
records.
In another ruling Wednesday, Hafele also said that videos from depositions in the state cases
can't be released without a court order. The ruling came after Epstein attorney Robert Critton
complained that a video of Epstein being asked whether he had an "egg-shaped" penis
became a youtube.com sensation. It first appeared on The Palm Beach Post Web site.
Critton blamed attorney Spencer Kuvin for releasing it. Kuvin said it was public record.
The civil suits began mourning after Epstein agreed to plead guilty to two state charges:
procuring a minor for prostitution and soliciting prostitution. Ile served 13 months of an 18-
month sentence. As part of the deal brokered with federal prosecutors, he agreed not to
contest the accusations in the civil lawsuits. He can argue the women don't deserve the
millions they are seeking.
[Email Redacted]
EFTA02734114
The Palm Beach Post REAL NEWS STARTS HERE
Epstein Journal's Findings Could
Resurrect Case By Jane Musgrave
Posted Sep 17, 2019 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 1, 2019 at 10:51 AM
(EDITOR'S NOTE: This story originally published in The
Palm Beach Post on March 20, 2010)
A purloined journal that is said to contain the names of
"hundreds" of victims of convicted sex offender Jeffrey
Epstein could be used to reopen the investigation into the
multi-millionaire's appetite for teenage girls, an attorney
representing seven of the victims said Friday.
New details about the contents of the journal were released
this week when Alfredo Rodriguez, who worked as a
property manager for the Palm Beach resident, pleaded
guilty to obstruction of justice for lying to federal agents
when asked if he had any information about his former
boss' criminal activity. He later tried to sell the journal he
stole from Epstein for $50,000 to an unidentified person,
who alerted authorities, according to court records.
As part of the plea agreement, federal prosecutors said the
journal "contains information material to the Epstein
investigation, including the names of material witnesses
and additional victims."
"Had the items been produced in response to the inquiries
of state or federal authorities ... the materials would have
been presented to the federal grand jury," federal
prosecutors wrote.
EFTA02734115
Instead, prosecutors short-circuited the grand jury
investigation and cut a deal with Epstein. They agreed not
to pursue federal charges if he didn't contest prostitution -
related felonies in state court. The money manager pleaded
guilty in July 2008 to procuring a minor for prostitution
and soliciting prostitution. He served 13 months of an 18-
month sentence.
Attorney Adam Horowitz, who represents seven of the
roughly 18 women who have filed civil suits against
Epstein, said the new information could trump the so-
called non -prosecution agreement.
The multifaceted agreement, he said, deals only with a
specific list of victims that the U.S. Attorney's Office knew
about when it penned the deal in 2007. If additional victims
are listed in the journal Rodriguez stole, Horowitz said
federal prosecutors could reopen the investigation.
"It opens the door for further r vion,' he said. ( 1,6
In addition to turning twit the urnal to federal agents,
Rodriguez told them he knew his former boss was having
sex with underage girls when he worked for him in 2004
and 2005. He had seen naked girls, who looked like minors,
in the pool of Epstein's $8.6 million mansion. He had seen
pornographic images of young girls on Epstein's computer,
a&ording to court records.
0
ara\Neither Epstein's criminal defense attorney, Jack
Goldberger, nor attorney Robert Critton, who represents
Epstein in the civil lawsuits, could be reached. Federal
prosecutors have consistently declined comment.
The wording of the controversial agreement is unclear. It
says federal prosecutors would provide Epstein's attorneys
"with a list of individuals whom it has identified as victims."
Miami attorney Robert Josefsberg was appointed to
EFTA02734116
represent any of the victims on the list who wanted to
pursue Epstein in civil court. As part of the agreement,
Epstein is to pay for Josefsberg to represent the women.
Some of the women, most identified as Jane Doe in
lawsuits, had already hired attorneys to represent them.
Some have since settled their suits with Epstein, although
terms were not disclosed.
Horowitz said he has filed court papers to get the journal
that Rodriguez stole. "It's another piece of evidence that
shows our clients were at Epstein's mansion," he said.
Rodriguez told prosecutors he didn't turn over the journal
when both FBI and Palm Beach police asked for it because
he wanted money for it. He also said he was afraid Epstein
would make him "disappear." The information, he told
investigators, was his "insurance policy."
He faces a maximum 20 years in prison when he is
sentenced on June 18.
[Email Redacted]
@pbpcourts
EFTA02734117
The Palm Beach Post REAL NEWS SHIRTS HERE
Epstein paid three women $5.5 million to end underage-
sex lawsuits By Jane Musgrave
Posted Oct 3, 2017 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 4, 2017 at 12:46 AM
Ending years of speculation about how much Palm Beach billionaire Jeffrey Epstein paid young
women who claimed he used them as sex toys, court documents filed last week show he shelled
out $5.5 million to settle lawsuits with three of more than two dozen teens who sued him.
Responding to requests from Epstein's attorneys in a complex lawsuit that was spawned by the
sex scandal, attorneya said the politically-connected 64-year-old convicted sex
offender paid more than $1 million to each of the r ma gmenM represented. si; ,
‘ Identified in court papers only by their initi r pseudonyms because of the nature of the
allegations and their youthful ages, L.M. was paid $1 million, E.W. $2 million and Jane Doe
$2.5 million,M said of the settlements he negotiated with Epstein to end the lawsuits.
Jack Goldberger, one of Epstein's criminal defense attorneys, on Tuesday declined comment on
the revelations, citing confidentiality agreements that were part of the settlements. For the
same reason, he declined to say whether Epstein paid similar amounts to settle roughly two
dozen lawsuits filed by other young women against Epstein, claiming he paid them for sex
when some were as young as 14 years old.
Attorney Jack Scarola, who is representing , said his client was compelled to divulge
the confidential settlements to answer questions posed by Epstein's attorneys. "Brilliant move
on their part," he said.
Even if Epstein's attorneys hadn't opened the door, Scarola said the information would have
likely come out. He says the information will help him undermine Epstein's claims that
"ginned up" the allegations to help his former law partner, imprisoned and disbarred
Fort Lauderdale lawyer Scott Rothstein, perpetuate a $1.2 billion Ponzi scheme.
EFTA02734118
The revelations of the settlements came as part of an ongoing lawsuit that started as a dispute
between Epstein and Rothstein, both billionaires.
A year after Epstein in 2008 pleaded guilty to solicitation of prostitution and procuring a
minor for prostitution, he sued Rothstein and 1_ claiming they trumped up the
allegations of sexual molestation to perpetuate the Ponzi scheme.
Rothstein was sentenced to 50 years in prison in 2010 after admitting he had built his wildly
successful law firm by forging the names of federal judges and others to persuade investors he
had negotiated settlements in lawsuits against high-profile people. Investors were told they
could get a cut of the cash.
One of the high-profile people Rothstein used to lure investors was Epstein, according to a
lawsuit West Palm Beach attorney Robert Critton filed on Epstein's behalf. According to the
lawsuit, Rothstein told investors Epstein, a money manager, had agato settle the lawsuits
with the teens for $200 million — a claim Critton described as "a complete fabrication."
After Epstein dropped the lawsuit in 2012, Edwards turned the tables on him. accused
Epstein of filing the lawsuit maliciously to punish him for representing the young women.
Although
no evidence
was a partner in Rothstein's now defunct firm, Scarola claims Epstein had
was involved in the Ponzi scheme. Federal prosecutors successfully
charged other attorneys and members of the firm, but was never implicated, Scarola
said in the malicious prosecutiozkwsuit.
The revelations about the Epstein paid to three of the young woman came last week in
documents filed fore , Sean Tuesday in preparation for a December trial on the lawsuit.
S
y
Attorney Tonja Haddad Coleman, who represents Epstein, on Tuesday sought a delay of the
trial, in part, because she claimed she has been unable to talk to her client since his estate on his
private island in the U.S. Virgin Islands was devastated last month by Hurricane Irma. "I've had
no ability to communicate with Mr. Epstein," she said.
EFTA02734119
Pointing out Epstein's enormous wealth and his private jet, Palm Beach County Circuit Judge
Donald Hafele rejected her request. While saying he didn't want to appear insensitive to those
victimized by the storm that hammered the Caribbean and roared through South Florida, he
said Coleman offered no proof, such as an affidavit from Epstein, to shore up her claims.
Still, Hafele gave Coleman extra time to respond to various motions that he will have to decide
before the case goes to trial.
Despite Scarola's insistence that had nothing to do with Rothstein's Ponzi scheme,
Coleman said the evidence indicates otherwise. Why else would he try to depose Epstein's
well-known friends, such as now President Donald Trump, former President Bill Clinton and
illusionist David Copperfield, she asked. He used the celebrities as a draw, she said.
"The Epstein cases were used to fleece money and defraud investors,' she said.
Edward's malicious prosecution case has been difficult for both sides because both Epstein and
a have refused to answer questions. As he did in the civil lawsuits, Epstein has invoked
his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination when questioned by Scarola.=
has claimed that much of the information Epstein is seeking is protected by attorney-client
privilege.
The malicious prosecution lawsuit is one of two hotly-contested lawsuits that continue to pit
against Epstein. also is suing the U.S. attorney's office, claiming it violated
the federal Crime Victims Rights Act when it negotiated a non-prosecution agreement with
Epstein.
Only after federal prosecutors agreed to drop their investigation of Epstein, did he agree to
plead guilty to two prostitution charges in Palm Beach County Circuit Court. In federal court
records, prosecutors claim one of the key reasons they agreed to drop their case was Epstein's
agreement to settle lawsuits filed against him by dozens of his underage victims.
EFTA02734120
Palm Beach Daily News
Judge rules feds' agreement with
Jeffrey Epstein pact violated teen
victims' rights By Jane Musgrave
Posted Sep 17, 2019 at 4:02 PM
Updated Oct 8, 2019 at 12:31 PM
Act e(EDITOR'S NOTE: This story originally published in The
Palm Beach Post on February 22, 2019)
3/4Federal prosecutors violated the rights of Jeffrey E C einis
teenage victims by failing to reveal they had dropped plans
to prosecute the billionaire on dozens of federal charges in
connection with the girls' claims that he paid them for sex
at his Palm Beach mansion, U.S. District Judge Kenneth
Marra ruled on Thursday.
0
In a blistering 33-page ruling, Marra meticulously and
methodically detailed the numerous steps federal
prosecutors took to hide the agreement from more than 40
young women who claim Epstein paid them for sex when
they were iyoung as 14.
the government spent untold hours negotiating the
terms and implications of the NPA with Epstein's attorneys,
scant information was shared with the victims," Marra
wrote. "Instead, the victims were told to be 'patient' while
the investigation proceeded."
By then, it was too late. A deal had already been cut with
then -South Florida U.S. Attorney Alex Acosta and Epstein's
attorneys to shelve a 52-page federal indictment against
Epstein, a former math teacher turned money manager
who counts Presidents Donald Trump and Bill Clinton
among his friends.
EFTA02734121
Prosecutors' failure to alert the young women about the
deal violated the Crime Victims' Rights Act, Marra ruled.
"At a bare minimum the (act) required the government to
inform (the young women) that it intended to enter into an
agreement not to prosecute Epstein," he wrote.
Still, Marra said he wasn't second-guessing prosecutors'
decision not to pursue Epstein on federal charges if he
pleaded guilty to minor state prostitution charges and
agreed to compensate his victims for the trauma he caused.
"The court is not ruling that the decision not to prosecute
was improper," Marra wrote. "The court is simply ruling
that, under the facts of this case, there was a violation under
the CVRA."
Further, he made no decision about what the remedy
should be. He gave prosecutors and attorneys representing
the young women 15 days to meet to decide how to unravel
the complex legal web that has been hanging over Epstein
and his young victims for more than a decade.
The chances an accord will be reached are slim, said
attorney Jack Scarola, who is representing the two Jane
Does who challenged the prosecutors' actions.
Further, he said, there is no road map to follow. The
lawsuit attorney filed on behalf of the two
unidentified young women, claiming prosecutors violated
the federal act, is unique, he said.
"We are treading on virgin ground, to use what is probably
an inappropriate phrase in this situation," he said.
Scarola said he and will ask that the non-
prosecution agreement be thrown out. That would open
the possibility that the long-shelved federal indictment
could be dusted off and filed against the 66-year-old
Epstein, who spends most of his time on a private island he
owns in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
EFTA02734122
"I don't see the government conceding to that remedy,"
Scarola admitted. Further, he said, it is likely Epstein will be
allowed to weigh in. Miami attorney Roy Black years ago
filed papers asking to intervene on Epstein's behalf.
The U.S. Attorney's Office said it wouldn't comment on
Marra's ruling. Neither Black nor New York City attorney
Jay Lefkowitz, who led efforts to bury the federal
indictment, responded to emails or phone calls for
comment. West Palm Beach attorney Jack Goldberger, who
represents Epstein, also didn't respond.
Scarola said it is likely Epstein's star-studded legal team will
argue that Epstein fully complied with the terms of the
agreement he made in 2007 with federal prosecutors and
therefore the agreement can't be undone.
As he promised, Epstein pleaded guilty in June 2008 to state
charges of soliciting a minor for prostitution and soliciting
prostitution. He served 13 months of an 18-month jail term
in a vacant wing of the county stockade that he was allowed
to leave 12 hours a day, six days week.
Further, as agreed, he paid settlements to the young women
who sued him. While the settlements were confidential,
court records show he paid three women a total of $5.5
million.
In return, federal prosecutors held up their end of the
bargain. Their investigation ceased.
Having done all that prosecutors asked of him, Scarola said
Epstein will make a simple argument: "You can't turn
around and deprive me of the benefits I bargained for."
However, Scarola said, using Marra's ruling, he will counter
that the contract Epstein signed was illegal and therefore
unenforceable.
EFTA02734123
Even if Marra agrees to toss out the non-prosecution
agreement, Scarola conceded that doesn't mean Epstein will
face federal charges.
"The contract can be set aside and the federal government
can attempt to enter into the same agreement," he said.
"Except the spotlight of public attention will be on them
and the 40 victims will be able to explain to the court why
this sweetheart deal should not be approved."
Scarola said that prosecutors may have had good reason not
to pursue Epstein. "There may be a reasonable explanationAS
but we don't know what that reason may have been," h
said.
In court papers, federal prosecutors have said that many of
the young women were afraid to cross the powerful,
politically connected money manager and simply refused to
testify against him.
In other cases, they said, the women changed their stories.
Jane Doe 2, who is trying to have the non-prosecution
agreement thrown out, initially described Epstein as "an
awesome man" and told prosecutors she hoped "nothing
happens" to him. While she later agreed to testify against
Epstein, prosecutors said they feared Epstein's attorneys
would use her words to destroy her if she ever took the
witness stand.
Marra, however, said the young woman's comments didn't
mean she wasn't entitled to know about the prosecutors'
plans to drop the charges. "There is no dispute that Epstein
sexually abused Jane Doe 2 while she was a minor," he
wrote. "Therefore, regardless of her comments to the
prosecutor, she was a victim."
Before the case is finally resolved, Scarola predicted that "a
lot of people are going to have to answer a lot of questions."
EFTA02734124
In his ruling, Marra detailed what appeared to be a cozy
relationship between Acosta, his line prosecutors and
Epstein's team of lawyers. His phalanx of lawyers included
noted Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz and Kenneth
Starr, the former U.S. solicitor general whose investigation
led to the impeachment of President Clinton.
Marra describes an October 2007 breakfast meeting
between Acosta, who is now U.S. labor secretary, and
Lefkowitz shortly after the non-prosecution agreement was
inked.
After the meeting, Lefkowitz sent Acosta a note thanking
him for "the commitment you made to me during our
October 12 meeting in which you assured me that your
Office would not ... contact any of the identified
individuals, potential witnesses, or potential civil claimants
and their respective counsel in this matter."
Marra quoted an equally pleasant note then-Palm Beach
County State Attorney Barry Krischer sent to Assistant U.S.
Attorney IIIIVillafana, who was the lead prosecutor in
Epstein's case. "Glad we could get this worked out for
reasons I won't put in writing," Krischer wrote, shortly
after the non -prosecution agreement was signed. "After this
is resolved I would love to buy you a cup at Starbucks and
have a conversation."
Many of the notes that were exchanged dealt with
prosecutors' and Epstein's lawyers' shared desire to keep the
deal secret from Epstein's accusers. In a September email,
Villafana asked Lefkowitz for guidance about what she
should reveal. "And can we have a conference call to discuss
what 1 may disclose to ... the girls regarding the
Agreement," she asked.
EFTA02734125
Such cooperation between prosecutors and defense
attorneys is unusual, Marra said. "It was a deviation from
the government's standard practice to negotiate with
defense counsel about the extent of crime victim
notifications," he wrote.
Further, he noted, that when and his two young
clients asked for information, they were repeatedly misled.
"The CRVA was designed to protect victims' right and
ensure their involvement in the criminal justice process:
Marra wrote. "When the government gives information to
victims it cannot be misleading."
Ultimately, the terms of the non-prosecution agreement
were revealed only after and attorneys fot
press successfully sued to make them publi
[Email Redacted]
EFTA02734126
76 / 278 - Tuesday, July 9, 2019
Edition: Final
Section: A Section
Page: 1A
Source: By Jane Musgrave, The Palm Beach Post
Epstein indicted on sex charges
Part-time Palm Beacher pleads not guilty to sex
trafficking, conspiracy charges in federal court n
Manhattan 0
Dressed in a blue prison jumpsuit, billionaire Jeffrey Epstein on MoCy.headed not guilty
to charges accusing him of creating a vast network of girls as young as 14 that he exploited
for his sexual pleasure at his homes in Palm Beach and Manhattan.
The 66-year-old money manager's appearance in U.S. District Court in New York City
capped more than a decade of recriminations by young women and their attorneys who
claimed Epstein used his money and political influence to avoid federal prosecution.
Epstein's attorney Reid Weingarten dismissed the two-count indictment on sex trafficking
charges as "essentially a do-over" of allegations that landed Epstein in the Palm Beach
County Jail for 13 months more than a decade ago.
However, unlike in 2007 when then-South It U.S. Attorney Alex Acosta agreed to
shelve a 53-page federal indictment after E agreed to plead guilty to two state
prostitution charges, prosecutors in New York indicated they aren't willing to deal. Acosta is
now U.S. labor secretary.
"The alleged behavior shocks the conscience," New York City U.S. Attorney Geoffrey
Berman said at a
morning news conference i while the charged conduct is from a number of years ago, it
is still profoundly important to many of the alleged victims, now young women. They
deserve their day in court."
At a detention hearing scheduled for Monday, Berman said he will ask a federal judge to
keep Epstein behind bars until he is tried on charges of sex trafficking and conspiracy to
commit sex trafficking. Epstein paid dozens of young women to give him nude massages
that, for most, led to sex, he said.
If convicted of exploillozens of young women, including many Palm Beach County girls
who were students at Palm Beach High School, Epstein faces a maximum 45-year
prison sentence.
Citing Epstein's enormous wealth, his homes in New York, Palm Beach, the U.S. Virgin
Islands, New Mexico and Paris and his ownership of two jets, Berman said there are few
conditions that could keep Epstein from fleeing to a foreign country to evade prosecution.
EFTA02734127
"We think he's a significant flight risk," Berman said of the man who ferried Britain's Prince
Andrew, actor Kevin Spacey, famed Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz and former
President Bill Clinton on his jet, dubbed the Lolita Express.
Berman's hard-line stance was welcomed by young women who for years have been told that
Epstein couldn't be touched because Acosta signed off on the nonprosecution agreement,
promising not to charge Epstein in federal court.
Former Palm Beach County resident Virginia Guiffre, who has accused Epstein of turning
her into his sex slave and forcing her to have sex with others, including Dershowitz and
Prince Andrew, praised Berman. He showed the case is "being taken in a serious way," she
told the Associated Press. Dershowitz has vehemently denied Guiffrc's claims.
New York prosecutors were able to ignore the controversial nonprosecution agreement
because it contained some significant fine print, said former federal Judge Paul Cassell, who
for years has fought to get the agreement thrown out. It says only that no charges could be
filed against Epstein in South Florida, he said.
Berman agreed. "That agreement only binds, by its terms, only binds the Southern District of
Florida," he said. "The Southern District of New York is not bound by that agreement and
wasn't a signatory of it."
That means the sordid allegations that have been leveled at Epstein for years are now part of
a federal indictment.
Contrary to Epstein's claims, he knew the women who came to his homes in New York and
Palm Beach were minors because they told him their ages, according to the indictment.
Epstein preyed on young girls because he knew they were "vulnerable to exploitation,"
prosecutors added.
As part of a carefully orchestrated sex ring, Epstein or his associates would call girls while
he was in New York so they would be available for sex once he returned to Palm Beach, the
indictment says. The employees weren't named. They were identified only as "Employee-1,"
"Employee-2" and "Employee-3."
To ensure he had a steady stream of young girls, Epstein would turn some victims into
recruiters. He would pay them to bring new girls to his home on El Brillo Way along the
Intracoastal Waterway in Palm Beach or to his palatial townhouse on New York's Upper East
Side.
"This allowed Epstein to create an ever-expanding web of new victims," Berman said.
In both New York and Palm Beach, the lurid operation was similar. Unidentified employees
of Epstein's would escort the teens into a room. They were told to take off all or most of their
clothes before giving the naked billionaire massages, according to the indictment.
"Epstein would also typically masturbate during these encounters, ask victims to touch him
while he liturbated, and touch victims' genitals with his hands or with sex toys," the
indictment says.
As part of the criminal complaint, prosecutors arc asking that Epstein be forced to turn over
his multimillion-dollar townhouse on East 71st Street. The complaint does not seek forfeiture
of Epstein's house in Palm Beach.
While heartened that Epstein now faces serious criminal charges in New York, Cassell said
he would continue to push a West Palm Beach-based federal judge to throw out the
nonprosecution agreement that Acosta forged with Epstein's star-studded legal team.
EFTA02734128
•
U.S. District Judge Kenenth Marra has already ruled that Acosta violated the federal Crime
Victims' Rights Act by not telling Epstein's victims about the agreement before it was inked.
Coincidentally, Cassell and Epstein attorney Roy Black had to file papers by midnight
Monday, explaining what action Marra should take to redress that wrong.
Cassell insisted Epstein should face charges in federal court in West Palm Beach. "Florida
victims deserve justice in Flori " said Cassell, who is working on behalf of Epstein's
victims with attorneys d Jack Scarola.
Since ifs likely Florida women wr get to testify against Epstein in New York, Scarola said
he's not focused on whether Epstein will face charges here. Instead, he said hewar* to know
how and why the agreement was reached.
"There's been no explanation as to how a deal like this could have been cut and how the
federal government could have been involved in a conspiracy to violate federal law," Scarola
said of his interest in continuing the legal battle over the nonprosecutio agr ment.
When Acosta agreed to drop the federal investigation, Epstein in 20 de guilty to two
prostitution charges and served 13 months of an 18-month sentenc n a v ant wing of the
Palm Beach County Jail - a cell he was allowed to leave 12 ho a ix days a week. He
was also forced to register as a sex offender and settle civil su more than 30 young
women filed against him.
U.S. Rep. Lois Frankel, D-West Palm Beach, said she la's interest in finding out
how the agreement came to be."I am especially mo in why Epstein got the deal
he got," Frankel said. "We need to know why he such an easy sentence.
While she has asked the House Oversight Co a investigate Acosta, Frankel said she
is not sure that will happen. "It just seems it a travesty that this guy got off the
way he did and, without pre-judging it, hay proper court case," Frankel said.
Former Palm Beach Police Chief Mi was inflamed in 2006 when then-State
Attorney Barry Krischer refused t tein with serious crimes. Reiter took the
information his officers had ga dozens of Epstein's victims to Acosta, believing
he would prosecute Epstein. H
Reiter said he was heartened years later, Epstein will finally face justice.
"Thankfully, U. S. Attom and the other authorities in New York have the good
judgment to investigate an rosecute Epstein in the way that should have occurred in
Florida over a d ago," eiter said in a statement.
And, Scarola are signals that Berman's investigation is far from over.
Berman deli wer questions about whether others, such as Epstein's high-powered
friends, wotil ed. He brushed off questions about the significance that the
investiga n being handled by the Public Corruption Unit.
While age on Saturday were arresting Epstein aboard his private jet at the Teterboro
Airport in New Jersey after returning from Paris. other officers were searching his New York
City townhouse. Agents seized nude photos of young girls who appeared to be minors,
Berman said.
He said his focus was on finding more women who were exploited and abused by Epstein.
Turning to a poster, detailing the charges that had been filed against Epstein, he pointed a
finger at a photo of the convicted sex offender who was once described as "a man of
mystery."
EFTA02734129
"If you believe you are a victim of this man, Jeffrey Epstein, we want to hear from you,"
Berman said. A special number, 1-800-CALLFBI, will link victims of authorities.
Bill Sweeney, assistant director of the FBI's New York office, said after years of being
ignored by federal agents, the victims' voices will be heard.
"The Jeffrey Epstein matter is No. 1 on the major case list in the country," Sweeney said.
Turning to address Epstein's victims directly, he said: "Your bravery may empower others to
speak out against crimes against them."
[Email Redacted]
cos
EFTA02734130
Def.Ex.A-2
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EFTA02734131
INC LAW OFFICES OF
. P.A.
ARTHUR I.
Mill.Al !LITT COMPANY Or PROFESSIONAL ASSOC.AVORS
ATTORNEYS AT LAW
GATEWAY TO AMELIA
SHIMS? GATEWAY BLVD.. SUITE SCUT
FERNANDINA Basra. FLORIDA 00034
TELEPHONE (904) EGI-31193
FAX NO (004) to .7679
November 26, 2019
Office of the State Attorney
15th Judicial Circuit
Ann: Jeanne Howard
401 North Dixie Highway
West Palm Beach, FL 33401
SCHOLZ 8c WYLER, LW.
RIC HAND a SCHOLZ. PA. Arcnanc. J. SCHOLZ
00U04Als A. WV'S& P.A. DOUGLAS A VMS
O SA
CRe: CA Florida Holdings, LLC v. Dave Arenberg et al.
Case No.: 2019-CA-014681
Dear Mrs. Howard:
The purpose of this letter is to confirm that Schott & Wyler, LLC will represent you regarding the
above-referenced matter.
Our fees will be contingent upon our success in this matter. You will not be liable or required to pay any
monies to our office unless we are sores-Wu( in ow representation of you regarding the above-referenced
litigation and receive a court order awarding attorneys' fees.
Accordingly, should we be successful in this matter, you agree to be billed for the time incurred in defending
this action at our current hourly rates. At this time, our current hourly rates are: $475.00/hour for senior
partners, $425.00/hour for other partners. $375.00/hour for associate attorneys, and $125.00/hour for
paralegal time.
Furthermore, the attorneys' fees paid to our firm shall be calculated by the above listed hourly rates
multiplied by the number of hours expended in defending this action or the total fee mandated and awarded
by the court order herein, whichever is greater.
By signing below, you agree to the terms as set forth above. Please return a signed and dated copy of this
letter to our office. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact our office. On behalf of the
firm, we are proud to represent you in this matter.
Sincerely,
k t — iji h
Douglas A. Wyler, Esq.
For the Firm
LA/1,,ta-DDate
EFTA02734132
Def.Ex.A-3
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EFTA02734133
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIFTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT
IN AND FOR PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS, LLC,
Publisher of the PALM BEACH POST,
Plaintiff,
v. CASE NO.: 19-CA-014681
DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of
Palm Beach County, Florida: SHARON IL
BOCK, as Clerk and Comptroller of Palm
Beach County. Florida.
Defendants.
MOTION TO DISMISS
Defendant. DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attome f a each County, Florida, by and
through the undersigned counsel, hereby files this Mot' to ss Plaintiff's Complaint for failure to
state a cause of action, and in support thereof state
MOITON D STANDARD
When confronted with a moti~dI ss, the Court must determine whether the Complaint as
phrased within its four comers s cleat ates a cause of action, whereby relief can be granted. Fox v.
Professional Wrecker Ope lions 8 So. 2d 175, 178 (Fla. 5th DCA 2001). A motion to dismiss tests vizir
whether the plaintiff stat a cause of action. The test for a motion to dismiss under Florida Rule of
Civil Procedure whether the pleader could prove any set of facts as alleged in the Complaint to
support hi i i See, Connolly v. Sebeco, Inc. 89 So. 2d 482, 484 (Fla. 1956): Wasua Ins. Co. v.
Haynes, So. 2d 1123 (Fla. 4th DCA 1996).
In order to meet this test, "a complaint must allege sufficient ultimate facts to show that a pleader
is entitled to relief." W.R. Townsend Contr., Inc. v. Jensen Civ. Constr., Inc., 728 So. 2d 297, 300 (Fla.
1st DCA 1999) (quoting MaSosgais, 464 So. 2d 664, 665 (Fla. 2d DCA 1985); Fla. R. Civ. P.
1.110(b)). The court need not accept internally inconsistent factual claims, conclusory allegations,
unwarranted deductions, or mere legal conclusions made by a party. a (citing Response Oncology, Inc.
EFTA02734134
v. Metrahealth Insurance Co., 978 F. Supp. 1052, 1058 (S.D. Fla. 1997)); Oxford Asset Meant. v. laharis,
297 F.3d 1182, 1188 (11th Cir. 2002) ("[Ou a motion to dismiss,] the plaintiff's factual allegations are
accepted as true.... However, legal conclusions masquerading as facts will not prevent dismissal."). To
avoid dismissal, a pleading "must allege a cause of action recognized under law" against the defending
party. Kislak v. Kreedian 95 So. 2d 510, 514 (Fla. 1957).
COUNT I
(Florida Statutes Section 905.27)
Plaintiff attempts to assert a cause of action, in the interest of "furtheri ', under Florida
Statute § 905.27; however, a review of the statute in question reveals that o action is provided
for therein and consequently Plaintiff's Complaint must be dismissed a of law. Despite
Plaintiff's extensive recitation of the factual background regardpg Epstein and the testimony and
evidence presented to the 2006 grand jury is Palm Beach4o 'da, Fla. Stat. § 905.27, merely
itexplains the exceptions to the disclosure of grand j t ' n? vand does not set forth in any way a cause
of action upon which to initiate a valid law suit
Moreover, a review of the stain clearly indicates that even if § 905.27, Fla. Stat.
provided a basis for a cause of acti is barred from access to the records it seeks. To wit, in
pertinent part, Fla. Stat. § 905.27(
When such disclos
case, it may disci
to their I is
persons
crinti
dered by a court pursuant to subsection (1) for use in a civil
to all parties to the case and to their attorneys and by the latter
and employees. However, the grandpa", testimony afforded such
th urt can only be used in the defense or prosecution of the civil or
and for no other purpose whatsoever.
he the clear statutory guidelines for disclosure of grand jury materials in a civil case,
Plaintiff is ifnproperly seeking the requested 2006 grand jury materials for the purposes of public
disclosure pursuant to the court's inherent authority and supervisory powers over the grand jury. [See,
Complaint 11 8, 62]. Again, even if Plaintiff properly asserted a cause of action under Fla. Stat. 905.27,
the statute unambiguously states that grand jury testimony "can only be used in the defense or prosecution
of the civil or criminal case and for no other purpose whatsoever", which is distinctly different from
EFTA02734135
Plaintiff's intended purpose for public disclosure of the grand jury evidence. Fla. Stat. & 905.27(2).
Finally, it is significant to note that despite Plaintiffs allegations to the contrary, Defendant Aronberg is
not in custody or control of the records sought and is therefore not a proper party to this action.
WHEREFORE, based on the foregoing argunient and suliportiag authority, Defendant, DAVE
ARONBERG, as State Attorney of Palm Beach County, Florida, respectfully requests that this Honorable
Court grant the instant Motion and dismiss Plaintiff's Complaint with prejudice, andrm Defendant
igtAronberg all other and further relief deemed just and proper, including attorney' and costs for
defending this frivolous action.
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I HEREBY CERTIFY that on this 6th day of December. 2 , copy of the foregoing has been
electronically filed with the Florida E-File Portal for e-seivice
c)(se
it's of record herein.
CHOLZ & WYLER, LLC
uglas A. Wyler
Arthur I. =, Esq.
Fla. Bar No.: 10249
Richard J. Scholz, Esq.
Fla. Bar No.: 0021261
Douglas A. Wyler, Esq.
Fla. Bar No.: 119979
961687 Gateway Blvd., Suite 201-I
Fernandina Beach, Florida 32034
([Phone Redacted]
([Phone Redacted] Fax
Primary: jacobsscholzlaw®comcast.net
General Counsel for the Florida Prosecuting
Attorney's Association
EFTA02734136
Def.Ex.A-4
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EFTA02734137
Filing ft 101840557 E-Filed 01/17/2020 12:23:06 PM
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE
FIFTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT IN AND
FOR PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS, LW, CASE NO.: 50-2019-CA-014681-XXXX-MB
Publisher of THE PALM BEACH POST, Div.: AG
Plaintiff,
v.
DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of
Palm Beach County, Florida; SHARON R.
BOCK, as Clerk and Comptroller of Palm
Beach County, Florida,
Defendants.
A Cos
CA Florida Holdings, LW, publisher o Beach Post, for its First Amended
tto
St6
Complaint against Dave Aronberg, the St
official capacity ("State Attorney"),
y for Palm Beach County, Florida, in his
R. Bock, the Clerk of the Court for Palm Beach
County, Florida, in her official c ourt Clerk"), alleges as follows: C )
JURISDICTION
?This is an o Ir within the exclusive jurisdiction of the Circuit Court pursuant to
Fla. Stat. Secti (2Xa) and 86.011 et seq.
PARTIES
2. The Palm Beach Post is a daily community newspaper published by Plaintiff CA
Florida Holdings, LW, with offices located at 2751 S. Dixie Highway, West Palm Beach, Florida.
3. Defendant Dave Aronberg is the duly elected State Attorney for the Fifteenth
Judicial Circuit in and for Palm Beach County, Florida, pursuant to Fla. Stat. Section 27.01 and
has authority in grand jury proceedings pursuant to Fla. Stat. Section 27.03. He is sued herein in
1.
EFTA02734138
his official capacity as his office is in possession and/or control of documents that are the subject
of this action.
4. Defendant Sharon R. Bock is the duly elected Clerk and Comptroller of Palm Beach
County, Florida. She is sued herein in her official capacity as her office is in possession and/or
control of documents that are the subject of this action.
INTRODUCTION
5. In what is now widely if belatedly recognized as a colossal e of justice —
which led to the further needless victimization of countless young gijls and wofuen — a wealthy,
politically connected, and powerful financier was not held ac table for, nor even forced to
WhAvconfront, allegations of serious sex trafficking crimes. • 't i that Jeffrey Epstein's 2008
deal with the State of Florida was not consistent • \Vence gathered against him, what ,c p
itsremains shrouded in mystery is how that evid a resented — and the extent to which it was
presented - to the grand jury that return4iin tment far more limited in scope than expected
and deserved.
S )6. Through this ac on, i Palm Beach Post seeks public access to the testimony,
minutes, and other evide esented in 2006 to the Palm Beach County grand jury empaneled
during the first E
example, in
ability
in sex 'use investigation. Typically, access to such materials is limited, for
event the flight of those whose indictment may be contemplated and their
l or destroy evidence; to ensure jurors' candor in deliberations; and to protect an
accused who is later exonerated. However, these factors are inapplicable here. Also, Florida law
expressly authorizes the disclosure of grand jury proceedings under certain circumstances,
including, as here, in the furtherance of justice. Fla. Stat. § 905.27(1Xc).
7. It can no longer credibly be maintained that continued blanket secrecy over the
proceedings that led to the egregiously flawed 2006 Epstein indictment is warranted under the law.
2
EFTA02734139
To the contrary, transparency is required to promote public understanding of the criminal justice
system and public confidence in the fair administration of justice. As detailed below, Epstein was
accused of sexually abusing and trafficking dozens of women and girls in south Florida (among
other locations) over a period of several years while exploiting his wealth and political connections
to obstruct the administration of justice at every turn. Public disclosure of the Epstein grand jury
proceedings will shed light on the extent to NN hich those in our government ent> with the
solemn responsibility of enforcing our criminal laws equally as to all citiz ed their duties
in this instance. Justice will be furthered where it is either (1) demonstel stein was treated
like others accused of similar heinous crimes, or (2) as app ore likely to be the case, those
1St ,who those to give Epstein favorable — "unusual," in the o ,the Town of Palm Beach Police
Chief — treatment, are exposed and held accountable w t hailed information is now in the
public domain, the State Attorney's referral o ' \ case to the grand jury — which would be
out of the ordinary for this type of ca gi rise to a strong inference of favoritism and
corresponding disregard for the ri ' or victims of Epstein's sex trafficking. Access to
the grand jury materials will all w th ublic to determine whether the grand jury process, and the
secrecy that comes with used to further justice or, instead, operated to shield Epstein and
his co-conspirato m t e consequences of their criminal activities. Accordingly, Fla. Stat.
Section 905. oozes the disclosure of Epstein's 2006 grand jury proceedings.
+ ven in the absence of such a statutory basis, this Court is empowered to order
public disclosure pursuant to its inherent authority and supervisory powers over the grand jury.
Indeed, courts throughout the country in the past several decades have ordered the disclosure of
high-profile grand jury proceedings pursuant to their inherent authority where the public's interest
in those proceedings has outweighed the general need for secrecy. This is particularly so where,
3
EFTA02734140
as here, many of the details of Epstein's criminal misdeeds have already been made available in
the public domain through extensive news reporting by, among others, The Palm Beach Post; by
the many civil suits brought against Epstein and his co-conspirators; and by the victims themselves.
9. In recognition of the sensitivity of the materials being sought, and in the interest of
protecting any victims who wish to remain anonymous, The Palm Beach Post has no objection to
copies of the testimony, minutes, and other evidence presented in 2006 to the P h County
grand jury first being submitted to this Court for in camera review, where be redacted,
as appropriate, to protect those who deserve such protection.
FACTUAL BACKGRO
10. The following facts were gathered, in fart
ltirs „Palm Beach Post through various Florida Public R requests, documents unsealed or i i
documents obtained by The
publicly available in other related judicial p
public record.
A. First Epstein Sex Crimes Investigation, Indictment, and Plea Agreement:
2005-2008.
11. The investigatioNititel Epstein's sex crimes began more than fourteen years ago,
, and information and documents in the
when a 14-year-old _irl's ii1 other repotted to police in the Town of Pahn Beach, Florida, that
Epstein and o • worked for him arranged for her to give Epstein a "massage." Epstein
required t trip, exposed himself, and masturbated while touching her. The girl was paid
$300. E was 52 years old at the time.
12. Following this initial report in 2005, the Town of Pahn Beach Police, and later, in
2006, the FBI, investigated Epstein. Interviews under oath with five additional alleged victims and
seventeen witnesses revealed that the events described by the 14-year-old girl occurred, with
disturbingly similar details, with each of the other victims.
4
EFTA02734141
13. Both the victim/witness interviews, as well as evidence retrieved following a search
of Epstein's home, showed that some of the girls involved were under the age of 18. The police
search of Epstein's residence also found two hidden cameras and, throughout the house, large
numbers of nude photos of girls, including victims whom the police had not interviewed in the
course of their investigation.
14. In March 2006, a State grand jury was scheduled at which all of ims were
expected to testify. The proceeding was postponed, however, due to meetings
)
een the State
Attorney's office and Epstein's prominent criminal defense lawyetittd personal friend, Alan
Dershowitz.
15. Another grand jury was convened in April , anceled the day before it was
itr \
to begin receiving evidence.
(1) Ponce Chief Reit Iffs f to the State Attorney. ( s ir
16. On May 1, 2006, Town Pa Beach Police Chief Michael Reiter wrote a
"personal and confidential" letter n lm Beach County State Attorney, Barry Krischer,
stating:
I must renew an observation to you that I continue to find your office's
treatment of the E ] cases highly unusual. It is regrettable that I am forced to
communi in thi manner, but my most recent telephone calls to you and those
of the d tective to your assigned attorneys have been unanswered and
mess es aim unreturned. After giving this much thought and consideration, I
must urge you to examine the unusual course that your office's handling of this
Attuer has taken and consider if good and sufficient reason enists to require your
disqualification from the prosecution of these cases. (Emphasis supplied)
17. Chief Reiter's letter to State Attorney Krischer enclosed the Town of Palm Beach
Police Department's probable cause affidavits charging Epstein and two of his assistants with
multiple counts of unlawful sex acts with a minor and one count of sexual abuse, and requested
5
EFTA02734142
that either an arrest warrant be issued for Epstein or the State Attorney directly initiate the charges
against him, which would be public.
(2) The July 2006 State Grand Jury Presentation.
18. Instead, State Attorney Krischer elected to refer the case to a grand jury, which is
mandatory for capital cases but rarely used for all other crimes. According to an official
spokesperson, this was the first time that a sex crimes case was presented to a
Beach County.
19. In July 2006, after State Attorney Krischer presented t d evidence from CI
one victim, the grand jury returned an indictment on a sole coyliLof nation of prostitution. d
There is no mention in the indictment of the victim being
20. On information and belief, a sewnd s victims was supposed to testify
in Palm
before the grand jury, but was unable to atten f a school exam.
21. No reasonable explanation has berprovided as to why the numerous other known
taw'
victims were not presented as witnesses and crime victims to the grand jury convened in July 2006.
Nor has any reasonable explanation been provided as to why State Attorney Krischer, who was
initially eager to invest' d prosecute Epstein for his crimes, over time lost the desire to do
so.
22. nS enuation and belief, during the grand jury appearance of the single victim
who t he State Attorney presented evidence that vilified the victim and attacked her
credibility, including soliciting testimony regarding underage drinking and questionable personal
behavior that was unrelated to the charges against Epstein. Further upon information and belief,
this information was initially brought to the attention of the State Attorney's office by Epstein's
defense counsel.
6
EFTA02734143
(3) The FBI's Investigation and Epstein's Non-Prosecution
Agreement With Federal Authorities.
23. On information and belief, following the deficient July 2006 indictment, and with
Chief Reiter's encouragement, the FBI began its own investigation of Epstein.
24. Records unsealed in 2015 revealed that the FBI compiled reports on "34 confirmed
minors" that were victims of Epstein's sexual predations. Based on evidence gather the FBI,
S ,a 53-page indictment was prepared by the U.S. Attorney's Office in June 200 owever, at the
request of Epstein's lawyers, the indictment was never presented to a fed
25. Instead, then U.S. Attorney for the Southern District o
negotiated a plea deal with Epstein's team of lawyers to
four named co-conspirators and any unnamed potentia
charges.
26. Throughout the remainder ojj7 dtrd through the first half of 2008, Epstein's
lawyers and the U.S. Attorney contin
jury.
Alexander Acosta,
ty to Epstein (along with
ators) from all federal criminal
ting the plea arrangement. Upon information and
belief, Epstein's lawyers insis t ) the victims not be notified, (2) the deal be kept C id,
confidential and under seal, an, grand jury subpoenas (including one that had already been
issued for Epstein's mp be withdrawn.
27. Ju 0, 2008, Epstein pled guilty to State charges; one count of solicitation of
prostituti count of solicitation of prostitution with a minor under the age of 18. He was
senten 18 months in jail, followed by a year of community control or house arrest, and was
adjudicated as a convicted sex offender required to register twice a year in Florida.
28. The plea deal, called a non-prosecution agreement ("NPA"), allowed Epstein to
receive immunity from federal sex-trafficking charges that could have sent him to prison for life.
7
EFTA02734144
30. Epstein was released five months early.
31. Upon information and belief, Epstein violated the t
not prosecuted.
(4) The Crime Victims' Rith
32. Epstein's victims only learned after
an emergency petition to force federal prosecu
(18 U.S.C. § 3771, "CVRA"), which m
to be informed about plea agreem
Kenneth A. Marra recently nil
Epstein's victims before
On information and belief, based on public records, former State Attorney Krischer communicated
with then U.S. Attorney Acosta concerning the NPA's negotiation with Epstein's lawyers.
29. Indeed, Epstein was not incarcerated in a Florida prison for the State crimes for
which he was convicted. Instead, he was placed in a private wing of the Palm Beach County
Stockade, where, after 3 12 months, he was allowed to leave the jail on "work release" for up to
12 hours a day, 6 days a week. His private driver provided his transportation to "work."
AS"
0 obation, but was
4! 'ut his plea in State court and filed
ply with the Crime Victims' Rights Act
in rights for crime victims, including the right
right to appear at sentencing. U.S. District Judge
deral prosecutors violated the CVRA by failing to notify
him to plead guilty to only the two State offenses.
33. T ecu on's failure to keep the victims apprised, among other things, also
contravenes • Constitution, Article 1, § 16(b) and Fla. Stat. § 960.001.
ollowing publicity exposing the extraordinary leniency of the plea deal, dozens of
civil suits were brought against Epstein, most of which Epstein's lawyers settled out-of-court.
35. In 2010, Epstein was registered as a "level three" (i.e., high risk of repeat offense)
sex offender in New York, a lifelong designation. In 2011, the New York County District
Attorney's office unsuccessfully sought to lower his registration to low-risk "level one."
8
EFTA02734145
36. Upon information and belief, during the course of the Town of Palm Beach and FBI
investigations, Epstein retained private investigators to follow, harass, and photograph his victims
and their families, as well as Chief Reiter and the Town of Palm Beach detective who investigated
the case against Epstein.
37. Upon information and belief, Epstein's victims were threatened against cooperating
with law enforcement and told that they would be compensated only if they did no rate with
iS
aB. Second Epstein Sex Crimes Investigation, Indictment, i 19.
law enforcement.
38. On July 6, 2019, Epstein was arrested on federal g charges.
39. Upon information and belied the United S t ent's investigation of new
iS „allegations and charges stemmed, in part, from con ' u investigations into and reporting i ts
#4144c on the mishandling of the 2006 charges and th that followed.
40. In a July 8, 2019, letter e f al district cowl by the U.S. Attorney for the
Southern District of New York, E w escribed as "a serial sexual predator who preyed on
dozens of minor girls over a ." The letter emphasized that "the Government has real
concerns — grounded in p rience with this defendant — that if allowed to remain out on bail,
the defendant to pressure and intimidate witnesses and potential witnesses in this
case, inclu and their families, and otherwise attempt to obstruct justice." It also
descri sults of the FBI's search of Epstein's Manhattan townhouse: evidence of sex
trafficking in the form of "hundreds — and perhaps thousands — of sexually suggestive photographs
of fully- or partially-nude females," including underage females. In a locked safe, compact discs
were found with handwritten labels including the descriptions: "Young [Name] + [Name]," "Misc
nudes 1," and "Girl pies nude."
9
EFTA02734146
41. On July 8, 2019, prosecutors with the Public Conuption Unit of the U.S. Attorney's
office for the Southern District of New York charged Epstein with sex trafficking and conspiracy
to traffic minors for sex. The grand jury indictment alleges that "dozens" of underage girls were
brought into Epstein's mansions for sexual encounters. A few days later, owing to public outcry
over the NPA with Epstein entered into by the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida,
Alexander Acosta, who by then was serving as U.S. Secretary of Labor
On at
administration, resigned from office.
42. Epstein was denied bail and was placed into pre
Metropolitan Correction Center in lower Manhattan.
it43. On or about August 6, 2019, Florida Gov antis ordered a state criminal
Atprobe into the actions of the Palm Beach Sheriff State Attorney Krischer for their
handling of the Epstein underage sex traffic Atis „
44. On August 10, 2019, E found dead in his cell at the Metropolitan
Correctional Center. His cause of etemuned to be suicide.
C. The August 27, 2019, Hearing: Epstein's Victims Speak.
if ir45. On acco his death, prosecutors sought to dismiss the indictment against
Epstein, while maintaining at they would continue to investigate his co-conspirators.
46. Mates Senior District Judge Richard M. Berman ordered a hearing on
Augu 9, on the prosecutors' decision to dismiss the indictment and allowed victims to
speak at the hearing.
47. In the course of the hearing, more than two dozen victims delivered their personal
stories of pain, frustration, and sexual abuse at the hands of Epstein. Several victims spoke of
violent rape by Epstein. Many more victims were present in the courtroom but did not testify.
Trump
the federal
10
EFTA02734147
48. While some questioned the reasoning behind the court's decision to give the victims
voice after Epstein's death, District Judge Berman noted that "a public hearing is [the] preferred
vehicle of resolution," emphasizing that "public hearings are exactly what judges do. Hearings
promote transparency and they provide the court with insights and information which the court
may not otherwise be aware of." Indeed, even Epstein's defense lawyer noted at the hearing that
the court "is the institution that most people have confidence in, in these very tro . 51
49. At the August 27th hearing, the girls, now women, spoke a "exploitation
and coercion," and to the fact that many of them "were in very vulnera ns and in extreme
poverty, circumstances where [they] didn't have anyone 5 on ir e, to speak on [their] < behalf..." One victim lamented that "as a victim, [she] g see what the agreement was
its ., or why the special treatment got approved" in the ' c years earlier. Another noted how i
"completely different" the investigators lead' 2019 federal indictment were from the
prosecutors in the Florida case, both . eir tment of her and their investigation of her
victimization by Epstein.
50. A former fede attendance at the August 27th hearing emphasized that
"transparency is one of t ding objectives in our criminal justice system."
51. Ne all o the victims expressed the conviction that the secrecy that shielded
Epstein has them "irreparable harm" and that an opportunity to address his criminal
wrong d those of the individuals who enabled his sexual racketeering, would allow for
at least some measure of justice to be served after his death. Indeed, one victim stated: "Any efforts
made to protect Epstein's name and legacy send a message to the victims that he wins and that he
is untouchable." Another victim expressed fear that this is a world `where there are predators in
power, a world where people can avoid justice if their pockets run deep enough." In short, the
11
EFTA02734148
Beach County and the Treasure Coast vicinity.
"unusual" treatment Epstein received in Florida in 2006 based on his wealth, social status, and
connections severely eroded the public's faith in the integrity and impartiality of the criminal
justice system.
D. The Palm Beach Post's Standing and the Public Interest.
(1) The Palm Beach Post Has Reported Extensively On Epstein's
Crimes For Nearly 15 Years.
52. Plaintiff, The Palm Beach Post, is a community newspaper serv-lc ade in Palm
53. The Palm Beach Post has been a Pulitzer Prize winneiand nominated as a finalist
three other times.
54. Beginning in 2004, The Palm Beach Pos t wely investigated and reported
on the allegations against, the law enforcement .ga n of and the crimes committed by,
Epstein and his co-conspirators. The Ne ortage has included publication of the
following articles:
• "The Man Who Ha g: Jeffrey Epstein Craved Big Homes, Elite Friends
and Investigators S ge Girls.," published on August 14, 2006, reporting that:
a 1 unity college student, admitted in a sworn statement to
police that "s taken at least six girls to visit Epstein, all between the ages of 14
and 16;" Palm h Police "interviewed five alleged victims and 17 witnesses;"
"DershoCitz, award law professor, traveled to West Palm Beach with information
about the • s," including social media discussions about "their use of alcohol and
qualm; after meeting with Epstein's legal team, "prosecutors postponed their
to take the case to a grand jury;" Palm Beach Police subsequently "received
aints that two of the victims or their families had been harassed or threatened;"
ations between police and prosecutors were fraying" as the investigation continued;
nd "one girl who was subpoenaed — the one who said she had sexual intercourse with
Epstein — never showed up" to testify before the grand jury.
• "Trump Snags Gosman Estate for $41 Million" published on November 16, 2004,
reporting on the bidding war between Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein for the
purchase of a "43,000-square-foot, seven-bedroom estate on 6 oceanfront acres along
the storied `Raider's Row' " in Palm Beach.
12
EFTA02734149
• "Indictment: Billionaire Solicited 3 Times" published on July 25, 2006, reporting that
"Billionaire money manager and Palm Beach part-time resident Jeffrey Epstein
solicited or procured prostitutes three or more times between Aug. 1 and Oct. 31 of last
year, according to an indictment charging him with felony solicitation of prostitution."
The article further reported that "Epstein's case is unusual in that suspected prostitution
johns are usually charged with a misdemeanor, and even a felony charge is typically
made in a criminal information — an alternative to an indictment charging a person with
the commission of a crime."
• "After Long Probe, Billionaire Faces Solicitation Charge" published on J 26, 2006,
reporting that "Palm Beach police thought there was probable cause t e Epstein
with unlawful sex acts with a minor and lewd and lascivious mol e article
further reported that "Police Chief Michael Reiter was so an a. a State Attorney
Barry Krischer's handling of the case that he wrote a memo g the county's
top prosecutor disqualify himself," and identified a 20-ye i e-record female
source who said "she gave Epstein a massage in the nude rought him six girls,
ages 14 to 16, for massage and sex-tinged sessions a ho
• "Police Say Lawyer Tried to Discredit Teena ublished on July 29, 2006,
reporting that "[flamed Harvard law prof rshowitz met with the Palm
Beach County State Attomey's Office ed damaging information about
teenage girls who say they gave his P Beach billionaire Jeffrey Epstein,
sexually charged massages" and t h to attorney's office said it presented the
Epstein case to a county grand onth rather than directly charging Epstein
because of concerns about the bility."
• "Expert: Ignorance of A ense In Sex Cases" published on August 5, 2006,
reporting that "Mather charges, the state attorney's office presented the case
to a county grand jury" w h "indicted Epstein last week on a single, less serious
charge of felony solic on of prostitution," and that "[t]he case raised eyebrows
because the state attorney's office rarely, if ever, kicks such charges to a grand jury."
• "Epste amp Palls Female Accusers Liars" published on August 8, 2006, reporting
" to attorney's spokesman would say only that the office refers cases to the
81 hen there are issues with the viability of the evidence or witnesses'
Beach Chief Focus of Fire In Epstein Case" published on August 14, 2006,
rting that Chief Reiter "pressed for Epstein to be charged with the more serious
crimes of sexual activity with minors" and "slammed State Attorney Barry Krischer in
blunt language seldom used by one law enforcement official with another because of
what he perceived as that office's mishandling of the case."
• "Delays In Epstein Case Unusual, Lawyers Say' published on March 13, 2007,
reporting that "[n]early eight months after Palm Beach tycoon Jeffrey Epstein was
charged with felony solicitation of prostitution, there has been no discernible progress
in his case."
13
EFTA02734150
• "Woman Sues Billionaire Investor, Says They Had Sex When She Was 16" published
on October 18, 2007, reporting on a lawsuit brought in New York State court against
Epstein "by a young woman who says he had sex with her when she was 16 and had
sought his help becoming a model."
• "Palm Beadier Pleads In Sex Case" published on July 1, 2008, reporting that "Epstein,
55, pleaded guilty . . . to felony solicitation of prostitution and procuring a person under
the age of 18 for prostitution," resulting in "a lifelong obligation to register as a sex
offender," and that "[a]s part of the plea deal, federal investigators agreed to drop their
investigation of Epstein, which they had taken to a grand jury."
• "Jeffrey Epstein: Scientist, Stuntman, 'Sex Slave' Visit Jailed Tycoon" published on
August 11.18ating that "[d]uring his first month of co ement" Epstein was
visited by who allegedly escorted victims "upon heir, Nal at his Palm
Beach waterfront home to an upstairs room, where she pre mthe assaoe table and
provided the oils for their encounters" with Epstein, an by "a
young woman whom Epstein purportedly described
• "Billionaire Sex Offender Leaves Jail Six Da
1, 2008, reporting that Epstein "is allowed t
six days a week on a work-release progr
• "Women Want Epstein Sex Plea Dea
that attorneys for women suing
agreement [NPA] with federal
agreement in Circuit Court
at least a dozen civil la
said they had sex wi
Beach Post moved t
to the NPA, which
slavian sex slave."
or Work" published on July
Palm Beach County Stockade
' published on June 10, 2009, reporting
arious courts "want his [non-prosecution]
ors unsealed" and were moving to unseal the
th Judicial Circuit, and that "Epstein now faces
ederal and state courts filed by young women who
now are seeking damages." On that date, The Palm
e in the matter for the purpose of obtaining public access
ered disclosed by this Court on June 25, 2009.
• "Epstein's S ct With Feds Reveals 'Highly Unusual' Tenns" published on
September 19, 9, reporting that, owing to Epstein's non-prosecution agreement,
"federal prosecutors backed down and agreed to recall grand jury subpoenas if Epstein
*tided guilty to prostitution-related felonies in state court" and "also a not to
cliarge gny of E stein's ossible co-conspirators: , Lesley
Groff-fid " The article further reported that, according to an
attorney representing three of Epstein's victims, "none of the 30 to 40 wom[e]n
identified as victims in the federal investigation" were informed ahead of time about
the NPA.
• "Judge Rules Epstein Attorneys Can Subpoena Abortion Records" published on
January 27, 2010, reporting that "a judge . . . gave lawyers representing multi-
millionaire sex offender Jeffrey Epstein the right to subpoena abortion records from
women who are seeking millions in damages from the part-time Palm Beach resident."
14
EFTA02734151
proceedings resu
O
• "Epstein Journal's Findings Could Resurrect Abuse Case" published on March 20,
2010, reporting that "[a] purloined journal that is said to contain the names of
'hundreds' of victims of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein could be used to reopen
the investigation into the multi-millionaire's appetite for teenage girls."
• "Epstein Paid Three Women $5.5 Million to End Underage Sex Lawsuits" published
on October 4, 2017, reporting that, according to court documents, Epstein "shelled out
$5.5 million to settle lawsuits with three of more than two dozen teens who sued him."
• "Judge Rules Feds' Agreement With Jeffrey Epstein Pact Violated
Rights" published on February 22, 2019, reporting on a ruling by U.
Kenneth Marra that "Federal prosecutors violated the rights o
teenage victims [under the Crime Victims' Rights Act] by fa'
dropped plans to prosecute the billionaire on dozens of f
with the girls' claims that he paid them for sex at his Palm
Victims'
et Judge
y pstein's
veal they had
m connection
ion."
• "Epstein Indicted On Sex Charges/Part-Time Palm Beacher Pldads Not Guilty to Sex
Trafficking, Conspiracy Charges In Federal Court liManhattan" published on July 9,
2019, reporting on Epstein's appearance in U.S. District Court for the Southern District
of New York in which he "pleaded not guilty to charges accusing him of creating a vast
network of girls as young as 14 that he e loited for his sexual pleasure at his homes
in Palm Beach and Manhattan."
SeA true and correct copy of the above news art' es, er the computerized format in which they
are maintained in The Palm Beach Po ec nic archives or the news print edition in which
originally published, is annexed hIbit 1.
55. Since the filing dlhejhitial Complaint in this matter, The Palm Beach Post —along
Nowith media worldwide — ntinued to report on Epstein's crimes and the ongoing official
m those crimes.
(2) The Palm Beach PosPs Standing and the Public Interest.
e press has a constitutional right of access to criminal proceedings, see, e.g.,
Richmond Newspapers, Inc. v. Virginia, 448 U.S. 555, 573 (1980), including pre-trial criminal
proceedings. v. Graddick, 696 F.2d 796 (11th Cir. 1983). Indeed, "the integrity of the
judicial process, which public scrutiny is supposed to safeguard, is just as much at issue in
proceedings of this kind [pre- and post-trial] as at trial." Id. at 801; see also Miami Herald Publ.
15
EFTA02734152
Co. v. M, 426 So. 2d 1, 6-7 (Fla. 1982) (identifying the news media as a "public surrogate" in
matters concerning the closure of judicial proceedings). The press also has a First Amendment
interest in receiving information from willing speakers. See Va. Pharmacy Bd. v. Va. Consumer
Council, 425 U.S. 748, 756-57 (1976) ("Where a speaker exists . . . the protection afforded [by
the First Amendment] is to the communication, to its source and to its recipients both."); Pittman
v. M. 267 F.3d 1269, 1283 12.12 (11th Cir. 2001) ("The Supreme Court has r that the
First Amendment offers protection to both speakers and those wishing to h."); see
also Stephens v. Qv. of Albemarle, Va., 524 F.3d 485, 492 (4th Cir. 20 g that a plaintiff
has "standing to assert a right to receive speech" by "show[in th exists a speaker willing
to convey the information to hee'). V
ess as a "public surrogate" (=,
426 So. 2d at 6-7) in protecting the right of t in reporting information about
criminal proceedings, news organizatio resu tyively have a tight to access judicial records,"
Comm 'r, Ala. Dep't of Corr. v. Adv c I Media, LLC, 918 F.3d 1161, 1166 (11th Cir. 2019),
and "standing to question the an order restricting publicity because its ability to gather
news is directly unpaired iled." 426 So. 2d at 4; see also Carlson v. United States,
837 F.3d 753, 75 8 (7th 'Cir. 2016) ("[a]s a member of the public, [the Reporters Committee]
has standin [its] claim" to grand jury materials because such materials are "public records
to whi lic may seek access, even if that effort is ultimately unsuccessful").
58. Here, the continued denial of access to information The Palm Beach Post seeks on
behalf of its journalists and the public it serves "unquestionably constitutes irreparable injury."
Gainesville Woman Care, LLC v. State of Florida, 210 So. 3d 1243, 1263 (Fla. 2017); see also
Zerilli v. M, 656 F.2d 705, 711 (D.C. Cir. 1981) (noting that "the press' function as a vital
57. Because of the unique role performc‘ i
16
EFTA02734153
source of information is weakened whenever the ability of journalists to gather information is
impaired," as it is by Attorney General's refusal to disclose unredacted report and underlying grand
jury materials).
59. The Palm Beach Post has the right to maintain this private right of action because
the furtherance of justice, an express legislative exception to grand jury secrecy, is intended for
the public benefit, and The Palm Beach Post seeks access on behalf of the Fla. Stat.
§ 905.27(1Xc). It is further express in Fla. Stat. § 905.27 that the legisla ' for a court
to be the party to make the determination of disclosure. Fla. Stat. § 9 other words, the
legislature intended for recourse to the courts in considering e e ng the propriety and
scope of grand jury secrecy.
\E. The Court's Jurisdiction And Authority. AC I I„
(1) The Court's Supeitti of the Grand Jury Process and Its
Authority to Order Public Disclosure of the Eastein Evidence.
60. The Florida Supreme noted that "in states such as Florida, where the
grand jury is preserved, it is an ppendage of the court which impanels it. At the same
time it should not be forgotten judge of that court is equally important and he is generally
Ii t'lcharged with the supervise r o the grand jury's activities...It is, therefore, of vital importance to
maintain the 4:1. the integrity of both the grand jury and the presiding judge." State v.
Clemons, 231, 233-34 (Fla. 1963).
6 Chapter 905 of the Florida Statutes governs the empanelment and conduct of
Florida grand juries. The court gives the grand jury its initial charge and advises the grand jury
about its legal duties. Fla. Stat. § 905.18.
62. Florida Stat. Section 905.27(1) provides that "the testimony of a witness examined
before the grand jury . . . or other evidence received by it" may be disclosed "when required by a
17
EFTA02734154
court . . . for the purpose of: (a) Ascertaining whether it is consistent with the testimony given by
the witness before the court; (b) Determining whether the witness is guilty of perjury; or (c)
Furthering justice." Fla. Stat. § 905.27(1)(a)-(c).
63. Further, disclosure is appropriate pursuant to this Court's inherent authority over
grand jury proceedings because of the exceptional public interest in this case and the compelling
circumstances supporting transparency. Carlson v. United States, 837 F.3d at 766 trict court
has the inherent power to disclose [grand jury] materials in exceptional ces and . . .
historic importance can be a sufficient reason when there is little count eed for secrecy").
64. The Florida Supreme Court has confirmed that d j secrecy is not absolute
and that any "potential harm to public officeholders" fro ticl "will be the product of their
SiO rown conduct, and not the consequence of an unr ' y of misguided citizens." Miami
Herald Pub. Co. v. Marko, 352 So. 2d 51 "The benefits to be derived from this
extraordinary exercise in citizen partici n[idWhe grand jury] would be severely limited if the
fruits of that activity were not ava o public on whose behalf it is undertaken. Implicit in
the power of the grand jury to e and expose official misconduct is the right of the people
to be informed of its find e public disclosure of grand jury findings inevitably entails the
risk of reputatio e, the legislature has ensured that any potential harm to public
officeholders the product of their own conduct, and not the consequence of an unrestrained
body ed citizens.").
(2) The Court's Jurisdiction To Declare Riahts And Construe
Statutes.
65. This Court has jurisdiction to declare rights, status, and other equitable or legal
relations whether or not further relief is or could be claimed. Florida Stat. Section 86.011.
18
EFTA02734155
66. Florida law specifically provides that a declaration may be sought from the Court
concerning a petitioner's rights under a statute. Florida Stat. Section 86.021 ("Any person...whose
rights, status, or other equitable or legal relations are affected by a statute, or any regulation made
under statutory authority,...may have determined any question of construction or validity arising
under such statute,... or any part thereof, and obtain a declaration of rights, status, or to her equitable
or legal relations thereunder.").
67. The Court's exercise of its power to declare rights "is to be administered
and construed." Florida Stat. Section 86.101.
COUNT I
(Declaratory Relief - Florida Stat. Sec 1 et seq.)
68. The allegations set forth in paragrap 1 67 are incorporated by reference
as if folly set forth herein.
69. This is an action for Dec ( Sittor lief pursuant to Chapter 86, Florida Statutes,
and other supplemental relief.
70. The Palm Beac ost ectfiilly requests that the Court declare that pursuant to
Fla. Stat. Section 905.27, E s entitled access to the testimony, minutes, and other evidence
presented in 200 he Pa i Beach County grand jury because such disclosure and access would
be in the fit i e of justice. Fla. Stat. § 905.27(1X0). Because The Palm Beach Post is not
seekin tenals in connection with either a civil or criminal case, it seeks a declaration that
the scope of its use of the disclosed materials is not limited. See Fla. Stat. § 905.27(2).
71. The Palm Beach Post further seeks a declaration that disclosure of the testimony,
minutes, and other evidence presented in 2006 to the Palm Beach County grand jury is appropriate
19
EFTA02734156
pursuant to this Court's inherent authority over grand jury proceedings because of the exceptional
public interest in this case and the compelling circumstances supporting transparency.
72. The Palm Beach Post has sought from Defendants, but Defendants have refined to
provide, access to the testimony, minutes, and other evidence presented in 2006 to the Palm Beach
County grand jury. Indeed, Defendants have each filed motions to dismiss the Complaint and the
relief it sought under Fla. Stat. Section 905.27(1). Accordingly, a good-faith disput s between
AS"
Oliciable question
the parties.
73. Through this Complaint, The Palm Beach Post presen
concerning its rights to obtain the 2006 grand jury materials purs to . Stat. Section 905.27(1)
and the Court's inherent authority.
74. A bona fide, actual, present, and p etiSill y for the declaration exists in that 1/2
Defendants have denied to The Palm Beac
be
h d to the public at large — the grand juryS r
materials sought to disclosed. The reli ugh om the Court is therefore not merely the giving
of legal advice or to answer hypo lions.
WHEREFORE, The P Be Post respectfully requests that the Court determine the
rights and obligations of es by declaring that pursuant to Ha. Stat. Section 905.27(1Xc)
and the Court's rent thority, The Palm Beach Post may gain access to the testimony,
minutes, and ence presented in 2006 to the Palm Beach County grand jury and use those
maten purpose of informing the public.
COUNT
(Florida Stat. Section 905.27)
75. The allegations set forth in paragraphs 1 through 74 are incorporated by reference
as if fully set forth herein.
20
EFTA02734157
76. Based on infomuation learned by The Palm Beach Post through its Florida Public
Records Law requests, law enforcement sources with direct knowledge of the grand jury evidence
and proceedings, judicial documents obtained from independent but related court proceedings, and
documents otherwise available in the public record, the State Attorney for Palm Beach County
presented truncated evidence of Epstein's criminal wrongdoing to the 2006 grand jury in a manner
that precluded his indictment for the serious crimes he committed, including ser ng and
sexual assault.
77. Pursuant to Florida Stat. Section 905.27, in order to ce for Epstein's
victims and the public, and to provide public disclosure to ill • to 'ether Epstein received in ,
unreasonably lenient treatment based on the available e c e Palm Beach Post requests
srimmediate access to the testimony, minutes, and o Her • ce presented in 2006 to the Palm
Beach County grand jury.
78. In a case of this magnitud d im dance, where the accused is dead and so many
of his crimes, as well as the identi es of his co-conspirators, and the identities of the
victims have already been e eed for grand jury secrecy is no more. See United States
v. Socony-Vacuum Oil i U.S. 150, 234 (1940) ("[A]fter the grand jury's functions are
ended, disclosure holly roper where the ends of justice require it.").
The Pahn Beach Post respectfully requests that this Court, pursuant to Fla.
Stat. S 5.27(1) and the Court's inherent authority, order the State Attorney and the Clerk
of the Court to file with this Court copies of the testimony, minutes, and other evidence presented
in 2006 to the Palm Beach County grand jury during the first Epstein sex abuse investigation so
that, following an in camera inspection, it can be made available to The Palm Beach Post and the
21
EFTA02734158
public on an expedited basis, and grant any other and further equitable or legal relief the Court
deems just and proper.
Dated: January 17, 2020
By:
Respectfully submitted,
GREENBERG TRAURIG, P.A.
Attorneys for CA Florida Holdings, LLC,
Publisher of The Palm Beach Post
Stephen A. Mendelsohn, Esq.
5100 Town Center Circle, Suite
Boca Raton, Florida 33486
Telephone: (561) 955-762
Facsimile: (561) 338-7
Is/ Stephen A. Mende
STEPHEN A.
Florida Bar
mendelso
hasenh
FLS
m
w.com
ELSOHN
4
corn
By: el J Cnygiel
CHAEL J GRYGIEL
mitted Pro Hac Vice)
4 State St., 6th Floor
Albany, New York 12207
Telephone: ([Phone Redacted]
Facsimile: ([Phone Redacted]
[Email Redacted]
By: /s/ Nina D. Banton
NINA D. BOYAJIAN
(Pro Hac Vice application pending)
1840 Century Park East, Suite 1900
Los Angeles CA 90067
Telephone: (310) 586 -7700
Facsimile: (310) 586 -7800
[Email Redacted]
[Email Redacted]
22
EFTA02734159
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I HEREBY CERTIFY that on this 17th day of January, 2020, a copy of the foregoing has
been electronically filed with the Florida E-File Portal for e-service on all parties of record herein.
/s/Stevhen A. Mendelsohn
STEPHEN A. MENDELSOHN
23
EFTA02734160
EXHIBIT 1
The Newspaper's Reportage on Jeffrey Epstein
EFTA02734161
The Palm Beach Post REAL NEWS STARTS HERE
The Man Who Had Everything: Jeffrey Epstein craved big
homes, elite friends and underage girls By Andrew Marra
Posted Jul 17, 2019 at 6:02 AM
From the archives: When Palm Beach detectives started asking
questions and teenage girls started talking, a wave of legal resistance
followed. )
Editor's Note: This article appeared in The Palm Beach Post on August 14, 2006, three weeks after
Jeffrey Epstein's arrest in Palm Beach County on a charge of felony solicitation of prostitution.
WINGED GARGOYLES guarded the gate at Jeffrey Epstein's Palm Beach mansion. Inside,
hidden cameras trolled two rooms, while the girls came and went
137
For the police detectives who sifted e garbage outside and kept records of visitors, it
was the lair of a troubling targe
Epstein, one of the most mysterious of the country's mega-rich, was known as much for his
secrecy as for his love of fine things: magnificent homes, private jets, beautiful women,
friendships with the world's elite.
But at Palm Beach police headquarters, he was becoming known for something else: the
regular arrival of teenage girls he hired to give him massages and, police say, perform sexual
favors.
Epstein was different from most sexual abuse suspects; he was far more powerful. He counted
among his friends former President Bill Clinton, Donald Trump and Prince Andrew, along
with some of the most prominent legal, scientific and business minds in the country.
When detectives started asking questions and teenage girls started talking, a wave of legal
resistance followed.
EFTA02734162
» NEW: Jeffrey Epstein: Lawyer said financier had sex with woman during work -
release
If Palm Beach police didn't know quite who Jeffrey Epstein was, they found out soon enough.
Epstein, now 53, was a quintessential man of mystery. He amassed his fortune and friends
quietly, always in the background as he navigated New York high society.
When he first attracted notice in the early 1990s, it was on account of the woman he was
dating: Ghislaine Maxwell, daughter of the late British media tycoon Robert Maxwell.
In a lengthy article, headlined "The Mystery of Ghislaine Maxwell's Secret L e: the British
Mail on Sunday tabloid laid out speculative stories that the socialite's beau was a CIA spook, a
math teacher, a concert pianist or a corporate headhunter.
\11?"But what is the truth about him?" the newspaper won 7" e Maxwell, Epstein is both
S'
flamboyant and intensely private." \
The media frenzy did not begin in full until a•deASde ter. In September 2002, Epstein was
flung into the limelight when he flew Cl ton ay actors Kevin Spacey and Chris Tucker to k ......i
Africa on his private jet.
Suddenly everyone wanted to Ic‘tii Epstein was. New York magazine and Vanity Fair
published lengthy profiles. The New York Post listed him as one of the city's most eligible
bachelors and began describing him in its gossip columns with adjectives such as "mysterious"
and 'reclusive?
Although no interviews, the broad strokes of his past started to come into focus.
Building a l e of extravagance
He was born blue-collar in 1953, the son of a New York City department employee, and
raised in Brooklyn's Coney Island neighborhood. He left college without a bachelor's degree
but became a math teacher at the prestigious Dalton School in Manhattan.
The story goes that the father of one of Epstein's students was so impressed with the man that
he put him in touch with a senior partner at Bear Stearns, the global investment bank and
securities firm.
EFTA02734163
In 1976, Epstein left Dalton for a job at Bear Stearns. By the early 1980s, he had started J.
Epstein and Co. That is when he began making his millions in earnest.
Little is known or said about Epstein's business except this: He manages money for the
extremely wealthy. He is said to handle accounts only of $1 billion or greater.
It has been estimated he has roughly 15 clients, but their identities are the subject of only
speculation. All except for one: Leslie Wexner, founder of The Limited retail chai and a 4 ,
former Palm Beacher who is said to have been a mentor to Epstein.
Wexner sold Epstein one of his most lavish residences: a massive townhouseC?at dominates a
block on Manhattan's Upper East Side. It is reported to have, amon • s tt features, closed-
circuit
c
television and a heated sidewalk to melt away fallen snow.
That townhouse, thought to be the largest private residence Iv is only a piece of
/ 41/4ACH\l
the extravagant world Epstein built over time.
In New Mexico, he constructed a 27,000-square-foot hilltop mansion on a 10,000-acre ranch
outside Santa Fe. Many believed it to be the largest home in the state.
In Palm Beach, he bought a waterfront home on El Brillo Way. And he owns a 100-acre
private island in the Virgin Islands.
» PHOTOS: The players in thejeffrey Epstein saga
Perhaps as remarkable as his lavish homes is his extensive network of friends and associates at
the highest echelons of power. This includes not only socialites but also business tycoons,
media moguls li cians, royalty and Nobel Prize-winning scientists whose research he often
funds.
"Just like other people collect art, he collects scientists," said Nowak, who directs the
Program for Evolutionary Dynamics at Harvard University and was reportedly the recipient of
a $30 million research donation from Epstein.
Epstein is said to have befriended former Harvard President Larry Summers, prominent law
Professor Alan Dershowitz, Donald Trump and New York Daily News Publisher Mort
Zuckerman.
EFTA02734164
And yet he managed for decades to maintain a low profile. He avoids eating out and was rarely
photographed.
"The odd thing is I never met him: said Dominick Dunne, the famous chronicler of the trials
and tribulations of the very rich. "I wasn't even aware of him," except for a Vanity Fair article.
Epstein's friendship with Clinton has attracted the most attention.
Epstein met Clinton as early as 1995, when he paid tens of thousands of dollars to join him at
an intimate fund-raising dinner in Palm Beach. But from all appearances, they did not become
close friends until after Clinton left the Oval Office and moved to New York.
Epstein has donated more than $100,000 to Democratic candidates' campaigns, including John
Kerry's presidential bid, the reelection campaign of New Mexico Gov. Bill and the
Senate bids of Joe Hillary Rodham Clinton, Christopher Dodd and Charles
Schumer. 4s 9 Y
Powerful friends and enemies
a \
S 4,A Vanity Fair profile found cracks in the ven of Epstein's life story. The 2003 article said he
left Bear Stearns in the wake of a federal probe and a possible Securities and Exchange
Commission violation. It also pointed out that Citibank once sued him for defaulting on a $20
million loan.
The article suggested that one of his business mentors and previous employers was Steven
Hoffenberg, now serving a prison term after "bilking investors out of more than $450 million
in one of the largest Ponzi schemes in American history."
As he amassed his wealth, Epstein made enemies in disputes both large and small. He sued the
man who in 1990 sold him his multimillion-dollar Palm Beach home over a dispute about less
than $16,000 in furnishings.
A former friend claimed Epstein backed out of a promise to reimburse him hundreds of
thousands of dollars after their failed investment in Texas oil wells. A judge decided Epstein
owed him nothing.
» Jeffrey Epstein: Model prisoner who swept, mopped floors, official says
EFTA02734165
It's a bad memory. I would rather not have ever met Jeffrey Epstein," said Michael Stroll, the
retired former president of Electronics and Sega Corp. "Suffice it to say I have
nothing good to say about him."
Among the characteristics most attributed to Epstein is a penchant for women.
He has been linked to Maxwell, a fixture on the high-society party circuits in both New York
and London. Previous girlfriends are said to include a former Ms. Sweden and a Romanian
model. 4414.
"He's a lot of fun to be with," Donald Trump told New York magazine in Sit is even said
that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are he unger side. No
doubt about it, Jeffrey enjoys his social life
Investigation leads to Epstein
Although he was not a frequenter of the Palm Beachs
,Among his charitable donations, he gave $90, , 4
0\$100,000 to Ballet Florida.
_•••••,( SIOV
ne, he made his presence felt.
alm Beach Police Department and
In Palm Beach, he lived in luxury. Three black Mercedes sat in his garage, alongside a
Harley-Davidson. His jet waited at a hangar at Palm Beach International Airport. At home, a
private chef and a small staff stood at the ready. From a window in his mansion, he could look
out on the Intracoastal W terway and the West Palm Beach skyline. He seemed to be a man,tszit
who had everything.
But extraordinaFfsea tl th can fuel extraordinary desires.
» Epstein ants to leave jail for mansion in sex-trafficking case
In March 2005, a worried mother contacted Palm Beach police. She said another parent had
overheard a conversation between their children.
Now the mother was afraid her 14-year-old daughter had been molested by a man on the
island.
The phone call triggered an extensive investigation, one that would lead detectives to Epstein
but leave them frustrated.
EFTA02734166
Palm Beach police and the state attorney's office have declined to discuss the case. But a Palm
Beach police report detailing the criminal probe offers a window into what detectives faced as
they sought to close in on Epstein.
Detectives interviewed the girl, who told them a friend had invited her to a rich man's house to
perform a massage. She said the friend told her to say she was 18 if asked. At the house, she
said she was paid $300 after stripping to her panties and massaging the man while he
masturbated.
444..
Police interview 5 alleged victims
The investigation began in full after the girl identified Epstein in a photo as man who had
paid her. Police arranged for garbage trucks to set aside Epstein's trash so police could sift
through it. They set up a video camera to record the comings and goings at his home. They
monitored an airport hangar for signs of his private jet's arrivals and departures.
They quickly learned that the woman who took the 14-year-old girl to Epstein's house was
a Palm Beach Community College student from Loxahatchee. In a sworn
statement at police headquarters, , then 18, admitted she had taken at least six girls to
visit Epstein, all between the ages of 14 and 16. Epstein paid her for each visit, she said.
During the drive back to her house, told detectives, "I'm like a Heidi Fleiss."
Police interviewed five alleged victims and 17 witnesses. Their report shows some of the girls
said they had been instructed to have sex with another woman in front of Epstein, and one said
she had direct intercourse with him.
In October, police searched the Palm Beach mansion. They discovered photos of naked, young-
looking females, just as several of the girls had described in interviews. Hidden cameras were
found in the garage area and inside a clock on Epstein's desk, alongside a girls high school
transcript.
Two of Epstein's former employees told investigators that young-looking girls showed up to
perform massages two or three times a day when Epstein was in town.
They said the girls were permitted many indulgences. A chef cooked for them. Workers gave
them rides and handed out hundreds of dollars at a time.
EFTA02734167
One employee told detectives he was told to send a dozen roses to one teenage girl after a high
school drama performance. Others were given rental cars. One, according to police, received a
$200 Christmas bonus.
The cops moved to cement their case. But as they tried to tighten the noose, they encountered
other forces at work.
In Orlando they interviewed a possible victim who told them nothing inappropriate had
happened between her and Epstein. They asked her whether she had spoken to anyone else.
She said yes, a private investigator had asked her the same questions.
» Jeffrey Epstein: Acosta, Krischer trade barbs over sweetheart deal
When they subpoenaed one of Epstein's former employees, he old them the same thing. He
and a private eye had met at a restaurant days earlier to go the man would tell
investigators.
Detectives received complaints that private eyes were posing as police officers. When they told
Epstein's local attorney, Guy Fronstin, he said the investigators worked for Roy Black, the
high-powered Miami lawyer who has dgfglded the likes of Rush Limbaugh and William
Kennedy
While the private eyes were coiZctin a parallel investigation, Dershowitz, the Harvard law
professor, traveled to West Palm Beach with information about the girls. From their own
profiles on the popular Web site MySpace.com, he obtained copies of their discussions about
their use of alcohol and marijuana.
He took his research to a meeting with prosecutors in early 2O06, where he sought to cast
doubt on the teens' reliability.
The private eyes had dug up enough din on the girls to make prosecutors skeptical. Not only
did some of the girls have issues with drugs or alcohol but also some had criminal records and
other troubles, Epstein's legal team claimed. And at least one of them, they said, lied when she
told police she was younger than 18 when she started performing massages for Epstein.
After the meeting, prosecutors postponed their decision to take the case to a grand jury.
EFTA02734168
In the following weeks, police received complaints that two of the victims or their families had
been harassed or threatened. Epstein's legal team maintains that its private investigators did
nothing illegal or unethical during their research.
By then, relations between police and prosecutors were fraying. At a key meeting with
prosecutors and the defense, Detective Recarey, the lead investigator, was a no-show,
according to Epstein's attorney.
"The embarrassment on the prosecutor's face was evident when the police officer never
showed up for the meeting,' attorney Jack Goldberger said.
Later in April, Recarey walked into a prosecutor's office at the state attorney's office and
learned the case was taking an unexpected turn.
The prosecutor, Lanna Belohlavek, told Recarey the state attorney's office had offered Epstein
a plea deal that would not require him to serve jail timevive a felony conviction.
Recarey told her he disapproved of the plea offe AS , \\
The deal never came to pass, however.
Future unclear after charge
On May 1, the department asked prosecutors to approve warrants to arrest Epstein on four
counts of unlawful sexual activity with a minor and to charge his personal assistant,
now 27, for her alleged role in arranging the visits. Police officials also wanted to
charge IMMI, the self-described Heidi Fleiss, with lewd and lascivious acts.
By then, the department was frustrated with the way the state attorney's office had handled the
case. On the same day the warrants were requested, Palm Beach Police Chief Michael Reiter
wrote a letter to State Attorney Barry Krischer suggesting he disqualify himself from the case if
he would not act.
Two weeks later, Recarey was told that prosecutors had decided once again to take the case to
the grand jury.
EFTA02734169
It is not known how many of the girls testified before the grand jury. But Epstein's defense
team said one girl who was subpoenaed - the one who said she had sexual intercourse with
Epstein - never showed up.
The grand jury's indictment was handed down in July. It was not the one the police
department had wanted.
Instead of being slapped with a charge of unlawful sexual activity with a minor, Epstein was
charged with one count of felony solicitation of prostitution, which carries a Mxirnum penalty
of five years in prison. He was booked into the Palm Beach County Jail early July 23 and
released hours later.
Epstein's legal team "doesn't dispute that he had girls over for massages," Goldberger said. But
he said their claims that they had sexual encounters with him lack credibility.
"They are incapable of being believed," he said. "They had criminal records. They had
accusations of theft made against them by their e ployess,There was evidence of drug use by \
some of them."
What remains for Epstein is yet to be se
The Palm Beach Police Departmet‘i ed the FBI to investigate the case. It also has
returned the $90,000 Epstein donated 2004.
In New York, candidates for governor and state attorney general have vowed to return a total
of at least $60,000 in campaign contributions from Epstein. Meanwhile, Epstein's powerful
friends have remained silent as tabloids and Internet blogs feast on the public details of the
police investigation.
Goldberger maintains Epstein's innocence but says the legal team has not ruled out a future
plea deal. He insists Epstein will emerge in the end with his reputation untarnished.
"He will recover from this," he said.
Staff writer Larry and staff researchers Bridget Bulger, Angelica Cortez, Amy Hanaway and
Melanie Mena contributed to this story.
amarrappbpost,com
EFTA02734170
OAMarnPBPost
I
EFTA02734171
273 / 278 - Tuesday, November 16, 2004
Edition: FINAL
Section: A SECTION
Page: 1A
Source: By PAUL OWERS Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Illustration: PHOTO (C & 2 B&W) & MAP (B&W)
Memo: Ran all editions.
Dateline: WEST PALM BEACH
TRUMP SNAGS GOSMAN ESTATE FOR $41 MILLION
When it came time to bid Monday for the palatial Palm Beach digs of an, The
Donald was not about to be trumped.
"Nobody was going to outbid me," the brash developer-turned- ality said from his
New York office.
Trump bested two other bidders with a $41.35 million off fort 43,000-square-foot,
seven-bedroom estate on 6 oceanfront acres along the storied "Raider's Row."
But Trump, 58, proud possessor of Mar-a-Lago, has no plans to live in the Gosman home at
513 N. County Road. He wants to - what else? - s If it'atl make more money.
The star of the mega-hit The Apprentice said ds ro redevelop the site into a "super
luxury house" that would be the "finest an e United States." He might build
another house before flipping the entire p
"I've known about this house for quite ," Trump said. "It's probably the best piece
of land in Florida - and probably for luxury real estate."
Although Trump said he could s e property into nine lots, Palm Beach miss Lesly said zoning regul w for only two houses - and maybe a third.
said she's not worried about T plans.
"He's been a very good property owner in the town of Palm Beach," she said. "He does his
projects very well. He's a perfectionist."
Monday's auction k place at U.S. Bankruptcy Court in West Palm Beach as part of
Gosman's Chap r ankruptcy case. Proceeds from the sale will go into escrow for eventual
distribution ito
The aucti t exactly noon after Judge Steven dismissed an objection from
an atto resenting money manager Jeffrey Epstein. The lawyer argued unsuccessfully
that T as not a qualified bidder because his contract stipulated that he would not close
on the sale unless title insurance was in place beforehand.
With Trump listening via conference call, Epstein began the bidding at $37.25 million -
$250,000 higher than Trump's initial offer.
Mark Pulte, son of the founder of home-building giant Pulte Homes, passed when his turn
came, letting lawyers for Trump and Esptein bid against each other until the price hit $38.85
million.
Puke then bid $39.1 million, briefly raising the ire of Trump, who believed that Pulte had
given up his right to bid by passing the first time.
EFTA02734172
But allowed the offer to stand, and Puke and Trump went back and forth until
Pulte dropped out at $41.1 million. Epstein, a part-time Palm Beach resident, bowed out at
$38.6 million.
closed the bidding 10 minutes after it started, leaving Trump with the right to buy
the 29,000-square-foot home (a typical Palm Beach County single-family house is about
2,200 square feet). The property also has a tennis house, a pool house and 1930s-era service
quarters.
The closing could take place within a week but probably won't happen until next month.
Trustee Joe Luzinski and creditors said they were pleased with the outcome.
"We knew we were dealing with some substantial people . .. who were going t, i it up a
bit," Luzinski said.
"The system worked," said Charles Tatelbaum, a lawyer for creditor JPMoPChase Bank.
"In bankruptcy court, the idea is to get the most for creditors, and that's hat happened."
The auction proved to be a bonanza for creditors, Luzinski said, noting that the highest offer
former listing agent Sotheby's International Realty received was S32 million. Sotheby's won't
receive a commission, he said.
Pulte, 42, of Boca Raton, said he figured Trump wouldn't Monday.
"I got the feeling he was willing to go a lot higher, and t to chase it," Pulte said.
Pulte said Gosman asked him before the auction whe e e uld be willing to let him stay
in the mansion after the closing until he decides w e is to move. Trump and
Luzinski said they have had no such discussio man.
Gosman, 75, had the house built after payin 1 lion for the land in 1986.
The former health-care magnate declined • t i requests before and after the auction
Monday. He was at the courthouse but befo the auction took place.
The $41.35 million price tag eclips 5 million sale of Lowell "Bud" Paxson's Palm
Beach home and guest house but of the $45 million that Virginia home builder
Dwight Schar paid for Ron Pe 6,000-square-foot estate, Casa Apava, a designated
landmark.
Schar also paid $18.6 m" ion for lakefront lot across the street from the main house, for a
total of $63.6 million. In y Schar spent a total of $70 million for his new property,
making it the price rest tial sale in U.S. history.
Gosman once ha rtune that Forbes magazine estimated at $480 million. He voluntarily
filed for Char bJtikruptcy protection in 2001, listing assets of $250 million and
liabilities million.
When ed that Gosman had to give up all of his exempt assets to creditors if he
wanted to organize under Chapter 11, Gosman converted the case to Chapter 7 liquidation.
Last year, .S. Bankruptcy Judge Larry Lessen ruled that Abe and Lin Gosman's marriage is
invalid because Florida law does not recognize a Dominican Republic divorce that Lin
Gosman tried to obtain from another man, Michael Castre.
The judge's decision was a huge victory for creditors because it prevents Abe Gosman from
protecting assets by claiming joint ownership with his wife. Gosman's assets, which include
an extensive collection of artwork, could total as much as $70 million and will be sold later.
Without Lessen's ruling, Luzinski would have had a much harder time selling Gosman's
estate, said David Cimo, special counsel for the trustee.
"We would have been thwarted ... or at least substantially impaired," Cimo said.
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The trustee alleged during a weeklong trial in May that Gosman fraudulently gave his wife
an ownership interest in his home and other belongings only to avoid losing them in
bankruptcy. Gosman has denied any wrongdoing, saying he made the property transfers in
1999, well before he filed for bankruptcy.
Lessen is expected to rule in the next two months whether Gosman made improper transfers,
a decision that will affect how much money will be available to creditors.
Cimo acknowledged that Monday wasn't the best of days for the Gosmans but said they were
willing to move forward, in part because the upkeep of the estate now exceeds their means.
"This is not a happy occasion for them, but at least we're moving to the next level Cimo
said. "That's not a house you want to live in unless you're making large amoun money
like Donald Trump."
paul_owers®pbpost.com
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11/11/2019 Indictment: Billionaire Solicited 3 Times - News - The Palm Beach Post - West Palm Beach, FL
commission of a crime.
The Palm Beach Post REAL NEWS STARTS HERE
Indictment: Billionaire Solicited 3 Times Posted Jul 1, 2008 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 2,2019 at 2:30 PM
(EDITORS NOTE: This story originally published in The Palm Beath Post on July 25,
2006)
Billionaire money manager and Palm Beach part-time resident Jeffrey Ep.
solicited or procured prostitutes three or more times between Aug. 1 and Oct. 31
of last year, according to an indictment charging him with felony solicitation of
prostitution.
Epstein, 53, was booked at the Palm Beach Cou :45 a.m. Sunday. He
( 1\Epstein's case is unusual in that suspecte& <'tution johns are usually charged
with a misdemeanor, and even a felony charge is typically made in a criminal
information - an alternative to an indictment charging a person with the
\S"
was released on $3,000 bond.
( 11/4
His attorney, Jack Goldberger, declined to discuss the charge.
State attorney's office spokesman Mike Edmondson also had little to say.
"Generally speaking, there is a case that has a number of different aspects to it,"
Edmondson said of a prostitution -related charge being submitted to a grand jury.
"We first became aware of the case months ago by Palm Beach police."
Prosecutors and police worked together to bring the case to the grand jury, he
said.
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M1112019 Indictment: Billionaire Solicited 3 Times • News - The Palm Beach Post • West Palm Beach, FL
Palm Beach police confirmed that and said the department will release a report
today regarding its investigation.
Epstein has owned a five-bedroom, 7 1/2 -bath, 7,234-square-foot home with a
pool and a boat dock on the Intracoastal Waterway since 1990, according to
property records. A man answering the door there Monday said that Epstein
wasn't home. A Cadillac Escalade registered to him was parked in the driveway,
which is flanked by two massive gargoyles.
Epstein sued Property Appraiser Gary Nikolits in 2001, contending that the
assessment of his home exceeded its fair market value. He dismissed his lawsuit
in December 2002.
A profile of Epstein in Vanity Fair magazine said he owns what are believed to
be the largest private homes in Manhattan - 51,000 square feet - and in New
Mexico - a 7,500-acre ranch. Those are in addition to his 70-acre island in the
U.S. Virgin Islands and fleet of aircraft.
INEpstein's friends an admirers, according to the magazine, include prominent
businessmen, academics and scientists and famed Harvard law professor Alan
Ders
[Email Redacted]
htLosifiwiwpalmbeachpostcominews/20080701findictment-Nlkonaite-solicited-3-times 22
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11/11/2019 After long probe, biboaaire faces solicitation charge - News - The Palm Beach Post - West Palm Beach, FL
The Palm Beach Post REAL NEWS STARTS HERE
After long probe, billionaire faces solicitation
charge Posted Jul 27, 2006 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 3, 2019 at 3:11 PM
(EDITOR'S NOTE: This story originally published in The Palm Beadt Post o c2,6,
2006)
Palm Beach billionaire Jeffrey Epstein paid to have underage gfirl and oung
women brought to his home, where he received massages and sometimes sex,
according to an investigation by the Palm Beach Police Department.
Palm Beach police spent months sifting through Epstein's trash and watching his
waterfront home and Palm Beach International Airport to keep tabs on his
private jet. An indictment charging Epstein, 53, was unsealed Monday, charging
him with one count of felony solicitation of prostitution.
c
ity')
Palm Beach police thought thee ,probable cause to charge Epstein with
unlawful sex acts with a minor and lewd and lascivious molestation.
Police Chief Michael Reiter was so angry with State Attorney Barry Krischer's
handling of the case that he wrote a memo suggesting the county's top
prosecutor disqualify himself.
"I must urge you to examine the unusual course that your office's handling of this
matter has taken and consider if good and sufficient reason exists to require your
disqualification from the prosecution of these cases," Reiter wrote in a May I
memo to Krischer.
While not commenting specifically on the Epstein case, Mike Edmondson,
spokesman for the state attorney, said his office presents cases other than
murders to a grand jury when there are questions about witnesses' credibility and
their ability to testify.
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1111/2019 After long probe. billionaire faces solicitation charge - News - The Palm Beach Post - West Palm Beach. FL
By the nature of their jobs, police officers look at evidence from a *one-sided
perspective," Edmondson said. "A prosecutor has to look at it in a much broader
fashion," weighing the veracity of witnesses and how they may fare under
defense attorneys' questioning, he said.
Epstein's attorney, Jack Goldberger, said his client committed no crimes.
"The reports and statements in question refer to false accusations that were not
charged because the Palm Beach County state attorney questioned the credibility
of the witnesses," Goldberger said. A county grand jury "found the allegations
wholly unsubstantiated and not credible," and that's why his client was not
charged with sexual activity with minors, he said.
Goldberger said Epstein passed a lie detector test administered by a reputable
polygraph examiner in which he said he did not know the girls were minors.
Also, a search warrant served on Epstein's home found no evidence to
corroborate the girls' allegations, Goldberger said.
According to police documents:
- A Palm Beach Community College student said she gave Epstein a massage in
the nude, then brought him s' .gi‘ages 14 to 16, for massage and sex-tinged
sessions at his home. c
- A 27-year-old woman rivorked as Epstein's personal assistant also
facilitated the liaisons, phoning the PBCC student to arrange for girls when
Epstein was coming to town. And she escorted the girls upstairs when they
arrived, putting fresh sheets on a massage table and placing massage oils nearby.
- Police took sworn statements from five alleged victims and 17 witnesses. They
contend that on three occasions, Epstein had sex with the girls.
A money manager for the ultra-rich, Epstein was named one of New York's most
eligible bachelors in 2003 by The New York Post. He reportedly hobnobs with
the likes of former President Clinton, former Harvard University President
Summers and Donald Trump, and has lavish homes in Manhattan,
New Mexico and the Virgin Islands.
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11/11/2019 After long probe, billionaire faces solicitation charge - News - The Palm Beach Post - West Palm Beach, FL
He has contributed tens of thousands of dollars to Democratic Party candidates
and organizations, including Sen. John Kerry's presidential bid, and the Senate
campaigns of Joe , Hillary Clinton, Dodd and Charles
Schumer.
Cos
i tGoldberger is one of five attorneys Epste‘Ba etained since he became the
subject of an investigation, Edmondson said. Among the others: Alan
Dershowitz, the well-known Harvard law professor and author, who is a friend
of Epstein. Dershowitz could not be reached for comment.
Police said the woman who enlisted young girls for Epstein was
20, of Palm Beach. has worked at an Olive Garden restaurant in
Wellington and said she was a journalism major at Palm Beach Community
College when she was questioned by police last October. She has an unlisted
phone tier and could not be reached for comment.
said she met Epstein when, at age 17, a friend asked her if she would like
to make money giving him a massage. She said she was driven to his five-
bedroom, 7 1/2 -bath home on the Intracoastal Waterway, then escorted upstairs
to a bedroom with a massage table and oils. Epstein and were both naked
during the massage, she said, but when he grabbed her buttocks, she said she
didn't want to be touched.
https://www.palmbeachpost.cominewst20060727/after-long-probe-billionaire-taces-solicitation-charge
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11111/2019 After long probe, bilionaire faces solicitation charge - News - The Palm Beach Post - West Palm Beach, FL
Epstein said he'd pay her to bring him more girls - the younger the better,
told police. When she tried once to bring a 23-year-old woman to him,
Epstein said she was too old, said.
M , who has not been charged in the case, said she eventually brought six
girls to Epstein who were paid $200 each time, said. "I'm like a Heidi
Fleiss," police quoted her as saying. The girls knew what to expect when they
were taken to Epstein's home, said. Give a massage - maybe naked - and
allow some touching.
One 14-year-old girl took to meet Epstein led police to start the
investigation of him in March 2005. A relative of the girl called to say she
thought the child had recently engaged in sex with a Palm Beach man,. The girl
then got into a fight with a classmate who accused her of being a prostitute, and
she couldn't explain why she had $300 in her purse.
The girl gave police this account of her meeting with Epstein:
She accompanied and a second girl to Epstein's house on a Sunday in
February 2005. Once there, a woman she thought was Epstein's assistant told the
girl to follow her upstairs to a room featuring a mural of a naked woman, several
photographs of naked women on a shelf, a hot pink and sofa and a massage
table.
She stripped to her bra and panties and gave him a massage.
Epstein gave the 14-year-old $300 and she and the other girls left, she said. She
said Robson told her that Epstein paid her $200 that day.
Other girls told similar stories. In most accounts, Epstein's personal assistant at
the time, now 27, escorted the girls to Epstein's bedroom.
whose most recent known address is in North Carolina, has not been
charged in the case.
Palm Beach police often conducted surveillance of Epstein's home, and at Palm
Beach International Airport to see if his private jet was there, so they would
know when he was in town. Police also arranged repeatedly to receive his trash
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11/11/2019 After long probe, billionaire faces solicitation charge - News - The Palm Beach Post - West Palm Beach, FL
from Palm Beach sanitation workers, collecting papers with names and phone
numbers, sex toys and female hygiene products.
One note stated that a female could not come over at 7 p.m. because of soccer.
Another said a girl had to work Sunday - "Monday after school?" And still
another note contained the work hours of a girl, saying she leaves school at 11:30
a.m. and would come over the next day at 10:30 a.m.
Only three months before the police department probe began, Epstein donated
$90,000 to the department for the purchase of a firearms simulator, said Jane
Struder, town finance director. The purchase was never made. The mone\ y was
C
returned to Epstein on Monday, she said. O
https/AwAv.palmbeachpost.cominewst20060727/atter-long-probe-billonaWe-faces-solicitabon-charge 515
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11111/2019 Police say lawyer tried to disaedit teenage girls - News - Palm Beach Dairy News • Palm Beach, FL
Palm Beach Daily News
Police say lawyer tried to discredit teenage
girls Posted Jul 29, 2006 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 3, 2019 at 2:00 PM
(EDITOR'S NOTE: This story originally was published in The Palm Beach Post on July
29, 2006)
Famed Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz met with the Palm Beach County
State Attorney's Office and provided damaging information about teenage girls
who say they gave his client, Palm Beach billionaire Jgffrey,pstein, sexually
charged massages, according to police reports.
ky-The reports also state that another Epstein atEk greed to a plea bargain that
would have allowed Epstein to have (no riVal record. His current attorney
denies this happened.
91 .11And the documents also reveal dia , e father of at least one girl complained that
private investigators aggressively followed his car, photographed his home and
chased off visitors.
Police also talked to somebody who said she was offered money if she refused to
cooperate with the Palm Beach Police Department probe of Epstein.
The state attorney's office said it presented the Epstein case to a county grand
jury this month rather than directly charging Epstein because of concerns about
the girls' credibility. The grand jury indicted Epstein, 53, on a single count of
felony solicitation of prostitution, which carries a maximum penalty of five years
in prison.
Police believed there was probable cause to charge Epstein with the more serious
crimes of unlawful sex acts with a minor and lewd and lascivious molestation.
Police Chief Michael Reiter was so angry that he wrote State Attorney Barry
Krischer a memo in May suggesting he disqualify himself from the case.
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11/11/2019 Police say lawyer tried to discseda teenage girls • News • Palm Beach Daily News • Palm Beach, Ft.
The case originally was going to be presented to the grand jury in February, but
was postponed after Dershowitz produced information gleaned from the Web
site myspace.com showing some of the alleged victims commenting on alcohol
and marijuana use, according to the police report prepared by Detective
Recarcy.
a 20-year-old Palm Beach woman who told police she
recruited girls for Epstein, also is profiled on myspace.com. Her page includes
photos of her and her friends, including one using the name "Pimpin' Made EZ."
who was not charged in the case, is a potential prosecution vvittlesS
According to Recarey, prosecutor Lanna Belohlavek offered Epstein eys
Dershowitz and Guy Fronstin a plea deal in April. Fronstin, after speaking with
Epstein, accepted the deal, in which Epstein would plead guilty to one count of
aggravated assault with intent to commit a felony, be placed on five years'
probation and have no criminal record. The deal also called for Epstein to submit
to a psychiatric and sexual evaluation and have no unsupervised visits with
minors, according to Recarey's report. The plea bargain was made in connection
with only one of the five alleged victims, the report states.
Fronstin - who declined to comment on the case - was subsequently fired and
veteran defense attorney jack Goldberger was hired. He denies there was any
agreement by any of Epstein's attorneys to a plea deal.
"We absolutely did not agree to a plea in this case," he said. Neither Belohlavek
nor a state attorney's spokesman could be reached for comment.
The parent or parents of alleged victims who complained of being harassed by
private investigators provided license tag numbers of two of the men. Police
found the vehicles were registered to a private eye in West Palm Beach and
another in Jupiter, according to Recarey's report.
"I have no knowledge of it," defense attorney Goldberger said.
The report also says a woman connected to the Epstein case was contacted by
somebody who was still in touch with Epstein. That person told her she would
be compensated if she didn't cooperate with police, Recarey's report says. Those
hese/Nisi," palmbeachdailynews.com/articts/20060729/NEWS/190917573 214
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I t/11/2019 Police say lawyer tried to discredit teenage girls - News - Palm Beach Daily News - Pekn Beach, FL
who did talk "will be dealt with: the woman said she was told. Phone records
show the woman talked with the person who allegedly intimidated her around
the time she said, Recarey reported.
Phone records also show that the person said to have made the threat then
placed a call to Epstein's personal assistant, who in turn called a New York
corporation affiliated with Epstein, the report states.
The issue in the Epstein case is not whether females came to his waterfront
home, but whether he knew their ages.
"He's never denied girls came to the house," Goldberger said. But when Epstein
was given a polygraph test, "he passed on knowledge of age,7 the attorney said.
After the indictment against Epstein was unsealed this Alt, Police Chief Reiter
referred the matter to the FBI. "We've received the referral, and we're reviewing
it," said FBI spokeswoman Judy Orihuela in Miami.
The chief himself has come under attack from Epstein's lawyers and friends in
New York, where he has a home. The New York Post quoted Epstein's
prominent New York lawyer, Gerald Lefcourt, as saying his client was indicted
only 'because of the craziness of the police chief."
Reiter has declined to comment on the case.
Prosecutors have not presented a sex-related case like Epstein's to a grand jury
before, said Mike Edmondson, spokesman for the state attorney's office. 'That's
what you do with a case that falls into a gray area: he said.
The state attorney's office did not recommend a particular criminal charge on
which to indict Epstein, Edmondson said. The grand jury was presented with a
list of charges from highest to lowest, then deliberated with the prosecutor out of
the room, he said.
"People are surprised at the grand jury proceeding," West Palm Beach defense
attorney Richard Tendler said. "It's a way for the prosecutor's office to not take
the full responsibility for not filing the (charge), and not doing what the Palm
Beach Police Department wanted. I think something fell apart with those
underage witnesses."
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Defense attorney Robert Gershman was a prosecutor for six years. *Those girls
must have been incredible or untrustworthy, I don't know,' he said.
Other attorneys said Epstein's case raises the issue of whether wealthy, connected
defendants like Epstein - whose friends include former President Clinton and
Donald Trump - are treated differently from others. Once he knew he was the
subject of a criminal probe, Epstein hired a phalanx of powerful attorneys such as
Dershowitz and Lefcourt, who is a past president of the National Association of
Criminal Defense Lawyers.
Miami lawyer Roy Black - who became nationally known when he successfully
defended William Kennedy
involved at one point.
on a rape charge in Palm Beach - also was 11/4„,,
)
Said defense attorney Suskauer: "1 think it's unfortunate the public may
get the perception that with power, you may be treated differently than the
average Joe."
AgNic?
? S'
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The Palm Beach Post REAL NEWS STARTS ERE
Expert: Ignorance of age isn't
defense in sex cases Posted Aug 5, 2006 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 3, 2019 at 1:38 PM
(EDITOR'S NOTE: This story originally published in The
Palm Beach Post on Aug. 5, 2006)
Even if Palm Beach money manager Jeffrey Epstein didn't
know that girls who police say gave him sexual massages at
his Intracoastal home were under the legal age, that alone
wouldn't have exempted him from criminal charges of
sexual activity with minors.
1S )'Ignorance is not a valid defenseao Delde, a legal
skills professor who was a Lake City prosecutor for nearly
30 years, half of that time speci$zing in sex crimes against
children.
"There is no knowledge element as far as the age is
concerned," Deke said.
After ant?- 44ionth investigation, Palm Beach police said
there was probable cause to charge Epstein, 53, with
unlawful sex acts with a minor and lewd and lascivious
molestation. They contend that Epstein - friend of the rich
and famous and financial patron of Democratic Party
organizations and candidates - committed those acts with
five underage girls.
In the past week, New York Attorney General and
gubernatorial candidate Eliot Spitzer has returned about
$50,000 in campaign contributions he received from
Epstein, and Mark a candidate to replace Spitzer in
EFTA02734186
his current job, has returned $10,000 to him because of the
Palm Beach scandal, the New York Daily News has
reported.
Rather than file charges, the state attorney's office
presented the case to a county grand jury. The panel
indicted Epstein last week on a single, less serious charge of
felony solicitation of prostitution.
The case raised eyebrows because the state attorney's office
rarely, if ever, kicks such charges to a grand jury. And it ,
increases the difficulty of prosecuting child sex abuse casesfl
especially when the defendant is enormously wealthy a
)
can hire high-priced, top-tier lawyers.
At least one of Epstein's alleged victims told police he knew
she was underage when the two of them got naked for
massages and sexual activity. She was 16 years old at the
time and said Epstein asked her questions about her high
school, according to police reports.
A girl who said she met Ea when she was 15 said he
told her if she told anybody what happened at his house,
bad things co d hair, the police reports state.
Epstein's youngest alleged victim was 14 when she says she
gave him a massage that included some sexual activity. She
is now 16. The girl's father says he doesn't know whether
cshe told Epstein her age.
+ "My daughter has kept a lot of what happened from me
because of sheer embarrassment," he said. "But she very
much looked 14. Any prudent man would have had second
thoughts about that."
Defense attorney Jack Goldberger maintains that not only
did Epstein pass a polygraph test showing he did not know
the girls were minors, but their stories weren't credible.
The state attorney's office also implied that their credibility
was an issue when it decided not to charge Epstein directly,
but instead give the case to the grand jury.
EFTA02734187
"A prosecutor has to look at it in a much broader fashion," a
state attorney's spokesman said last week.
IL ;(- *:!(11 tr.' el RIF 11
;.;
CO
Epstein hired Harvard law Professor AlanOshowitz
when he became aware he was under investigation, and
Dershowitz gave prosecutors information that some of the
alleged victims had spoke of using alcohol and marijuana on
a popular Web site, according to a Palm Beach police
report.
Prosecutors typically consider two things in deciding
whether to charge somebody with sex-related offenses
against minors - whether there is sufficient evidence and
whether there is a public interest in doing so, Dekle said.
If two teens are in a sexual relationship and the boy turns
18 before the girl, he could be charged with a sex crime if
the sex continues. There would be no public interest in
pursuing that, Dekle said.
But where there is a large gap in ages - and especially in
cases of teachers with students - there is a public interest in
prosecuting, he said. Likewise if the accused has a track
record of sex with minors.
EFTA02734188
Still there is a "universal constant" in prosecuting these
cases, Dekle said. Men who exploit underage children for
sex often carefully choose their victims in ways that will
minimize the risk to them, he said.
Victims usually are from a lower social status, and they may
suffer from psychological problems, Dekle said.
"Lots of child sexual abuse victims have been victimized by
multiple people over a period of time. Then the act of abuse
produces behavior in the victims that further damages their
credibility." Examples include promiscuous behavior and
drug abuse.
Some of the alleged victims in the Epstein case returned to
his home multiple times for the massage sessions and the
$200 to $300 he typically paid them per visit. "That would
be a definite problem for the prosecutor," said Betty Resch,
who prosecuted crimes against children in Palm Beach
County for five years and ngw tat private practice in Lake
Worth.
"The victim becomg le sympathetic" to a jury, Resch said.
"But she's a victim nevertheless. She's a kid."
Most men charged with sex crimes against minors look
normal, Dekle said. A jury expecting to see a monster
seldom will. And the victims' ages work against them and in
or of the defendant in a trial, Dekle said.
If a child and an adult tell different stories and both swear
they're telling the truth, adult jurors are more likely to
believe the adult, Dekle said.
"You have all these things working against you in a child
sex abuse case. Prosecutors normally try to be very careful
in filing those cases because they know what they're getting
into. There is no such thing as an iron-clad child sexual
abuse case."
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The Palm Beach Post REAL NEWS STARTS PERE
Epstein camp calls female accusers
liars Posted Aug 8, 2006 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 3, 2019 at 3:35 PM
(EDITOR'S NOTE: This story originally published in The
Palm Beach Post on Aug. 8, 2006)
Attorneys and publicists for Palm Beach financier Jeffrey
Epstein went on the offensive Monday, contending that
teenage girls who have accused Epstein of sexual
shenanigans at his waterfront home are li and saying s tii
that the Palm Beach Police Departmen g"c dish." c iQ
"There never was any sex betweeay pstein and any
underage women," his lead torney, Jack Goldberger, said
from Idaho where he wa tioning with his family.
Epstein did have
him massages, GO1
men come to his house to give
rger said. "Mr. Epstein absolutely
insisted anybody who came to his house be over the age of
18. How he verified that, I don't know. The question is, did
,,, hing illegal occur. The law was not violated here." an
ha no explanation as to why Epstein would pay girls or
men with no massage training - as the alleged victims
said was the case - $200 to $300 for their visits. "The
credibility of these witnesses has been seriously
questioned," Goldberger said.
Epstein, 53, was indicted by a county grand jury last month
on a charge of felony solicitation of prostitution. After an
11-month investigation that included sifting through
Epstein's trash and surveilling his home, Palm Beach police
concluded there was enough evidence to charge him with
sexual activity with minors. When the grand jury indicted
EFTA02734190
Epstein on the less serious charge, Police Chief Michael
Reiter referred the case to the FBI to determine whether
there were federal law violations.
After a spate of stories about the case last week, New York
publicist Dan Klores - whose client list has included Paris
Hilton and Jennifer - said on Saturday that Epstein's
camp was ready "to get their story out."
They did that Monday via Goldberger and a Los Angeles
publicist for Miami criminal defense attorney Roy Black,
who also has represented Epstein in the case.
"We just think there has been a distorted view of t
in the media presented by the Palm Beach police,
Goldberger said.
Reiter has consistently declined to commint,, the case
and did not respond to a request for comment Monday.
The implication that State Attorney Barry Krischer was
easy on Epstein by presenting the case to a grand jury
rather than filing charges directly against him is wrong,
Goldberger said.
EFTA02734191
The Palm Beach Police Department was "happy and
ecstatic" that the panel was going to review the evidence. "I
think what happened is they weren't happy with the result.
They decided to use the press to embarrass Mr. Epstein."
But records show that Reiter wrote Krischer on May I -
well before the case went to the grand jury - suggesting that
Krischer "consider if good and sufficient reason exists to
require your disqualification from the prosecution of these
cases."
Rather than flat-out decline to charge Epstein, Krischer „S
referred the case to the grand jury to "appease" the chi ,
Goldberger said.
0
A state attorney's spokesman would say o
refers cases to the grand jury when ther
viability of the evidence or witnesses' credibility.
e office
with the
Both the state attorney and the grand jury concluded there
was not sufficient evidence that Epa had sex with
minors, according to Goldberger. "It was just a childish
performance by the Palm Beach Police Department,"
Goldberger said.
The defense attorney said one of the alleged victims who
claimed she was a minor was in fact over the age of 18.
Another alleged victim who was subpoenaed to testify to
the grand jury failed to do so. Epstein's accusers, he added,
have histories of drug abuse and thefts. "These women are
liars. We've established that."
But why would they all invent their stories about meeting
Epstein for sexual massages?
"I don't have an answer as to what was the motivation for
these women to come forward and make these allegations,"
Goldberger said.
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Newsi)al..:ery?
*mesa The Pah Beach Post ( '4051 Pen Beach, Florida) • 10 Aug 21:06. Mon • Pa. 7
Derenia l aCril on III:iv I I.211 1S
Palm Beach chief kips.
of fire in Epstein case
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EFTA02734193
The Palm Beach Post REAL NEWS STARTS HERE
Delays in Epstein case unusual,
lawyers say Posted Mar 13, 2007 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 3, 2019 at 3:48 PM
(EDITORS NOTE: This story originally published in The Palm
Beach Post March 13, 2007)
AS ,A federal probe or a plea deal could explain the wait in the
Palm Beacher's solicitation case.
Nearly eight months after Palm Beach tycoornisffrec C
Epstein was charged with felony solicitation of prostitution,
there has been no discernible progress in his case. No
witnesses deposed. No trial date set. Nothing, save for
routine court hearings reset 'ttt i explanation. ? c ,..
"Usually that would beilhusu , said criminal defense
attorney Glenn eNvho has no involvement in the
case.
"As a general rule, it would be unusual for nothing to have
happened,' ag. Michael Dutko, a criminal defense
attorney in Fort Lauderdale. He represents
20, of Palm Beach, potentially a key witness in the
case.
A routine hearing for Epstein was pulled from the court
docket last week and reset for May 16. The delays and
inaction could be due to a potential federal probe of Epstein
or because a plea deal is in the works, attorneys say.
Unusual is the word that best describes everything about
the case against Epstein, 54, an enigmatic money manager
in New York City who counts Bill Clinton and Donald
Trump among his friends.
EFTA02734194
"Highly unusual" is how Palm Beach Police Chief Michael
Reiter described State Attorney Barry Krischer's handling
of the case in a bluntly critical letter to Krischer last year
before Epstein was indicted.
Reiter referred the matter to the FBI to determine whether
any federal laws had been violated. Epstein's allies
countered by attacking the chief personally and
professionally.
Reiter's department investigated Epstein for 11 months.
Police sifted repeatedly through his trash and conducted
surveillance on his five-bedroom, 7 1/2 -bath, 7,234-s
foot home on the Intracoastal Waterway.
Police said Epstein paid women and girls as young as 14 to
give him erotic massages at his home. Police thought there
was probable cause to charge him with unlawful sex acts
with a minor and lewd and lascivious molestation.
Epstein responded by hiring a phalanx of lawyers. One of
them, Harvard law professor and author Alan Dershowitz,
provided the state attorney's office with information about
alcohol and marijuana use by some of the girls who said
they were with Epstein.
( lis+ Ep tein's attorneys deny he had sex with underage girls.
The lawyers say the girls' stories are not credible. But if the
court file is any indicator, they've made no effort to depose
the girls.
Prosecutors then referred the case to the grand jury rather
that charges directly against Epstein.
Neither prosecutors nor defense attorneys have sought to
question , said Dutko, her attorney. She recruited
teenage girls to visit Epstein for massages and sexual
activity, Palm Beach police said, and presumably would be a
key witness.
EFTA02734195
Epstein's attorney Jack Goldberger did not return phone
messages.
A source close to the case suggested it is languishing
pending a decision by the FBI on whether to refer it to
federal prosecutors.
"We still have a pending case," FBI spokeswoman Judy
Orihuela said Monday.
State Attorney Krischer did not return a call for comment.
His spokesman, Mike Edmondson, declined to say whether
federal investigators are delaying the Epstein case. But, he
added, "if another agency is looking at something, we
wouldn't want to step on their toes."
Attorneys say inertia in a criminal case often points to a
pending plea deal.
"It would not surprise me if some as happened that's
not reflected in the court file," said Dutko, such as an
agreement that will be foi$lized later.
Defense attorney Marc Shiner said defense attorneys
sometimes put off overtly conducting discovery -- deposing
witnesses, requesting documents and the like -- because
doing so creates more work for harried prosecutors who
may b\ ecome angry and not offer a plea deal. t
etimes defense lawyers, knowing that, will try and do
,..÷, discovery without taking depositions: said Shiner, a former
prosecutor for 13 years.
Instead, they may conduct a below-the -radar probe such as
having a private investigator check out leads, he said.
Shiner and others say a plea deal for Epstein probably
would result in pretrial intervention, in which a defendant
may be ordered to undergo a psychological evaluation,
counseling or other conditions in return for dropping the
charge.
EFTA02734196
Edmondson, spokesman for State Attorney Krischer, said
there is no plea offer and no request for the prosecution to
show its cards.
"To my knowledge, it's never happened before on a filed
case," he said.
EFTA02734197
252 / 278 - Thursday, October 18, 2007
Edition: FINAL
Section: LOCAL
Page: 5B
Source: The Associated Press
Illustration: PHOTO (B&W)
Memo: Ran all editions.
Dateline: NEW YORK
WOMAN SUES BILLIONAIRE INVESTOR, SAYS THEY HAD SEX WHEN.SUE WAS 16
A billionaire investor, already facing jail in Palm Beach County on charges of +tL 'ngUnderage
prostitutes, is being sued by a young woman who says he had sex with her was 16 and had
sought his help becoming a model.
The lawsuit, filed late Tuesday in Manhattan's state Supreme Court, sa Jeffrey Epstein had
the teen perform a sex act when she brought photographs of herself for m review in his Upper
East Side mansion sometime in 2000.
Epstein, 54, a money manager, told the teen he managed fin ictoria's Secret and "could get
you into the catalog" if she were "nice" to him, court pape papers say being "nice"
included massages and other favors.
When the girl told Epstein, "I am 16 years old and ju wart odel," he replied, "Don't worry, I
won't tell anybody," court papers say.
Epstein, said by London's Mail on Sunday to end of England's Prince Andrew, has been
indicted in Palm Beach on charges of solici e prostitutes. That case is pending.
The girl visited Epstein "several times ov I months and engaged in bizarre and unnatural
sex acts" while she was a minor, the lavituit s ys.
Epstein "repeatedly requested that girl) return with her 14-, 15-, and 16-year-old girlfriends,
stating, 'Come by with your fries your age next time. Don't bring Sherrie (a mutual friend in her
40s). I love girls your age.' "
The young woman, now 23, returning to Epstein because she has "mental issues," said her
lawyer, William J. UnroO. H sed to elaborate, but court papers say she was "disabled as a result
of severe mental disease and d ect."
Epstein's lawyer in New k, Gerald Lefcourt, said, "The girl has admitted she is insane, but she can
read a newspaperiand recognize the word 'rich.'"
Lefcourt also said the statute of limitations has expired for the woman's case criminally and civilly,
and will alast certainly be dismissed.
He refused to comment on Epstein's Florida charges.
Meanwhile, Unroch, 57, also acknowledged that his client was living with him and was at the center
of a $10 million lawsuit he filed last year against a neighbor who said he was having sex with
underage girls. That case is pending.
"What she was doing at 22 is irrelevant to what happened to her when she was 16," Unroch said
Wednesday. He went on the say he hoped Epstein would agree to "do right" by his client and resolve
the case out of court.
EFTA02734198
The Palm Beach Post REAL NEWS STARTS 161E
Palm Beacher pleads in sex case Posted Jul 1, 2008 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 3, 2019 at 1:47 PM
(EDITOR'S NOTE: This story originally published in The
Palm Beach Post on July 1, 2008)
Jeffrey Epstein will serve 1 1/2 years on teen solicitation
charges.
He lives in a Palm Beach waterfront mansion and has kept
company with the likes of President Clinton, Prince
Andrew and Donald Trump, but investment banker Jeffrey
Epstein will call the Palm Beach Coun il home for the
• wV
Epstein, 55, pleaded guilty Motty felony solicitation of
prostitution and procuring a person under the age of 18 for
prostitution. After serving 18 months in jail, he will be
under house arrest for a year. And he will have a lifelong
obligation to register as a sex offender. He must submit to
an HIV test within 48 hours, with the results being
provided to his victims or their parents.
next 18 months.
As pan of the plea deal, federal investigators agreed to drop
their investigation of Epstein, which they had taken to a
grand jury, two law enforcement sources said.
Epstein was indicted two years ago after an 11-month
investigation by Palm Beach police. They received a
complaint from a relative of a 14-year-old girl who had
given Epstein a naked massage at his five-bedroom, 7,234-
square -foot, $8.5 million Intracoastal home.
Police concluded that there were several other girls brought
in 2004 and 2005 to an upstairs room at the home for
similar massages and sexual touching.
EFTA02734199
The indictment charged Epstein only with felony
solicitation of prostitution. The state attorney's office later
added the charge of procuring underage girls for that
purpose.
Prosecutor Lanna Belohlavek said of the plea: "I took into
consideration the length the trial would have been and
witnesses having to testify" about sometimes embarrassing
incidents.
Epstein may have made a serious mistake soon after he was
charged. He rejected an offer to plead guilty to one count of
aggravated assault with intent to commit a felony,
according to police documents. He would have gotten five
years' probation, had no criminal record and not been a
registered sex offender, the documents in 'cate.,
Epstein arrived in court Monday withC )ea§t hree
attorneys. He wore a blue blazer, blue shirt, blue jeans and
and gray sneakers. After Circuit Judge Deborah Dale
Pucillo accepted the plea, he was fingerprinted. Epstein
then removed his blazer and was handcuffed for the trip to
jail while his attorneys tried to shield him from
photographe tlens4./
When he eventually is released to house arrest, Epstein will
have to observe a 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew, have no
unsupervised contact with anyone younger than 18 and
neither own nor possess pornographic or sexual materials
"that are relevant to your deviant behavior: the judge said.
Epstein will be allowed to leave home for work. The New
York-based money manager told the judge he has formed
the not -for-profit Florida Science Foundation to finance
scientific research. "I'm there every day," Epstein said.
The foundation was incorporated in November. Epstein
said he already has awarded money to Harvard and MIT.
EFTA02734200
When he is released from jail, there is a chance that Epstein
will be forced to move. Sex offenders are not allowed to live
within 1,000 feet of a school, park or other areas where
children may gather. No determination has been made as to
whether Epstein's home complies, but attorneys said it
likely does.
Sex offenders also typically must attend counseling sessions.
Belohlavek said that was waived for Epstein because his
private psychiatrist is working with him. The judge was
skeptical but agreed to it.
Epstein's legal woes don't end with Monday's plea. There
are four pending federal civil lawsuits and one in state court
related to his behavior. At least one woman has sued him in
New York, where he owns a 51,000-squar, fodManhattan
mansion.
'Si"It's validation of what we're sayiain e civil cases," said
Miami attorney Jeffrey Herman, who represents the alleged
victims in the federal lawsuits. West Palm Beach attorney
Ted Leopold represents one alleged victim in a civil suit in
state court. He said he anticipates amending that lawsuit to
add "a few other clients" as well.
In the criminal case, police went so far as to scour Epstein's
trash and conduct surveillance at Palm Beach International
Airport, where they watched for his private jet so they
would know when he was in town. They concluded that
Epstein paid girls $200 to $300 each after the massage
sessions.
"I'm like a Heidi Fleiss," now 22, told police
about her efforts in recruiting girls for Epstein.
There was probable cause to charge Epstein with unlawful
sex acts with a minor and lewd and lascivious molestation,
police concluded.
EFTA02734201
The state attorney's office said questions about the girls'
credibility led it to take the unprecedented step of
presenting the evidence against Epstein to a grand jury,
rather than directly charging him.
Palm Beach Police Chief Michael Reiter was furious with
State Attorney Barry Krischer, saying in a May 2006 letter
that the prosecutor should disqualify himself. "I continue to
find your office's treatment of these cases highly unusual,"
he wrote. He then asked for and got a federal investigation.
Epstein hired a phalanx of high-priced lawyers - including
Harvard law professor and author Alan Dershowitz -
public relations people who questioned Reiter's cod!)
and the victims' truthfulness.
In addition to mansions in Palm Beach and Manhattan,
Epstein owns homes in New Mexico and the Virgin Islands.
He's a frequent contributor to Democratic Party candidates.
\,.., He also donated $30 millio to licrvard in 2003.
Former New York Gonliot pitzer returned a $50,000
campaign contribution from Epstein after his indictment,
then resigned this year during his own sex scandal. And the
same Palm Beach Police Department that vigorously
investigated Epstein returned his $90,000 donation for the
purchase of a firearms simulator.
Staff writer Eliot Kleinberg and former staff researcher
Michelle Quigley contributed to this story.
EFTA02734202
The Palm Beach Post REAL I€WS STARTS HERE
Jeffrey Epstein: Scientist,
stuntman, `sex slave' visit jailed
tycoon By LARRY / Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Posted Aug 13, 2008 at 12:01 AM
Updated Jul 16, 2019 at 4:54 PM
Tycoon Jeffrey Epstein mingled with an eclectic mix of
people, including beautiful young women, before he
into trouble for paying teenage girls to give him sexu
massages at his Palm Beach mansion.
Not much has changed, even though he now resides in a
dorm at the Palm Beach County Sheriffs Office's I7-acre,
967-bed stockade near the fairgrounds.
During his first month of confinement, Epstein was visited
by the female assistant who, girls told police, had escorted
them to the room at his mansion where they gave him
naked massages.
Also trekking to the jail was a young woman whom Epstein
purportedly described as his Yugoslavian sex slave.
The wealthy financier and science wonk also has been
visited by an expert on artificial intelligence, as well as a
man who is a mixed martial arts aficionado and sometime
movie stuntman.
The only other people to visit him at the jail, according to
records, are a Island man and an individual who
listed Epstein's Palm Beach address as his own.
Epstein, 55, pleaded guilty on June 30 to two prostitution -
related charges and was sentenced to 18 months in jail,
followed by a year of house arrest. Epstein paid teenage
EFTA02734203
girls $200 to $300 in 2004 and 2005 for massages in his
home that sometimes included sexual touching, Palm Beach
police said.
His jail visitors in July included:
IMM 29, who some of the teen masseuses said
phoned them when Epstein was in town and escorted them
upon their arrival at his Palm Beach waterfront home to an
upstairs room, where she prepared the massage table and
provided the oils for their encounters with him.
visited Epstein three times in July, according to a jail
visitor's log. lists a Manhattan home address.
Reached by telephone, she declined to discuss Epstein.
23, whose family in Yugoslavia
Epstein paid money to so that he could bring her to the
United States to be his "sex slave," two teenage girls told
police. One girl told police that Epstein instructed
and her to kiss and have sex while he watched
and masturbated. Another said she engaged in sex with
at Epstein's urging. visited Epstein
in jail four times in 13 days. She lists her address as on the
Upper East side of Manhattan, not far from Epstein's
enormous apartment.
- Roger Schank, 62, founder of the Institute for Learning
Sciences at Northwestern University and an expert on
artificial intelligence, paid one visit to Epstein. Schank has
written numerous books on that subject and has a doctorate
degree from Yale University in linguistics. He was one of 19
people who applied to be president of Florida Atlantic
University in 2003. He became "chief learning officer" at the
online Trump University in 2005. Schank listed his address
as being in Stuart, and records show he also owns a home
in Lake Worth.
EFTA02734204
Epstein has financed a number of scientists over the years,
including Nobel Prize winners. He gave $30 million to
Harvard University in 2003. In November, he formed the
not-for-profit Florida Science Foundation, which he said
finances scientific research.
- Igor Zinoviev, a Russian mixed martial arts fighter, who
coaches a Chicago team in the International Fight League.
He also has worked as a personal trainer, celebrity
bodyguard and movie stuntman, according to the league's
Web site. The New Jersey resident visited Epstein seven
times in July.
Zinoviev, Schank and
comment.
could not be reached for
Staff researcher Niels Heimeriks contribut is story.
?S'"
O
EFTA02734205
Palm Beach Daily News
Billionaire sex offender leaves jail
six days a week for work Posted Jul 1, 2008 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 4, 2019 at 9:27 AM
Palm Beach billionaire Jeffrey Epstein, who's serving 18
months in jail for soliciting an underage girl for
prostitution, is allowed to leave the Palm Beach County
Stockade six days a week on a work-release program. O
Teri Barbera, spokeswoman for the Palm Beach Gouty
Sheriffs Office, confirmed that Epstein, 55, has been in the
work-release program since Oct. 10.
"He works six days a week: Friday through Wednesday 10
a.m. to 10 p.m.," Barbera said via e-mail. "(He) works at his
local West Palm Beach office, monitored on an active GPS
system (he wears an ankle bracelet). Mr. Epstein hires a
permit deputy, at his expense, for his own security at his
workplace during the7time he is out."
Miami attorney Jeffrey Herman represents six young
women who've sued Epstein, claiming he sexually abused
theiV his Palm Beach home when they were minors.
rtnan said he received a letter about the work-release
program from the U.S. Attorney's Office within the past
few days. But Herman says Epstein had been out on work-
release for several weeks before the notification.
"My clients expressed shock and disappointment," Herman
said. "I find it incredible that he's on work-release in the
community and my clients aren't notified of this and we get
this letter weeks after the fact."
Jack Goldberger, Epstein's criminal attorney, said the
EFTA02734206
arrangement is not unusual.
"He goes to work every single day and goes back to jail at
night, just like everybody else (in the program),"
Goldberger said.
Epstein pleaded guilty June 30 to two felony counts:
soliciting prostitution and procuring a person under 18 for
prostitution. As part of the plea agreement, Epstein must
serve one year of house arrest and register as a lifelong sex
offender.
EFTA02734207
The Palm Beach Post REAL NEWS STARTS HERE
Women want Epstein sex plea deal
unsealed Posted Jul 1, 2008 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 2, 2019 al 2:23 PM
(EDITOR'S NOTE: This story originally published in The
Palm Beach Post June 10, 2009)
Their attorneys will ask a judge to open Jeffrey Epstei
records.
When wealthy money manager Jeffrey Epstein of Palm
Beach pleaded guilty last year to procuring teens for
prostitution, his case detoured around local and state rules
regarding the sealing of court d ell5s.
\ 1/4At a plea conference on t to charges, a judge, a defense
lawyer and a prosecutor huddled at the bench and decided
that a deal Epstein had struck with federal prosecutors to
avoid charges ( houldpe sealed, according to a transcript of
the hearing.
And-so iltct ir
But Florida rules of judicial administration, as well as rules
of the Palm Beach County court system, require public
notification that a court document has been or will be
sealed, meaning kept from public view. The rules also
require a judge to find a significant reason to seal, such as
protecting a trade secret or a compelling government
interest.
Yet no notification or reason occurred in Epstein's case,
according to court records.
EFTA02734208
Epstein's own attorneys, in federal filings, have referred to
his confidential deferred prosecution agreement with the
U.S. attorney's office, struck in September 2007, as
"unprecedented" and "highly unusual." And it was "a
significant inducement" for Epstein to accept the state's
deal, observed the state judge who accepted his plea,
County Judge Deborah Dale Pucillo.
Epstein now faces at least a dozen civil lawsuits in federal
and state courts filed by young women who said they had
sex with him and now are seeking damages.
Attorneys for some of those women want his agreement
with federal prosecutors unsealed and will ask Circuit Judge
Jeffrey Colbath to do so today.
"It is against public policy for these documents to be have
been sealed and hidden from public scrutiny. As a member
of the public, E.W. has a right to have these documents
unsealed: wrote former Circuit Judge Bill Berger, now in
private practice and representing one of the women.
The Palm Beach Post also will ask Colbath to unseal the
agreement. Post attorney Deanna Shullman will argue that
the public has a right to know the specifics of Epstein's deal.
According to various media accounts, Epstein moved in
circles that included President Clinton, Donald Trump and
Prince Andrew. "International Moneyman of Mystery,"
declared a 2002 New York magazine profile of Epstein.
Epstein, S6, is in the Palm Beach County Stockade, serving
an 18-month sentence after pleading guilty nearly a year
ago to felony solicitation of prostitution and procuring
teenagers for prostitution.
He is allowed out from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m., escorted by a
deputy, said Palm Beach County Sheriffs Office
spokeswoman Teri Barbera.
EFTA02734209
During a Palm Beach Police Department investigation, five
victims and 17 witnesses gave statements. They told of
young women brought by his assistants to Epstein's
mansion on El Brillo Way for massages and sexual activity,
and then being paid afterward.
At Epstein's plea conference last year, his attorney, Jack
Goldberger, and then-Assistant State Attorney Lanna
Belohlavek approached Pucillo in a sidebar conference.
Pucillo, who had left the bench nine years earlier, was
filling in temporarily as a senior judge.
According to a transcript, Goldberger told Pucillo that
Epstein had entered a confidential agreement with the U.S.
attorney's office in which federal prosecutors brokered not
pursuing charges against him if he pleaded guilty in state
court. Pucillo then said she wanted a sealed copy of the
agreement filed in his case, and Goldberger concurred that
he wanted it sealed. Belohlavek later signed off on it.
The Florida Supreme Court has expressed "serious concern"
and launched an all-out inquiry into sealing procedures
across the state following media reports in 2006 of entire
cases being sealed and disappearing from court records.
"The public's constitutional right of access to court records
must remain inviolate, and this court is fully committed to
safeguarding this right," justices wrote in their final report.
Epstein's office on Tuesday referred any questions to
Goldberger, who declined to comment. Pucillo also has
declined to comment.
EFTA02734210
The Palm Beach Post REAL NEWS SUMS MERE
Epstein secret pact with Feds
reveals "highly unusual" terms Posted Jun 10, 2009 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 4, 2019 at 9:23 AM
(EDITOR'S NOTE: This story originally published in The
Palm Beach Post on September 19, 2W9)
A secret non-prosecution agreement multimillionaire
financier Jeffrey Epstein struck with federal prosecutors is
being called "highly unusual" by former federal prosecutors
and downright outrageous by attorneys now repjesenting
young women who serviced him.
The deal reveals that the FBI and tbSiS. Attorney's Office
investigated him for several federal crimes, including
engaging minors in commercial sex. The crimes are
punishable by anywhere from 10 years to life in prison.
But federal prosecutors backed down and agreed to recall
grand jury subpoenas if Epstein pleaded guilty to
prostitution -related felonies in state court, which he
dul 'mately did. He received an 18-month jail sentence, of
lueh he served 13 months.
e U.S. Attorney's Office also agreed not to charge any of
Epstein's possible co-conspirators:
, Lesley Groff and
The deal was negotiated in part by heavyweight New York
criminal defense attorney Gerald Lefcourt.
Unsealed on Friday after attorneys for some of Epstein's
victims and The Palm Beach Post sought its release, it offers
the first public look at the deal Epstein's high-powered legal
counsel brokered on his behalf.
EFTA02734211
Mark of Stuart, a former federal prosecutor,
described the disparity in potential sentences as unusual,
but even more so a provision on attorney payment.
The first draft of the agreement in September 2007
required that Epstein pay an attorney -- tapped by the U.S.
Attorney's Office and approved by Epstein -- to represent
some of the victims. That attorney is prominent Miami
lawyer Bob Josefsberg.
,
But an addendum to the agreement signed the following 4,..'
month struck Epstein's duty to pay Josefsberg if he and the
victims did not accept settlements -- capped at $150,00O
and instead pursued lawsuits.
said it appears the government was trying to
balance the lesser sentence for Epstein with recovering
$150,000 for each victim. I've never, ever seen anything
like that in my life," he said. "It's highly unusual."
The deal does not say whether any victims were contacted
or consulted before the deal was made.
Attorney Brad Edwards of Fort Lauderdale, who represents
three of the young women, believes that none of the 30 to
40 woman identified as victims in the federal investigation
were told ahead of time. said his clients received
letters from the U.S. Attorney's Office months after the deal
O signed, assuring them Epstein would be prosecuted.
'Never consulting the victims is probably the most
outrageous aspect of it," said. "It taught them that
someone with money can buy his way out of anything. It's
outrageous and embarrassing for United States Attorney's
Office and the State Attorney's Office."
Epstein now faces many civil lawsuits filed by the women,
who are represented by a variety of attorneys. In many, the
allegations are the same: that Epstein had a predilection for
teenage girls, identified poor, vulnerable ones and used
EFTA02734212
other young women to lure them to his Palm Beach
mansion. They walked away with between $200 and
$1,000.
Former Circuit Judge Bill Berger, also representing victims,
called the agreement a "sweetheart deal."
"Why was it so important for the government to make this
deal?" Berger asked rhetorically. "We have not yet had an
honest explanation by any public official as to why it was
made ... and why the victims were sold down the river."
Former federal prosecutor Ryon McCabe described th
agreement as "very unorthodox." Such agreements, h
are usually reserved for corporations, not individuals.
"It's very, very rare. I've never seen or hea‘fNe
procedure that was set up here," said,It Gabg,who has no
involvement in any Epstein litig
"He's essentially avoiding fecrecSprosecution because he
can afford to pay that many lawyers to help those victims
review their cases.... If a person has no money, he couldn't
be able to strike a deal like this and avoid federal
prosecution."
The backroom deal with federal prosecutors is all the more
interesting in light of the legal powerhouses who have
worked for Epstein, including Harvard professor Alan
Dershowitz and Bill Clinton investigator Kenneth Starr.
Lefcourt is a past president of the National Association of
Criminal Defense Lawyers.
Epstein's local defense attorney, Jack Goldberger, issued a
statement Friday saying he had fought the release of the
sealed agreement to protect the third parties named there.
"Mr. Epstein has fully abided by all of its terms and
conditions. He is looking forward to putting this difficult
period in his life behind him. He is continuing his long-
standing history of science philanthropy."
EFTA02734213
The investigation triggered tensions between police and
prosecutors, with then-Palm Beach Chief Michael Reiter
saying in a May 2006 letter to then-State Attorney Barry
Krischer that the chief prosecutor should disqualify himself.
I continue to find your office's treatment of these cases
highly unusual: Reiter wrote. He then asked for and got
the federal investigation that ended in the sealed deal.
"The Jeffrey Epstein matter was an experience of what a
many-million-dollar defense can accomplish," Reiter told Assc
the Palm Beach Daily News upon his retirement.
EFTA02734214
187 / 278 - Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Edition: FINAL
Section: LOCAL & BUSINESS
Page: 3B
Source: By JANE MUSGRAVE Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Dateline: WEST PALM BEACH
JUDGE RULES EPSTEIN ATTORNEYS CAN SUBPOENA ABORTION RECORDS
In a decision that could spark a constitutional showdown over privacy righ
Tuesday gave lawyers representing multimillionaire sex offender Jeffrey Tm the right to
subpoena abortion records from women who are seeking millions in m the part-
time Palm Beach resident.
Palm Beach County Circuit Judge Donald Hafele said the records uld elp Epstein rebut
the women's claims that they suffered psychological ills afte9sing to give him
sexually-charged massages at his Palm Beach mansion when they were as young as 14.
Hafele told Epstein's attorneys they couldn't go on a fishing expedition. The medical records,
he said, can't be sought until the women are asked whether they have ever had an abortion,
how many and where. Further, he said, the recor ould not be made public and might not
be admissible during trial.
But, he said, since the women claim Epste' is responsible for their emotional
distress, his attorneys can explore the imp o er events. Medical records, Hafele said,
are a better source of information tha non memory.
Attorney Louis Silver, who represe is idential Women's Health Center, a West Palm
Beach clinic where abortions are, ric warned Hafele that he was stepping on shaky
constitutional grounds.
"These records are protected b onstitutional right of privacy," he said, referring to the
Florida Constitution.
After the hearing, Silver appeal won't be necessary until Epstein attorneys seek the
records.
In another ruli esday, Hafele also said that videos from depositions in the state cases
can't be rel 'th • t a court order. The ruling came after Epstein attorney Robert Critton
complain ideo of Epstein being asked whether he had an "egg-shaped" penis
becam .com sensation. It first appeared on The Palm Beach Post Web site.
Critton b ed attorney Spencer Kuvin for releasing it. Kuvin said it was public record.
The civil s its began mounting after Epstein agreed to plead guilty to two state charges:
procuring a minor for prostitution and soliciting prostitution. He served 13 months of an 18-
month sentence. As part of the deal brokered with federal prosecutors, he agreed not to
contest the accusations in the civil lawsuits. He can argue the women don't deserve the
millions they are seeking.
—[Email Redacted]
EFTA02734215
The Palm Beach Post RIAL NEWSSTARTS IRE
Epstein Journal's Findings Could
Resurrect Case By Jane Musgrave
Posted Sep 17, 2019 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 1, 2019 at 10:51 AM
(EDITOR'S NOTE: This story originally published in The
Palm Beach Post on March 20, 2010)
A purloined journal that is said to contain the names
"hundreds" of victims of convicted sex offender Jeffrey I
Epstein could be used to reopen the investigation into the
multi-millionaire's appetite for teenage girls, an. attorney
representing seven of the victims said Friday.
New details about the contents of the journal were released
this week when Alfredo Rodriguez, who worked as a
property manager for the Palm Beach resident, pleaded
guilty to obstruction of justice for lying to federal agents
when asked if he had any information about his former
boss' criminal activity. He later tried to sell the journal he
stole from Epstein for $50,000 to an unidentified person,
who alerted authorities, according to court records.
part of the plea agreement, federal prosecutors said the
A÷
urnal "contains information material to the Epstein
investigation, including the names of material witnesses
and additional victims."
"Had the items been produced in response to the inquiries
of state or federal authorities ... the materials would have
been presented to the federal grand jury," federal
prosecutors wrote.
EFTA02734216
Instead, prosecutors short-circuited the grand jury
investigation and cut a deal with Epstein. They agreed not
to pursue federal charges if he didn't contest prostitution -
related felonies in state court. The money manager pleaded
guilty in July 2008 to procuring a minor for prostitution
and soliciting prostitution. He served 13 months of an 18-
month sentence.
Attorney Adam Horowitz, who represents seven of the
roughly 18 women who have filed civil suits against
Epstein, said the new information could trump the so-
called non-prosecution agreement.
ItS ,"It opens the door for furth s tion," he said. ? s ,
The multifaceted agreement, he said, deals only with a
specific list of victims that the U.S. Attorney's Office knew
about when it penned the deal in 2007. If additional victims
are listed in the journal Rodriguez sto Horowitz said itch
tilfederal prosecutors could reopen t ‘ ' v tigation. t
eIn addition to turning journal to federal agents,
Rodriguez told them he ew his former boss was having
sex with underage girls when he worked for him in 2004
and 2005. He had seen naked girls, who looked like minors,
in the pool of Epstein's $8.6 million mansion. He had seen
pc ttographic images of young girls on Epstein's computer,
ording to court records.
Neither Epstein's criminal defense attorney, Jack
Goldberger, nor attorney Robert Critton, who represents
Epstein in the civil lawsuits, could be reached. Federal
prosecutors have consistently declined comment.
The wording of the controversial agreement is unclear. It
says federal prosecutors would provide Epstein's attorneys
"with a list of individuals whom it has identified as victims."
Miami attorney Robert Josefsberg was appointed to
EFTA02734217
represent any of the victims on the list who wanted to
pursue Epstein in civil court. As part of the agreement,
Epstein is to pay for Joscfsberg to represent the women.
Some of the women, most identified as Jane Doe in
lawsuits, had already hired attorneys to represent them.
Some have since settled their suits with Epstein, although
terms were not disclosed.
Horowitz said he has filed court papers to get the journal
that Rodriguez stole. "It's another piece of evidence that
shows our clients were at Epstein's mansion," he said.
Rodriguez told prosecutors he didn't turn over the jodrnai
when both FBI and Palm Beach police asked for it because
he wanted money for it. He also said he was afraid Epstein
would make him "disappear." The information, he told
investigators, was his "insurance policy."
He faces a maximum 20 years itkc ton when he is
sentenced on June 18.
jane_musgrave@p
@pbpcourts
EFTA02734218
The Palm Beach Post REAL NEWS STARTS HERE
Epstein paid three women $5.5 million to end underage-
sex lawsuits By Jane Musgrave
Posted Oct 3, 2017 at 12:01 AM
Updated Oct 4, 2017 at 12:46 AM
Ending years of speculation about how much Palm Beach billionaire Jeffrey Epstein paid young
women who claimed he used them as sex toys, court documents filed last week show he shelled
out $5.5 million to settle lawsuits with three of more than two dozen teens who sued him.
Responding to requests from Epstein's attorneys in a complex lawsuit that was spawned by the
sex scandal, attorney said the politically-connected 64-year-old convicted sex
offender paid more than $1 million to each of the three women represented.
Identified in court papers only by their initials or pseudonyms because of the nature of the
allegations and their youthful ages, L.M. was paid $1 million, E.W. $2 million and Jane Doe
$2.5 million, said of the se ern, he negotiated with Epstein to end the lawsuits.
f' 1/4Jack Goldberger, one of Epstein's criminal defense attorneys, on Tuesday declined comment on
the revelations, citing confidentiality agreements that were part of the settlements. For the
same reason, he declined to say whether Epstein paid similar amounts to settle roughly two
dozen lawsuits filed by other young women against Epstein, claiming he paid them for sex
when some were as young as 14 years old.
Attorney Jack Scarola, who is representing , said his client was compelled to divulge
the confidential settlements to answer questions posed by Epstein's attorneys. "Brilliant move
on their part," he said.
Even if Epstein's attorneys hadn't opened the door, Scarola said the information would have
likely come out. He says the information will help him undermine Epstein's claims that
"ginned up" the allegations to help his former law partner, imprisoned and disbarred
Fort Lauderdale lawyer Scott Rothstein, perpetuate a $1.2 billion Ponzi scheme.
EFTA02734219
The revelations of the settlements came as part of an ongoing lawsuit that started as a dispute
between Epstein and Rothstein, both billionaires.
A year after Epstein in 2008 pleaded guilty to solicitation of prostitution and procuring a
minor for prostitution, he sued Rothstein and , claiming they trumped up the
allegations of sexual molestation to perpetuate the Ponzi scheme.
Rothstein was sentenced to 50 years in prison in 2010 after admitting he had built his wildly
successful law firm by forging the names of federal judges and others to persuade investors he
had negotiated settlements in lawsuits against high-profile people. Investors were told they
could get a cut of the cash.
One of the high-profile people Rothstein used to lure investors was Epstein, according to a
lawsuit West Palm Beach attorney Robert Critton filed on Epstein's behalf. According to the
lawsuit, Rothstein told investors Epstein, a money manager, had ag. to settle the lawsuits
with the teens for $200 million — a claim Critton described as "a complete fabrication."
After Epstein dropped the lawsuit in 2012, Edwards turned the tables on him. accused
Epstein of filing the lawsuit maliciously to punish him for representing the young women.
Although •
no evidence
was a partner in Rothstein's now defunct firm, Scarola claims Epstein had
was involved in the Ponzi scheme. Federal prosecutors successfully
charged other attorneys and members of the firm, but was never implicated, Scarola
said in the malicious prosecution lawsuit.
The revelations about the money Epstein paid to three of the young woman came last week in
documents filed for aVring Tuesday in preparation for a December trial on the lawsuit.
Attorney Tonja Haddad Coleman, who represents Epstein, on Tuesday sought a delay of the
trial, in part, because she claimed she has been unable to talk to her client since his estate on his
private island in the U.S. Virgin Islands was devastated last month by Hurricane Irma. "I've had
no ability to communicate with Mr. Epstein: she said.
EFTA02734220
Pointing out Epstein's enormous wealth and his private jet, Palm Beach County Circuit Judge
Donald Hafele rejected her request. While saying he didn't want to appear insensitive to those
victimized by the storm that hammered the Caribbean and roared through South Florida, he
said Coleman offered no proof, such as an affidavit from Epstein, to shore up her claims.
Still, Hafele gave Coleman extra time to respond to various motions that he will have to decide
before the case goes to trial.
Despite Scarola's insistence that had nothing to do with Rothstein's Ponzilscheme,
Coleman said the evidence indicates otherwise. Why else would he try to depose Epstein's
well-known friends, such as now President Donald Trump, former President Bill Clinton and
illusionist David Copperfield, she asked. He used the celebrities as a draw, she said.
"The Epstein cases were used to fleece money and defraud investor:1e said.
Edward's malicious prosecution case has been difficult fdCb6'th des because both Epstein and
illE have refused to answer questions. As he did in the civil lawsuits, Epstein has invoked
his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination when questioned by Scarola.
has claimed that much of the information Epstein is seeking is protected by attorney-client
privilege.
The malicious prosecution lawsuit is one of two hotly-contested lawsuits that continue to pit
against Epstein. also is suing the U.S. attorney's office, claiming it violated
the federal Crime Victims Rights Act when it negotiated a non-prosecution agreement with
Epstein.
Only after federal prosecutors agreed to drop their investigation of Epstein, did he agree to
plead guilty +prostitution charges in Palm Beach County Circuit Court. In federal court
records, pi;seditors claim one of the key reasons they agreed to drop their case was Epstein's
agreement to settle lawsuits filed against him by dozens of his underage victims.
EFTA02734221
Palm Beach Daily News
fudge rules feds' agreement with
Jeffrey Epstein pact violated teen
victims' rights By Jane Musgrave
Posted Sep 17, 2019 at 4:02 PM
Updated Oct 8, 2019 al 12:31 PM
"S e(EDITOR'S NOTE: This story originally published in The
Paint Beach Post on February 22, 2019)
Federal prosecutors violated the rights of Jeffrey
0 eks teenage victims by failing to reveal they had dropped plans
to prosecute the billionaire on dozens of federal charges in
connection with the girls' claims that he paid them for sex
at his Palm Beach mansion, US. District Judge Kenneth
Marra ruled on Thursday.
In a blistering 33-page ruling, Marra meticulously and
methodically detailed the numerous steps federal
prosecutors took to hide the agreement from more than 40
young women who claim Epstein paid them for sex when
the werts young as 14.
Ile the government spent untold hours negotiating the
A4to s and implications of the NPA with Epstein's attorneys,
scant information was shared with the victims," Marra
wrote. "Instead, the victims were told to be 'patient' while
the investigation proceeded."
By then, it was too late. A deal had already been cut with
then-South Florida U.S. Attorney Alex Acosta and Epstein's
attorneys to shelve a 52-page federal indictment against
Epstein, a former math teacher turned money manager
who counts Presidents Donald Trump and Bill Clinton
among his friends.
EFTA02734222
Prosecutors' failure to alert the young women about the
deal violated the Crime Victims' Rights Act, Marra ruled.
"At a bare minimum the (act) required the government to
inform (the young women) that it intended to enter into an
agreement not to prosecute Epstein," he wrote.
Still, Marra said he wasn't second-guessing prosecutors'
decision not to pursue Epstein on federal charges if he
pleaded guilty to minor state prostitution charges and
agreed to compensate his victims for the trauma he caused.
A A --eS e"The court is not ruling that the decision not to prosecut
fisi)was improper," Marra wrote. "The court is simply ru9
that, under the facts of this case, there was a violation `undef
the CVRA."
Further, he made no decision about what the remedy
should be. He gave prosecutors and attorneys representing
the young women 15 days to meet to decide how to unravel
the complex legal web that has been hanging over Epstein
and his young victims for mote than a decade.
The chances an actiird I be reached are slim, said
attorney Jack Scarola, who is representing the two Jane
Does who challenged the prosecutors' actions.
Further, he said, there is no road map to follow. The
lawsuit attorney filed on behalf of the two
unidentified young women, claiming prosecutors violated
the federal act, is unique, he said.
"We are treading on virgin ground, to use what is probably
an inappropriate phrase in this situation," he said.
Scarola said he and will ask that the non-
prosecution agreement be thrown out. That would open
the possibility that the long-shelved federal indictment
could be dusted off and filed against the 66-year-old
Epstein, who spends most of his time on a private island he
owns in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
EFTA02734223
"I don't see the government conceding to that remedy,"
Scarola admitted. Further, he said, it is likely Epstein will be
allowed to weigh in. Miami attorney Roy Black years ago
filed papers asking to intervene on Epstein's behalf.
The U.S. Attorney's Office said it wouldn't comment on
Marra's ruling. Neither Black nor New York City attorney
Jay Letkowitz, who led efforts to bury the federal
indictment, responded to emails or phone calls for
comment. West Palm Beach attorney Jack Goldberger, who
represents Epstein, also didn't respond.
Scarola said it is likely Epstein's star-studded legal team will
argue that Epstein fully complied with the terms of the
agreement he made in 2007 with federal prosecutors and
therefore the agreement can't be undone.
As he promised, Epstein pleaded guilty in.! tine 2008 to state
charges of soliciting a minor for prostitution and soliciting
prostitution. He served 13 months of an 18-month jail term
in a vacant wing of the county stockade that he was allowed
to leave 12 hours a da days week.
Further, as agreed, aid settlements to the young women
who sued him. While the settlements were confidential,
court records show he paid three women a total of $5.5
million.
(
eturn, federal prosecutors held up their end of the
bargain. Their investigation ceased.
Having done all that prosecutors asked of him, Scarola said
Epstein will make a simple argument: "You can't turn
around and deprive me of the benefits I bargained for."
However, Scarola said, using Marra's ruling, he will counter
that the contract Epstein signed was illegal and therefore
unenforceable.
EFTA02734224
Even if Marra agrees to toss out the non-prosecution
agreement, Scarola conceded that doesn't mean Epstein will
face federal charges.
"The contract can be set aside and the federal government
can attempt to enter into the same agreement," he said.
"Except the spotlight of public attention will be on them
and the 40 victims will be able to explain to the court why
this sweetheart deal should not be approved."
Scarola said that prosecutors may have had good reason not
to pursue Epstein. "There may be a reasonable explanatio
but we don't know what that reason may have been," e
said.
In court papers, federal prosecutors have said that many of
the young women were afraid to cross the powerful,
politically connected money manager and simply refused to
testify against him.
In other cases, they said, the women changed their stories.
Jane Doe 2, who is trying to have the non-prosecution
agreement thrown out, initially described Epstein as "an
awesome told prosecutors she hoped "nothing
happens" to him. Valle she later agreed to testify against
Epstein, prosecutors said they feared Epstein's attorneys
w uld use her words to destroy her if she ever took the
stand.
-Marra, however, said the young woman's comments didn't
mean she wasn't entitled to know about the prosecutors'
plans to drop the charges. "There is no dispute that Epstein
sexually abused Jane Doe 2 while she was a minor," he
wrote. "Therefore, regardless of her comments to the
prosecutor, she was a victim."
Before the case is finally resolved, Scarola predicted that "a
lot of people are going to have to answer a lot of questions."
EFTA02734225
In his ruling, Marra detailed what appeared to be a cozy
relationship between Acosta, his line prosecutors and
Epstein's team of lawyers. His phalanx of lawyers included
noted Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz and Kenneth
Starr, the former U.S. solicitor general whose investigation
led to the impeachment of President Clinton.
Marra describes an October 2007 breakfast meeting
between Acosta, who is now U.S. labor secretary, and
Lefkowitz shortly after the non-prosecution agreement was
inked.
After the meeting, Leflcowitz sent Acosta a note thanking
him for "the commitment you made to me during our
October 12 meeting in which you assured me that your
Office would not ... contact any of the identified
individuals, potential witnesses, or potential civil claimants
and their respective counsel in this matter."
Marra quoted an equally pleasant note then -Palm Beach
County State Attorney Barry Krischer sent to Assistant U.S.
Attorney Vill ho was the lead prosecutor in
Epstein's case. ",1/4 uld get this worked out for
reasons I won't put in riting," Krischer wrote, shortly
after the non -prosecution agreement was signed. "After this
is resolved ,I would love to buy you a cup at Starbucks and
hka a conversation."
y of the notes that were exchanged dealt with
prosecutors' and Epstein's lawyers' shared desire to keep the
deal secret from Epstein's accusers. In a September email,
Villafana asked Lefkowitz for guidance about what she
should reveal. "And can we have a conference call to discuss
what I may disclose to ... the girls regarding the
Agreement," she asked.
EFTA02734226
Such cooperation between prosecutors and defense
attorneys is unusual, Marra said. "It was a deviation from
the government's standard practice to negotiate with
defense counsel about the extent of crime victim
notifications," he wrote.
Further, he noted, that when and his two young
clients asked for information, they were repeatedly misled.
"The CRVA was designed to protect victims' right and
ensure their involvement in the criminal justice process,"
Marra wrote. "When the government gives information to
victims it cannot be misleading."
Ultimately, the terms of the non-prosecution agreement
were revealed only after and attorneys fari litg
press successfully sued to make them pubt .
[Email Redacted]
@pbpcourts
s)
EFTA02734227
76 / 278 - Tuesday, July 9, 2019
Edition: Final
Section: A Section
Page: 1A
Source: By Jane Musgrave, The Palm Beach Post
Epstein indicted on sex charges
Part-time Palm Beacher pleads not guilty to sex
trafficking, conspiracy charges in federal court in
Manhattan
Dressed in a blue prison jumpsuit, billionaire Jeffrey Epstein on M C day pleaded not guilty
to charges accusing him of creating a vast network of girls as young as 14 that he exploited
for his sexual pleasure at his homes in Palm Beach and Manhattan.
The 66-year-old money manager's appearance in U.S. District Court in New York City
capped more than a decade of recriminations by young women and their attorneys who
claimed Epstein used his money and political influence to avoid federal prosecution.
Epstein's attorney Reid Weingarten dismissed the two-count indictment on sex trafficking
charges as "essentially a do-over" of allegations that landed Epstein in the Palm Beach
County Jail for 13 months more than a decade ago.
Ilowever, unlike in 2007 when then-South Florida U.S. Attorney Alex Acosta agreed to
shelve a 53-page federal indictment after Epstein agreed to plead guilty to two state
prostitution charges, prosecutors in New York indicated they aren't willing to deal. Acosta is
now U.S. labor secretary.
"The alleged behavior shocks the conscience," New York City U.S. Attorney Geoffrey
Berman said at a
morning news conference. "And while the charged conduct is from a number of years ago, it
is still profoundly important to many of the alleged victims, now young women. They
deserve their day in court."
At a detention hearing scheduled for Monday, Berman said he will ask a federal judge to
keep Epstein behind bars until he is tried on charges of sex trafficking and conspiracy to
commit sex trafficking. Epstein paid dozens of young women to give him nude massages
that, for most, led to sex, he said.
If convicted of exploi&gilozens of young women, including many Palm Beach County girls
who were students at = Palm Beach High School, Epstein faces a maximum 45-year
prison sentence.
Citing Epstein's enormous wealth, his homes in New York, Palm Beach, the U.S. Virgin
Islands, New Mexico and Paris and his ownership of two jets, Berman said there are few
conditions that could keep Epstein from fleeing to a foreign country to evade prosecution.
EFTA02734228
"We think he's a significant flight risk," Berman said of the man who ferried Britain's Prince
Andrew, actor Kevin Spacey, famed Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz and former
President Bill Clinton on his jet, dubbed the Lolita Express.
Berman's hard-line stance was welcomed by young women who for years have been told that
Epstein couldn't be touched because Acosta signed off on the nonprosecution agreement.
promising not to charge Epstein in federal court.
Former Palm Beach County resident Virginia Guiffre, who has accused Epstein of turning
her into his sex slave and forcing her to have sex with others, including Dershowitz and
Prince Andrew, praised Berman. He showed the case is "being taken in a serious way," she
told the Associated Press. Dershowitz has vehemently denied Guiffre's claims.
New York prosecutors were able to ignore the controversial nonprosecutio
because it contained some significant fine print, said former federal Judge Cassell, who
for years has fought to get the agreement thrown out. It says only that no char could be
filed against Epstein in South Florida, he said.
Berman agreed. "That agreement only binds, by its terms, only ln s the Southern District of
Florida," he said. "The Southern District of New York is not t agreement and
wasn't a signatory of it."
That means the sordid allegations that have been level for years are now part of
a federal indictment.
Contrary to Epstein's claims, he knew the women
Palm Beach were minors because they told hi
Epstein preyed on young girls because he
prosecutors added.
As part of a carefully orchestrated sex Ep in or his associates would call girls while
he was in New York so they would e for sex once he returned to Palm Beach, the
indictment says. The employees ed. They were identified only as "Employee-1,"
"Employee-2" and "Employ
To ensure he had a steady s young girls, Epstein would turn some victims into
recruiters. He would pa em to ring new girls to his home on El Brillo Way along the
Intracoastal Waterway in Beach or to his palatial townhouse on New York's Upper East
Side.
"This allowed ES) to create an ever-expanding web of new victims; Berman said.
In both New /Colic and Palm Beach, the lurid operation was similar. Unidentified employees
of Epstein's would escort the teens into a room. They were told to take off all or most of their
clothes_betegiving the naked billionaire massages, according to the indictment.
"Epstein\dd also typically masturbate during these encounters, ask victims to touch him
while he masturbated, and touch victims' genitals with his hands or with sex toys," the
indictment says.
As part of the criminal complaint, prosecutors are asking that Epstein be forced to turn over
his multimillion-dollar townhouse on East 71st Street. The complaint does not seek forfeiture
of Epstein's house in Palm Beach.
While heartened that Epstein now faces serious criminal charges in New York, Cassell said
he would continue to push a West Palm Beach-based federal judge to throw out the
nonprosecution agreement that Acosta forged with Epstein's star-studded legal team.
level
his homes in New York and
, according to the indictment.
\ 'Were "vulnerable to exploitation,"
EFTA02734229
U.S. District Judge Kenenth Marra has already ruled that Acosta violated the federal Crime
Victims' Rights Act by not telling Epstein's victims about the agreement before it was inked.
Coincidentally, Cassell and Epstein attorney Roy Black had to file papers by midnight
Monday, explaining what action Marra should take to redress that wrong.
Cassell insisted Epstein should face charges in federal court in West Palm Beach. "Florida
victims deserve justice in Flori " said Cassell, who is working on behalf of Epstein's
victims with attorneys and Jack Scarola.
Since it's likely Florida women will get to testify against Epstein in New York, Scarola said
he's not focused on whether Epstein will face charges here. Instead, he said he wents to know
how and why the agreement was reached.
"There's been no explanation as to how a deal like this could have been cut o e
federal government could have been involved in a conspiracy to violate fede law," Scarola
said of his interest in continuing the legal battle over the nonprosecutio# a ent.
When Acosta agreed to drop the federal investigation, Epstein in 2 pleaddd guilty to two
prostitution charges and served 13 months of an 18-month sentenc in a vacant wing of the
Palm Beach County Jail - a cell he was allowed to leave 12 h a , six days a week. He
was also forced to register as a sex offender and settle civi more than 30 young
women filed against him.
U.S. Rep. Lois Frankel, El-West Palm Beach, said s s carola's interest in finding out
how the agreement came to be."I am especially m ed in why Epstein got the deal
he got," Frankel said. "We need to know why such an easy sentence.
While she has asked the Howe Oversight C o investigate Acosta, Frankel said she
is not sure that will happen. "It just seems it as a travesty that this guy got off the
way he did and, without pre-judging it, let's ha a proper court case," Frankel said.
Former Palm Beach Police Chief Michael Reiter was inflamed in 2006 when then-State
Attorney Barry Krischer refused to charge Epstein with serious crimes. Reiter took the
information his officers had gathered from dozens of Epstein's victims to Acosta, believing
he would prosecute Epstein. He tit.
Reiter said he was heartened that 3 years later, Epstein will finally face justice.
"Thankfully, U. S. Attorney Berman and the other authorities in New York have the good
judgment to invest e an\4-prosecute Epstein in the way that should have occurred in
Florida over a d o," Reiter said in a statement.
And, Scarola4aid, the are signals that Berman's investigation is far from over.
Berman declined answer questions about whether others, such as Epstein's high-powered
friendsotould be charged. He brushed off questions about the significance that the
investigation was being handled by the Public Corruption Unit.
While agents on Saturday were arresting Epstein aboard his private jet at the Teterboro
Airport in New Jersey after returning from Paris, other officers were searching his New York
City townhouse. Agents seized nude photos of young girls who appeared to be minors,
Berman said.
He said his focus was on finding more women who were exploited and abused by Epstein.
Turning to a poster, detailing the charges that had been filed against Epstein, he pointed a
finger at a photo of the convicted sex offender who was once described as "a man of
mystery."
EFTA02734230
"If you believe you are a victim of this man, Jeffrey Epstein, we want to hear from you,"
Berman said. A special number, 1-800-CALLFBI, will link victims of authorities.
Bill Sweeney, assistant director of the FBI's New York office, said after years of being
ignored by federal agents, the victims' voices will be heard.
"The Jeffrey Epstein matter is No. 1 on the major case list in the country," Sweeney said.
Turning to address Epstein's victims directly, he said: "Your bravery may empower others to
speak out against crimes against them."
jmusgrave@,pbpost.com
EFTA02734231
Def.Ex.A-5
A
COAS
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EFTA02734232
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIFTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT
IN AND FOR PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS, LW,
Publisher of THE PALM BEACH POST,
Plaintiff,
v.
DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of
Palm Beach County, Florida, SHARON R. BOCK,
as Clerk & Comptroller, Palm Beach County,
Florida,
Defendants.
CASE NO: 2019-CA-014681
O ASIA
)
DEFENDANT, DAVE ARONBERG, AS STATE ATTO OF PALM BEACH COUNTY.
FLORIDA'S ANSWER TO FIRST AM OM PLAINT
AND MOTION TO DIS U11'f II
I)Defendant, DAVE ARONBERG, as State o M alm Beach County, Florida, ("SAO"),
by and through the undersigned attorney, he Count I of the First Amended Complaint of
Plaintiff, CA Florida Holdings, LW, Pjr it gf The Palm Beach Post ("Post"), and files a Motion
to Dismiss Count II, as follows: C
1. Admitted
Bed.
JURISDICTION
sdictional purposes.
PARTIES
Med that Defendant Aronbcrg or the Office of the State Attomcy for the Fifteenth
Judicial Circuit is in possession and/or control of documents that arc the subject of this action.
Otherwise admitted.
4. Admitted.
INTRODUCTION
5. Paragraph 5 contains the Post's statement of the case and legal arguments to which no
EFTA02734233
response is required. To the extent that a response is required, the SAO is without knowledge or
information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth of any factual allegations contained in paragraph
5, and therefore denies the allegations and demands strict proof thereof.
6. Paragraph 6 contains the Post's statement of the case and legal arguments to which no
response is required. To the extent that a response is required, the SAO admits only that section
905.27(1)(c), Florida Statute authorizes the disclosure of grand jury proccedin cr certain
circumstances.
7. Paragraph 7 contains the Palm Beach Post's statement of legal arguments
to which no response is required. To the extent that a response is r t r , the SAO is without
knowledge or information sufficient to fonn a belief as to the factual allegations contained
in paragraph 7, and therefore denies the allegations and
8. Paragraph 8 sets forth the Post's s
no response is required. To the extent that a r Qnsclf required, the SAO is without knowledge or
infonnation sufficient to form a belief th of any factual allegations contained in paragraph
8, and therefore denies the allcg 'ens Amands strict proof thereof.
9. Paragraph 8 sets tsteiti c Post's statement of the ease and legal arguments to which
no response is required. T xtent that a response is required, the SAO is without knowledge or
infonnation suffi form a belief as to the truth of any factual allegations contained in paragraph
9, and therefo d the allegations and demands strict proof thereof.
FACTUAL BACKGROUND
ct proof thereof.
isSi o the ease and legal arguments to which
10. The SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient to fonn a belief as to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 10, and therefore denies the allegations and demands
strict proof thereof.
A. First Epstein Sex Crimes investigation. Indictment, and Plea Agreement: 2005-2008.
11. The SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
2
EFTA02734234
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 11, and therefore denies the allegations and demands
strict proof thereof.
P. The SAO is without knowledge or infonnation sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 12, and therefore denies the allegations and demands
strict proof thereof.
13. The SAO is without knowledge or infonnation sufficient to fonn a bell to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 13, and therefore denies the alle s and demands
strict proof thereof.
14. The SAO is without knowledge or information suffrcient%oyh a belief as to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 14, and there
strict proof thereof
s the allegations and demands
15. The SAO is without knowledge or info ktion sufficient to form a beliefas to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 15, and therefore dcnics the allegations and demands
strict proof thcrcof.
(1) Police Chief Reiter's Letter to the State Attorney
16. The SAO is without knowledge or infonnation sufficient to form a beliefas to the truth
of any factual allegations cd in paragraph 16, and therefore denies the allegations and demands
strict proof thereo
17,\ AO is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
of any trt*TIcgations contained in paragraph 17, and therefore dcnics the allegations and demands
strict proof thereof
(2) The July 2006 State Grand Jury Presentation
1g The SAO is without knowledge or infonnation sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 18, and therefore denies the allegations and demands
strict proof thereof
3
EFTA02734235
19. The SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 19, and thcrcforc dcnics the allegations and demands
strict proof thereof.
20. The SA() is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 20, and thcrcforc denies the allegations and demands
strict proof thereof.
21. The SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 21, and thcrcforc dcnics the lallegations and demands
strict proof . thercof
22. The SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 22, and therefore denies the allegations and demands
/
strict proof thereof.
(3) The FBI's Investigation and Epstein's Non-Prosecution Agreement with Federal
Authorities.
23. The SAO is without knowledge or infonnation sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 23, and thcrcforc dcnics the allegations and demands
strict proof thereof. _
24. The SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient to fonn a bclicf as to the truth
of any factual IrguiionS contained in paragraph 24, and therefore dcnics the allegations and demands
strict proof the/ -1."
c
...„ Il
25. , The SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 25, and therefore denies the allegations and demands
strict proof thereof.
26. The SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 26, and thcrcforc dcnics the allegations and demands
4
EFTA02734236
strict proof thereof.
27. The SAO
of any factual allegations
strict proof thereof.
28. The SAO
of any factual allegations
strict proof thereof.
29. The SAO
of any factual allegations
strict proof . thcrcof.
is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
contained in paragraph 27, and thcrcforc dcnics the allegations and demands
is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
contained in paragraph 28, and therefore denies the allegatigatnd demands
is without knowledge or information sufficient t lief as to the truth
contained in paragraph 29, and therefore dcnic pilcgations and demands
30. The SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 30, and therefore denies the allegations and demands
strict proof thereof.
31. The SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 31, and thcrcforc dcnics the allegations and demands
strict proof thereof.
(4) The Crime Victims' Riehts Act Litieation.
32. The SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 32, and thcrcforc denies the allegations and demands
strict proof thcreof.
33. The SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 33, and thcrcforc dcnics the allegations and demands
strict proof thereof
34. The SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 34, and therefore dcnics the allegations and demands
5
EFTA02734237
strict proof thereof.
35. The SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a beliefas to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 35, and therefore denies the allegations and demands
strict proof thereof
36. The SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 36, and therefore denies the allegatiat9iad demands
strict proof thereof
37. The SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient t lief as to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 37, and therefore dcnic c legations and demands
strict proof thereof.
B. Second Epstein Sex Crimes Investiaation, Indicunerd,,Suicide: 2019.
38. Admitted.
39. Thc SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
y of any factual allegations contained in 9, and therefore dcnics the allegations and demands
strict proof thereof.
40. The SAO is witho 6wledge or infonnation sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
of any factual allegations cd in paragraph 40, and therefore denies the allegations and demands
strict proof thereo
41,\ AO is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
of any ittt erAlcgations contained in paragraph 41, and therefore dcnics the allegations and demands
strict proof thereof
42. Thc SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 42, and therefore denies the allegations and demands
strict proof thereof
43. Thc SAO is without knowledge or infonnation sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
6
EFTA02734238
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 43, and therefore denies the allegations and demands
strict proof thereof.
44. Admitted.
C. The August 27, 2019, SDNY Hearing: Epstein's Victims Speak.
45. The SAO is without knowledge or infonnation sufficient to fonn a belief as to the
truth of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 44, and therefore denies the all itp ns and
demands strict proof thereof
46. Admitted that United States Senior Judge Richard M. B red a hearing on
August 27, 2019, but the SAO is without knowledge or information suffi form a bclicf as to the
truth of any remaining factual allegations contained in p 3, and therefore dcnics the
allegations and demands strict proof thereof.
47. The SAO is without knowledge or inf.:Callon sufficient to form a beliefas to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 47, and therefore dcnics the allegations and demands
strict proof thcrcof.
48. The SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth
of any factual allegations containaianiParagraph 48, and therefore dcnics the allegations and demands
strict proof thereof.
49. TItG SAO is without knowledge or infonnation sufficient to form a bclicf as to the truth
of any fac I lialleg ons contained in paragraph 49, and thcrcforc denies the allegations and demands
strict pro f` crcol
50. The SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient to fonn a bclicf as to the truth
of any factual allegations paragraph 50, and thcrcforc dcnics the allegations and demands strict proof
thereof
51. The SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a bclicf as to the truth
of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 51, and therefore dcnics the allegations and demands
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EFTA02734239
strict proof thereof.
D. The Palm Beach Post's Standina and the Public Interest.
The Palm Beach Post Has Reported Extensively On Epstein's Crimes For Nearly
15 Years.
52. Admitted.
53. Admitted.
54. Admitted that the Post has extensively investigated and reported the legations
against, the law enforcement investigation of, and the crimes committed by Ep lacks sufficient
knowledge to admit or deny any factual allegations remaining in para d therefore denies
the allegations and demands strict proof thereof.
55. The SAO is without knowledge or infonnat fli>l nt to form a belief as to the
truth of any factual allegations contained in paragr ha5 therefore denies the allegations and
(CW\demands strict proof thereof
(2) The Palm Beach Post's Stinvli d the Public Interest.
56. Paragraph 56 of the/ First Amended Complaint contains the Palm Beach Post's
fr i‘' statement of the case and legal Urguments to which no response is required. To the extent that a
response is required, the !Mc) admits the press has a constitutional right of access to criminal
proceedings, but is ithout knowledge or infonnation sufficient to fonn a belief as to the truth of any If\ ,
remaining f
demand
57.
leg tions contained in paragraph 56, and therefore denies the allegations and
of thereof.
Paragraph 57 sets forth the Post's statement of the cast and legal arguments to which
no response is required. To the extent that a response is required, the SAO is without knowledge or
infonnation sufficient to form a belief as to the truth of any factual allegations contained in paragraph
57, and therefore denies the allegations and demands strict proof thereof.
58. Paragraph 58 sets forth the Post's statement of the case and legal arguments to which
8
EFTA02734240
no response is required. To the extent that a response is required, the SAO is without knowledge or
information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth of any factual allegations contained in paragraph
57, and therefore denies the allegations and demands strict proof thereof.
59. Paragraph 59 of the First Amended Complaint contains the Palm Beach Post's
statement of the case and legal arguments to which no response is required. To the extent that a
response is required, the SAO admits that Fla. Stat. 905.27 allows a court to make tho d'eStermination
of disclosure but is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth of any
remaining factual allegations contained in paragraph 59, and therefore denies the allegations and
demands strict proof thereof.
E. The Court's Jurisdiction and Authority.
0 tu) The Court's Supervision of the Grand rriro ,cess and Its Authority to Order
Public Disclosure of the Epstein Evidence.
1/4
60. Paragraph 60 of the First ied Complaint contains the Palm Beach Post's
statement of the case and legal arguments to which no response is required. To the extent that a
response is required, the SAO admits the press has a constitutional right of access to criminal
proceedings, but is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth of any
remaining factual allegations contained in paragraph 60, and therefore denies the allegations and
demands strict proo thereof
(
t Znitted.
61. it
63. Paragraph 63 sets forth the Post's statement of the cast and legal arguments to which
no response is required. To the extent that a response is required, the SAO is without knowledge or
information sufficient to fonn a belief as to the truth of any factual allegations contained in paragraph
63, and therefore denies the allegations and demands strict proof thereof.
64. Paragraph 64 of the First Amended Complaint contains the Palm Beach Post's
9
EFTA02734241
statement of the case and legal arguments to which no response is required. To the extent that a
response is required, the SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the
truth of any remaining factual allegations contained in paragraph 64, and therefore denies the
allegations and demands strict proof thereof.
(2) The Court's Jurisdiction To Declare Rights And Construe Statutes.
65. Admitted.
7
66. Admitted.
67. Admitted.
COUNT 1 C C)(Declaratory Relief- Florida Stat. Sections et seq.) c)
68. The SAO reincorporates and re-alleges its r to paragraphs I through
67 above.
69. Admitted. AI 'S" \
70. Paragraph 70 contains the t's s tent of the case and legal arguments to which
no response is required. To the ex t pone is required, the SAO is without knowledge or
the truth of any factual allegations contained in paragraph infonnation sufficient to form a
70, and therefore denies th cgations and demands strict proof thereof.
rThe 71. Adt t Palm Beach Post is seeking a declaration from this Court but
denies the remainder of7Paragraph 71.
\ Admitted.
73. Y Denied
74. Paragraph 74 contains the Post's legal arguments to which no response is required.
To the extent that a response is required, the SAO is without knowledge or information sufficient to
form a belief as to the truth of any factual allegations contained in paragraph 74, and therefore denies
the allegations and demands strict proof thereof.
10
EFTA02734242
MOTION TO DISMISS COUNT 11
(Florida Stat. Section 905.27)
Defendant, DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of Palm Beach County, Florida, pursuant
to the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure 1.420, hereby files this Motion to Dismiss Count II of Plaintiff's
First Amended Complaint for failure to state a cause of action, and in support thereof states:
L Standard of Review
When confronted with a motion to dismiss, the Court must determine wh omplaint
as phrased within its four corners sufficiently states a cause of action, where be granted.
Fox v. Professional Wrecker Operations 801 So. 2d 175, 178 (Fla 5 I)CT1001). A motion to
dismiss tests whether the plaintiff has stated a cause of action. for a motion to dismiss under
Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.140(b) is whether the pl cr u rove any set of facts as alleged
in the Complaint to support his or her claim. See bcco Inc. 89 So. 2d 482, 484 (Fla.
1956)• Wasua Ins. Co. v. Haynes, 683 So. 2d 11 DCA 1996).
In order to meet this test, "a allege sufficient ultimate facts to show that a
pleader is entitled to relief." W.R. T ontr... Inc. v. Jensen Civ. Constr.. Inc. 728 So. 2d 297,
300 (Fla. 1st DCA 1999) (quot Cosgrove 464 So. 2d 664, 665 (Fla. 2d DCA 1985); Fla.
R. Civ. P. 1.110(b)). Th urn need not accept internally inconsistent factual claims, conelusory
allegations, unwar gtbd deaLvtions, or mere legal conclusions made by a party. a (citing Response
crikOncology. In trallcalth Insurance Co. 978 F. Supp. 1052, 1058 (S.D. Fla. 1997)); Oxford Asset
Mont. v. Jahar ij 97 F.3d 1182, 1188 (11th Cir. 2002) ("fOn a motion to dismiss,1 the plaintiff's
factual allegations arc accepted as true.... However, legal conclusions masquerading as facts will not
prevent dismissal."). To avoid dismissal, a pleading "must allege a cause of action recognized under
law" against the defending party. Kislak v. Krecdian, 95 So. 2d 510, 514 (Fla. 1957).
IL Argument,
a. Neither Defendant Aronbere, nor the Office of the State Attorney for the
Fifteenth Judicial Circuit is in possession and/or control of documents that
II
EFTA02734243
are the subject of this action.
It is significant to emphasize that despite Plaintiff's allegations to the contrary, Defendant
Aronberg and thc Office of the State Attorney for the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit arc not in custody or
control of the records sought herein, and therefore Defendant Aronberg is not a proper party to this
action. In fact, Defendant, Sharon R. Bock, as Clerk and Comptroller of Palm Beach County, Florida,
admits that it is the custodian in possession of the documents that arc the subject of t on.
b. Plaintiff Fails to State a Cause of Action
Plaintiff attempts to assert a causc of action, in the interest of "fu ", under Florida
Statute § 905.27; however, a review of the statute in question reveals thatt sc of action is provided
for therein and consequently Count II of Plaintiff's First Ante plaint must be dismissed as a
matter of law. Despite Plaintiff's extensive recitation al background regarding Jeffery
"k4Epstein and the testimony and evidence present 2006 grand jury in Palm Beach County,
\Florida, Fla. Stat. § 905.27, merely explains ccp ons to the disclosure of grand July testimony
and does not set forth in any way a cau upon which to initiate a valid law suit.
Moreover, a review of t issue clearly indicates that even if § 905.27, Ha. Stat.
provided a basis for a cause of a laintiff is barred from access to the records it seeks. To wit, in
! N(pertinent part, Fla. Stat. § 9 . 2) states:
t
When sucK osurc is ordered by a court pursuant to subsection (1) for use in a civil
scloscd to all parties to the case and to thcir attorneys and by thc latter
associates and employees. However, the zrand fury testiinonv afforded
by the court can only be used in the defense or prosecution of the civil or
ma case and for no other purpose whatsoever.
Here, despite the clear statutory guidelines for disclosure of grand jury materials in a civil case,
Plaintiff is improperly socking the requested 2006 grand jury materials for the purposes of public
disclosure pursuant to the court's inherent authority and supervisory powers over the grand jury. [See,
Complaint 11 8, 63]. Again, even if Plaintiff properly asserted a cause of action under Fla. Stat. 905.27,
the statute unambiguously states that grand jury testimony "can only be used in the defense or
12
EFTA02734244
prosecution of the civil or criminal case and for no other purposc whatsoever", which is distinctly
different from Plaintiff's intended purpose for public disclosure of the grand jury evidence. Fla. Stat.
4 905.27(2)..
WHEREFORE, based on the foregoing argument and supporting authority, Defendant, DAVE
ARONBERG, as State Attorney of Palm Beach County, Florida, respectfully requests that this
Honorable Court grant the instant Motion and dismiss Count II of Plaintiff's FirstAmc Complaint
with prejudice, and grant Defendant Aronbcrg all other and further relict dcc st and proper,
including attorney's fees and costs for defending this frivolous action.
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I HEREBY CERTIFY that on this 24th day of January opy of the foregoing has been
electronically filed with the Florida E-File Portal for e- \ *c b panics of record herein.
4 0 SCHOLZ & WYLER, LLC
se
"ct
S7 / Douglas A. Wyler
Arthur I. Esq.
Fla. Bar No.: 10249
Richard J. Scholz, Esq.
Fla. Bar No.: 0021261
Douglas A. Wylcr, Esq.
Fla. Bar No.: 119979
961687 Gateway Blvd., Suite 201-I
Fernandina Beach, Florida 32034
([Phone Redacted]
([Phone Redacted] Fax
Primary: [Email Redacted]
General Counsel for the Florida Prosecuting
Attorney's Association
13
EFTA02734245
Def.Ex.A-6
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EFTA02734246
•
0
•
COPY
h the Matter Of:
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS vs DAVE ARONBERG
50-2019-CA-014681
J:K.HEA-sVo (sv
ESQUIRE
DEPOSITION SOLUTIONS
EFTA02734247
o
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EFTA02734248
HEARING June 03, 2020
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS vs DAVE ARONBERG 1
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT
IN AND FOR PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
CASE NO. : 50 -2019 -CA -014681
CIRCUIT CIVIL DIVISION: "AG"
•
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS LLC PUBLISHER
OF THE PALM BEACH POST,
Plaintiff/Petitioner
-vs-
DAVE ARONBERG,
SHARON R. BOCK, <
< IC
/
( : lqii 75r
C4 )D HEARING EF E THE HONORABLE KRISTA MARX
(ZOOM CONFERENCE)
O lt. Wednesday, June 3, 2020
10:08 a.m. - 10:28 a.m.
REMOTE ZOOM CONFERENCE
Port Saint Lucie, Florida
Stenographically Reported By:
SONJA M.
Court Reporter
ESQUIRE DIPOSITI0M SOLUTIONS
800.211.DEPO (3376)
EsquireSolutions.corn
EFTA02734249
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HEARING
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS vs DAVE ARONBERG
APPEARANCES:
June 03, 2020
2
On behalf of the Plaintiff/Petitioner:
GREENBERG TRAURIG, P.A.
1840 Century Park East
Suite 1900
Los Angeles, California 90067
[Phone Redacted]
boyajianOgtlaw.com
14/ A
BY: NINA D. BOYAJIAN, ESQUIRE
On behalf of the Defendant/Respondent:
961687 Gateway Boulevard
Suite 2011
2 14A1(15:Yr
JACOB, SCHOLZ & WYLER, LLC
Fernandina Beach, Florida 3
[Phone Redacted]
s,/
doug.wylerecomcast.net
BY: DOUGLAS A. WYLER, E
On behalf of the Defends spondent:
CLERK & COMPTROLL M BEACH COUNTY
P.O. Box 229
West Palm Beac s Flo ida 33401
[Phone Redacted]
nfingerhut •eachclerk.com
BY: NICOLE, GERHUT, ESQUIRE
g ESQUIRE DIPOSITIO* SOWTIONS
800.211.DEPO (3376)
EsquireSolutions.com
•
EFTA02734250
HEARING June O3, 2020
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS vs DAVE ARONBERG 3
PROCEEDINGS
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THE COURT: We are here today for a very
limited purpose. I'm sure the attorneys are aware of
that, but I just don't want there to be any
confusion. We are here on Defendant Dave Aronberg
and Defendant Sharon Bock for the Comptroller and the
State Attorney's motion to dismiss Count II.
You're all acutely aware as the lawyers that
this is a question of law. So we're not going to be
diving into facts and the Courtwill not be deciding
the merits of this motion this morning. We are
simply here for the sole purpose of that motion to
dismiss. So I just wanted to make sure that we all
stay on track and ,we'ire all on that same page.
So, Ms. Boyagian, I'll send it to you first,
course, we all know that the Law 101,
I must Zook at the four corners of the motion, which
alleges that the State Attorney, David Aronberg, and
rk and comptroller, Sharon Bock, actually have
custody and control of these grand jury proceeding.
Whether that is true or not is not for this
court to determine because I'm looking simply at the
four corners of the complaint. But, not for nothing,
I think we all know that they don't have control and
ESQUIRE .",".v" 800.211.DEPO (3376)
EsquireSolutions. corn
EFTA02734251
HEARING June 03, 2020
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS vs DAVE ARONBERG 4
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custody of the records. But I'm going to assume that
it's correct because that's what has been alleged.
So what I first want to hear from is the
attorney for Florida Holdings with regard to,
assuming arguendo, that Florida Statute 905.27 does
create a cause of action, what relief is it that
you're seeking from in Count II, specifi ally.
Not the dec action. We're not here on t today
what is it you hope to get, a judgmen
MS. BOYAGIAN: Thank you, y
morning, and thank you for thp4t1y lege of appearing
before this court.
The relief we are Aing is disclosure of the
grand jury records, pursuant to the Furtherance of
Justice Exception to 905.27. And under the First
Amendment.
The press, as your Honor is aware, has a right
of access under the First Amendment as a surrogate of
the public --
THE COURT: Let me just stop you for a minute.
like you to answer my specific question.
So I am not particularly convinced -- and I'd
like for you to address that. So we're not going to
dive into facts or the press's standing because
that's not something we're here to discuss today.
onor. Good
ESQUIRE 800.211.DEPO (3376)
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HEARING
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS vs DAVE ARONBERG
June 03, 2020
5
And I have read the voluminous paperwork --
I've received paperwork as -- and -- five-minute ago
from some of the other parties. But I deeply
appreciate the fact that you sent this to me so much
in advance
with, as I said, the voluminous paperwork th was
provided.
But as you know, , we are h r such an
extremely limited issue today, and t t heir motion
to dismiss where they state "you uing the wrong
people"; that the court has e records.
And so, more importa y want
and I have been able to spend some time
whether Section 905.27
action against the
Again, I'
that are asser
you to address
you a private cause of
te attorney and the clerk.
o assume the facts are true
n the motion. Whether they are or
t r not -- beca I think we can all agree we're not for
sure i hey ever -- that the state attorney doesn't
have
1
s records. So what is it you're seeking in
I -- not the dec action. I know you want the
records. I've got that. But in Count II,
specifically, what do you -- what's the relief you're
seeking and, more importantly, how under this statute
do you get to assert a private action -- a private
cause of action against the state attorney and the
g ESQUIRE 800.211.DEPO (3376)
EsquireSolutions.com
EFTA02734253
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HEARING
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS vs DAVE ARONBERG
June 03, 2020
6
clerk?
MS. BOYAGIAN: Your Honor, we are aware, of
course, that there is no expressed private right of
action, 905.27. But that does not end the inquiry.
As the Florida Supreme Court stated:
"Where a statute like 905.27
forbids an act which is to Plaintiff'
It :)
injury, the party injured should a i: e
an action."
And that's the Piezo amain the volume
of materials that we sent you
There's no question h
FIRST AMENDMENT right t
4
at the denial of the
ress is an injury which
gives rise to a righ ion.
Stated anoth a , looking at the analysis
that the Fischer Mel calf Court looked at, there are
three factoxq n determining whether there is a
r yprivate righ of action where a statute does not
expressly provide for one.
Sie is whether the Plaintiff is part of the
cla s for which the statute is intended to protect;
second is a legislative history; and the third is the
underlying purposes of the statutory scheme.
The first factor I already addressed, that the
press is part of the class that the statute is
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HEARING
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS vs DAVE ARONBERG
June 03, 2020
7
intended to benefit, being the surrogate of the
public and exercising its first amendment right.
The second issue of legislative history and the
purpose -- statutory purpose are somewhat related.
We were unable to find much legislative history on
this issue of a private right of action under the
statute.
There is nothing that says we intend to create
a private action, but there's certainly nothing that
says we do not want to create a i to right of
action.
What we do have is t i$'1994, the same time
that 905.27 was reenac d, statute that pertains to
the secrecy of Stat ra d Jury -- statewide grand
juries was also enacted. That provision, which is
905.395, has no exceptions for -- for revealing these
records. By contrast, the legislature intentionally
enacted 905.27 with the Furtherance of Justice
Exception
t)
. ‘i
the public through the press can't bring a
private right of action to enforce that exception or
to seek relief under that exception, that
intentionally placed exception of furthering justice
is essentially rendered hollow --
(Speaking simultaneously.)
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HEARING
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS vs DAVE ARONBERG
June 03, 2020
9
custody, and control. My understanding is that the
state attorney has asserted that he does not have
possession. It's not my understanding that the clerk
has taken that position. So the clerk may indeed be
the -- someone who does have possession, custody, and
control.
In any event, we would submit that t tate
attorney, even it does not have actua ession at
this time, it might be able to have t e power to
control or direct the entity or •ns who do have
control and possession to rele hose -- to effect
the judgment.
THE COURT: So le me sk you this: So the
clerk is the keeper the record. But even if you
got a judgment her -- let's say you asserted
this cause of ti n and let's say you win and you
get a judgmencagainst the clerk. The clerk cannot
release grand jury testimony to you. Only the court
can.
So really -- all I'm saying to you is I do not
understand the way this case was filed or why these
are the defendants because it's impossible for them
to perform.
I mean, I'm going to assume, based on your
motion, again, that they do have the records. But we
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all know -- everyone in the room knows they do not --
that only the court -- they're -- they're with a
court interpreting. And only the court can release
the records.
So if you get a judgment against either the
,I,
state attorney or the clerk, they cannot -- mean, I ;44Iftsr
llr
guess what you're saying to me is, well, want to
do discovery and we want them to say cally "I
have these records" or "I don't have
And -- I mean, the law is ab ntly clear.
You cannot do it without a co ermining whether,
in the furtherance of just he release is
appropriate.
MS. BOYAGIAN: And that is a determination
we're asking your Honor to make, and we're asking for
an order from your court.
THE COURT: When we get to the merits of the
case, sure iC is. But, again, you're asking me to
makethat determination and for me to make a
deAormination of whether the grand jury records
sholald be released. And the only thing we're here
today about is why should the clerk and the state
attorney have to defend a civil action when it's a
possibility of performance? They -- even if you were
to win and get a judgment against them, they cannot
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give you what they don't have.
So -- I mean, it's as simply as this: Are
you -- you just want to engage in some discovery for
them to absolutely assert, particularly, the state
attorney, "I don't
rules that say the moment the grand jury's o
they're sealed and
cannot be released
have these records"; look to the
they're turned over a:ui
:)without court orde ''
(LP )So I'm not addressing the merit o whether you
have an exception or you're abl/. rgue that
there's an exception in the furthArance of justice.
We're not getting there today. I'm simply saying why
should these two entities have to defend this lawsuit
when even down the road if they win they can't give
you what they do have?
MS. BOYAG As your Honor stated, I'm not
sure that's case with the clerk. That was not in
their Recthat issue was not stated in their papers
OURT: Let me ask you this, then: Do you
Ac\
think , if you got a judgment and I or the court
7
doesn't make the determination that the grand jury
records should be released, that the clerk would be
able to perform?
Would they be able to say "here you go"? I
mean, could the clerk just make that unilateral
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HEARING
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS vs DAVE ARONBERG
June 03, 2020
12
decision "I'm going to release the records, sealed
confidential records"?
Does she have any authority to do that?
MS. BOYAGIAN: My understanding, your Honor, is
that 905.27 requires a court order before the records
are unsealed.
Exactly. Exactly. THE COURT:
All right. Let me hear from Mr. A rg's
attorney, Mr. Wyler.
MR. WYLER: Thank you, your a r. May it
please the Court --
THE COURT: Good morn
MR. WYLER: Good
Your Honor, I wJtted to let you know that
I spoke with coup r the clerk, Ms. Fingerhut, a
couple of days of e this hearing, and we decided
that I wouldjst make the presentation for both of
of us, ing hat our arguments overlap except for
the Q who this claim -- whether they have the
or not, which, of course, we've said we don't
haVb' custody of the records.
But, nonetheless, our arguments overlap. The
Plaintiff is attempting to assert a cause of action
under Section 905.27. That statute settled testimony
not to be disclosed exceptions. So it's just
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for
explaining exceptions to the disclosure of the grand
jury testimony.
Our position is that it doesn't set forth a
cause of action and that it's impossible for us to
perform what they're asking.
I know you said you didn't really want get
into the Furthering Justice Exception, bu know
that's what they're using as their basi get to
these. But it's our position that tngspiear
unambiguous statutory language, ows that this
disclosure only applies to a or criminal case,
and that within that civi 4iminal --
(Speaking simulta ou y.)
THE COURT: Ago s r I'm sorry. As I told
Plaintiff's cou
MR. WYLER can only be used in the defense wv
COURT: Okay. We're not there. We're not
disc % the merits of the case, and -- I'm not
o cross that bridge. I'm here for a very,
very limited hearing today.
So just as I stopped Plaintiff's counsel from
arguing the merits of the case and whether or not the
Furtherance of Justice Exception will apply in this
instance, we're not even there yet.
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I'm only here for the purpose of determining
whether or not the clerk and state attorney should be
dismissed. And I am bound by the four corners of the
document, which assert that you do have control and
custody over it.
ALkSo if you'll fashion your argument with e and
to that limited purpose, I would appreciat ORlte .
MR. WYLER: No problem, your Hono .
apologize.
Within the four corners of complaint, our
position is that they failed
4
e a cause of
action under 905.27. It d t provide for -- it
doesn't list that there
adequately pled to rt 17e
that. There's -
lement that they have
cause of action under
he only thing they're asking
for is records e don't have.
There's really not much more to it, your Honor.
And we ul
I‘ 4
d ask that you would grant our motion to
g:Nf
dism' failure to state a cause of action.
E COURT: Okay. Ms. Fingerhut, are you still
on he phone?
MS. FINGERHUT: Yes, your Honor.
THE COURT: Is there anything you wish to add?
MS. FINGERHUT: We agree with the state
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attorney's position, and we also agree with what the
Court has said, that the plain language of the
statute, a cause of action doesn't exist. And we
really cannot -- we'll be defending something without
the four corners. We're simply involved in this
action because the clerk is the custodian 06.44;
II. Boyagian, back to you.
ItO lii Ir
records.
THE COURT: Okay. Thank you,
MS. BOYAGIAN: Your Honor, like to note
that in the Butterworth casedw ich the Supreme
Court limited the application 05.27 by saying that a \
witness can reveal her own testimony and prohibiting
that they violate tre First Amendment --
THE COURT:( 1/4 at again, please.
MS. BOYAGAt iN) In the Supreme Court case, the
Butterworth - e, in which the Supreme Court ruled
that 905'.27 can't restrict a Grand Jury witness from
revear7,g er own testimony, that would be a
ion of First Amendment, in that case, the state
att rney was, in fact, a party.
THE COURT: Well, I assume the state attorney
that was present -- I mean, I don't find that that's
close to what we're talking about here, and that's
whether or not -- I mean, as we know, this was in
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HEARING
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS vs DAVE ARONBERG
June 03, 2020
16
2006. Certainly Dave Aronberg wasn't even the state
attorney then. But this is about the release of
records.
I want to give you ample opportunity -- and
again, I sincerely appreciate that all of the case
court law and the way that it was presented to the So t in ..„,,
such a timely fashion. I really do. And Qid spend
some time with it. But I want to give hatever
opportunity you want to take to convl e that it
is in -- as to Count 2, again • he dec action --
whether these would be the ap te defendants.
And, you know, really nt you to boil it
down for me as to this --/Set s take it all the way
down the road. You win. You get a judgment against
the clerk and the state attorney.
I know there's other reasons why you might have
filed it this way. But I'm just simply puzzled
because/I-do hear what the clerk and the state I \
attorney are saying, and that is, performance is
impossible. They don't have the records and
cannot -- absolutely. There's not even an inch of
wiggle room -- that they could release the records
even if you got a judgment. It is solely a
determination for the court.
I, frankly, think, you know, there's ways to
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CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS vs DAVE ARONBERG 17
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get to your records. There's ways to get
confidential records. But it isn't by suing the
state attorney and the clerk.
So I just want to hear your last final argument
on how Count II, the appropriate defendants are the
clerk and the state attorney. Even assuming arguendo
they have the records -- we know they don't -- you
were to get a judgment against them, how would you
expect them to perform?
MS. BOYAGIAN: Two points, your Honor: One is
that, again, the clerk did not assert in her papers
that she does not have control. That is a position
that the State Attorne s Office has asserted. It is
our allegation, and our Honor noted, allegations
must be accepted as true at this stage of
the proceeding
Second is also our understanding that the
state attorney and the clerk intend to block access
to these records. So our allegation is that they do
%. )1
'bssession, custody, or control, which the clerk
has not denied; and second, that they are trying to
block access to the records
THE COURT: What do you mean? What do you
mean? They're not trying to block it. They're
saying that despite the fact -- let's just talk about
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HEARING
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS vs DAVE ARONBERG
June 03, 2020
18
the clerk, because we all know the state attorney
doesn't have it.
So the clerk is the custodian of records.
That's her main job. There's no doubt about it. We
all know that. But we also know, unequivocally
unequivocally, only the court can make the 4determination of whether the moving party
satisfied that there is an exception h ese
should be released.
So, again, I ask you -- %in fact, the
custodian of the records -- our opinion that
if you got a judgment say rk and comptroller
gets a judgment against m, that she can release
the records without urt -- without the court
weighing in, with e court making that
determination ired by law?
MS. BOYAGIAN: No, your Honor. We are asking
your Ho or t\‘rorder the clerk to do that under your
%blE COURT: All right.
Mr. -- Ms. Fingerhut, you wish to be heard on
that?
MS. FINGERHUT: Your Honor, our position is
that we're not trying to block access to the
records --
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HEARING
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS vs DAVE ARONBERG
June 03, 2020
19
(Speaking simultaneously.)
THE COURT: Can you hear? Can the attorneys
hear?
MS. FINGERHUT: -- custodian the records and
that he cannot release the records without court
THE COURT: Exactly. AllAr
Okay. All right. Anything further
.
Wyler?
MR. WYLER: No, your Honor. I ith the
attorneys for the clerk's office that's impossible
for us to release these records -re's no intent
to hide them or block anything f)4r6m the Plaintiff.
THE COURT: Okay. Anything further,
Ms. Fingerhut?
\ MS. FINGERHUT: your Honor.
THE COURT: s. Boyagian, anything
further
II. BOYAGIAN: Nothing further, your Honor.
COURT: Okay. I will get an order out
quic hank you, folks so much. And I'll see you
e next round. Thanks a lot. 910i.
MS. BOYAGIAN: Thank you, your Honor.
MR. WYLER: Thank you, your Honor.
(The proceedings concluded at 10:28 a.m.)
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CERTIFICATE OF REPORTER
I, Sonja M. a Court Reporter, certify that
I was authorized to and did stenographically report the
foregoing proceedings and that the transcript, s 1
through 19, is a true and complete record of
(:1/4
stenographic notes. 5:)
Dated this 3rd day of 0020.
(s4
R IL
Sonja M.
Court Rep
ESQUIRE IMPOSITION SOLUTIONS
800.211.DEPO (3376)
EsquireSolutions. corn
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EFTA02734268
Def.Ex.A-7
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EFTA02734269
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIFTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT
IN AND FOR PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
CIRCUIT CIVIL DIVISION AG
CASE NO. 50-2019-CA-014681-XXXX-MB
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS LLC PUBLISHER OF THE PALM BEACH POST,
Plaintiff/Petitioner
vs.
DAVE ARONBERG,
SHARON R BOCK,
Defendant/Respondents.
ORDER GRANTING DEFENDANTS MOTIONS TO DISMISS COUNT II OF
PLAINTIFF'S FIRST AMENDED COMPLAINT WIT)! PREJUDICE
THIS CAUSE cant before the Court on Dave Aronbe Stan. Attorney of Palm
Beach County's ("State Attorney") and Sharon R. Bock, le Comptroller of Palm Beach
CA Florida Holdings, LW, County's, ("Clerk") respective Motions to Dismiss
Publisher of the Palm Beach Post's ("The Post" >MtAmierded Complaint (DE## 22, 24). This
case is assigned to Division AG, which is y sided over by the Honorable Donald
Hafele. However, the undersigned, a ge of the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, presided
over the June 3, 2020 hearing o ttorney and Clerk's Motions as the Motions
implicate records of the Palm h ounty grand jury, over which the Chief Judge presides.
See § 905.01, Fla. Stat ( er careful consideration of the pleadings and the arguments
presented at the ourt grants the Motions for the following reasons.
0 Background
The Post is outlet which has heavily reported on the 2006 Palm Beach County criminal
prosecuiio f Jeffrey Epstein. Through the instant civil lawsuit, The Post seeks "in mediate
access to the testimony, minutes, and other evidence presented in 2006 to the Palm Beach
County grand jury" in Mr. Epstein's case and alleges that both the State Attorney and Clerk are
"in possession and/or control of [those] documents." (DE # 17, First Amended Complaint at 11
3,4, and 77). Specifically, The Post seeks declaratory judgment as to its rights to obtain the
grand jury testimony in Mr. Epstein's case from the State Attorney and Clerk (Count I) as well as
Page 1 of 7
EFTA02734270
Case No. 50-2019-CA-014681-XXXX-MB
judgment against the State Attorney and the Clerk pursuant to section 905.27, Florida Statutes,
which sets forth the parameters of grand jury secrecy in Florida. (Count 11). Both the State
Attorney and the Clerk move to dismiss Count II of The Post's First Amended Complaint,
arguing that that section 905.27 does not create a private cause of action. (DE## 22, 24). The
Court agrees.
Analysis
"In reviewing a motion to dismiss for failure to state a cause of action, the court t ccept the
allegations of the complaint as true and construe them in the light most favora the intiff."
Almarante v. Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale, Inc., 921 So. 2d 703, 704-0.4 DCA
2006). The motion should only be granted if the moving party demo the plaintiff
cannot provide any facts that would support a cause of action. Jd. fo ws that if the cause of
action alleged is nonexistent under Florida law, dismissal' Cummings v. Dawson,
444 So. 2d 565, 566 (Fla. 1st DCA 1984) (affirming itsic f cause of action not recognized
by Florida law).
ticSection 90527, Florida Statutes (2019), is "T timony not to be disclosed, exceptions,"
and states:
(1) A grand juror, state atto s r Cant state attorney, reporter, stenographer,
interpreter, or any other rson aring before the grand jury shall not disclose the
testimony of a witness e before the grand jury or other evidence received by it
except when requirjby a court to disclose the testimony for the purpose of:
a. Asc whether it is consistent with the testimony given by the witness before
ning whether the witness is guilty of perjury; or
ring justice.
(2) It is unlawful for any person knowingly to publish, broadcast, disclose, divulge, or
cotritunicate to any other person, or knowingly to cause or permit to be published,
broadcast, disclosed, divulged, or comrrunicated to any other person, in any manner
whatsoever, any testimony of a witness examined before the grand jury, or the content,
gist, or import thereof, except when such testimony is or has been disclosed in a court
proceeding. When a court orders the disclosure of such testimony pursuant to subsection
(1) for use in a crininal case, it may be disclosed to the prosecuting attorney of the court
in which such criminal case is pending, and by the prosecuting attorney to his or her
assistants, legal associates, and employees, and to the defendant and the defendant's
Page 2 of 7
EFTA02734271
Case N o. 50-2019-CA-014681-XXXX-MB
attorney, and by the latter to his or her legal associates and employees. When such
disclosure is ordered by a court pursuant to subsection (I) for use in a civil case, it may be
disclosed to all patties to the case and to their attorneys and by the latter to their legal
associates and employees. However, the grand pry testimony afforded such persons by
the court can only be used in the defense or prosecution of the civil or criminal case and
for no other purpose whatsoever.
(3) Nothing in this section shall affect the attorney-client relationship. A client shall have
the right to cormunicate to his or her attorney any testimony given by the client to the
grand jury, any nutters involving the client discussed in the client's presence before the
grand jury, and any evidence involving the client received by or proffered tootlr1 grand jury
in the client's presence.
(4) Persons convicted of violating this section shall be guilty of a
degree, punishable as provided ins. 775.083, or by fine not exce
(5) A violation of this section shall constitute criminal collie
§ 90527, Fla. Stat. (2019).
r of the first
,000, or both.
As the State Attorney and Clerk argue t concedes, section 90527
makes no express provision for a civil suit or c Nonetheless, The Post maintains that
it is entitled to seek the grand jury records cause of action pursuant to the "furthering
justice" exception to grand jury secre din subsection 90527(IXc). Therefore, the
limited question for this Court's on is whether a cause of action under section 90527
should be judicially implied. Se v y v. N. Sinha Corp., 644 So. 2d 983, 985 (Fla. 1994).
it In advocating that it intain a cause of action against the State Attorney and Clerk
under section 90 The ost urges the Court to examine three factors "(1) whether the
plaintiff is ot o s for whose special benefit the statute was enacted; (2) whether there
is any ther explicit or implicit, of a legislative intent to create or deny such a
remedy; 3) whether judicial implication is consistent with the underlying purposes of the
legislative scheme." (Plaintiff's Opposition to Defendant, Dave Aronberg, As State Attorney of
Palm Beach County, Florida's Motion to Dismiss Count II of the First Amended Complaint at
page 13 (citing Fischer v. Metcalf, 543 So. 2d 785 (Fla. 3d DCA 1989)). Within these three
factors, The Post recognizes that there is no indication of legislative intent to create a cause of
action, but leans heavily on the benefit factor, arguing that the "furthering justice" exception to
Page 3 of 7
EFTA02734272
Case No. 50-2019-CA-014681-XXXX-MB
grand jury secrecy outlined in section 905.27(1)(c) was meant to benefit the public at large, for
which the press acts as a surrogate. The Post's arguments are unpersuasive as to the discrete
issue of whether a private cause of action lies in section 905.27.
To begin with, The Post's reliance on the benefit factor is misplaced. Per the Florida
Supreme Court's 1994 opinion in Murthy, "the question of whether a statute establishes a duty to
take precautions to protect or benefit a particular class of persons is no longer determinative on
the question of whether a cause of action should be recognized." Sorenson v. Pro
Compounding Pharmacists of W. Pa., Inc., 191 So. 3d 929 (Fla. 2d DCA 201 urthy,
644 So. 2d at 985). Instead, "whether a statutory cause of action should i. i y implied is a
question of legislative intent." Horowitz v. Plantation Gen. Hosp. L zp, 959 So. 2d 176,
182 (Fla. 2007). See also QBE Ins. Corp. v. Chalfonte Condo. ent Ass it, Inc., 94 So. 3d
ite sa541, 551 (Fla. 2012) ("Since Murthy, we have reaffmred e that whether a statutory
cause of action should be judicially implied is a qtes f lative intent."); Universal Prop.
& Cas. Ins. Co. v. Loftus, 276 So. 3d 849, 851 D A 2019).
As is always the case when a court e s legislative intent analysis, the plain
language of the statute is the starting, nding, point. See Horowitz, 959 So. 2d at 182.
"When the statute is clear and courts will not look behind the statute's plain
language for legislative intent s to rules of statutory construction to ascertain intent"
hyLoftus, 276 So. 3d at 851 th DCA 2019)Xquoting Daniels v. Fla. Dept ofHealth, 898 So.
2d 61, 64 (Fla. 20 ). "Ht wever, a single pad of a statute should not be read in isolation." Id.
"Instead, `all f statute must be read together in order to achieve a consistent whole."' Id.
(quo F Longboat Key Beach Erosion Control Dist., 604 So. 2d 452, 455 (Fla.
1992)).
As The Post acknowledges, "there is a dearth of legislative history surrounding Section
90527 and the The Palm Beach Post was unable to locate any documents capturing any
legislative intent regarding the possibility of a private right of action." (Plaintiff's Opposition to
Defendant, Dave Aronberg, As State Attorney of Palm Beach County, Florida's Motion to
Dismiss Count II of the First Amended Complaint at page 14). While the lack of any legislative
Page 4 of 7
EFTA02734273
Case No. 50-2019-CA-014681-XXXX-MB
history indicating an intent to create a private right of action is telling, it is not dispositive as the
plain language of the section 90527 is clear an unambiguous and, therefore, controls. Horowitz,
959 So, 2d at 182.
Examining the plain language of section 90527 jja its entirety which requires the Court to
look at more than just the "furthering justice" provision of section 90527(1Xc) relied on by The
Post, it is clear that the intent of the Legislature in passing section 90527 was to limit, not
facilitate, disclosure of grand jury records. In no uncertain tents, the Legislature ed that
no "person appearing before the grand jury" may "disclose" testimony or ev p ented
except when "required by a court" under certain limited circunstances. ( , Fla. Stat. In
solidifying that its intent was to prohibit disclosure without court pe ssio t Legislature
provided that disclosure without a court order is a criminal off § 9 27(4), Fla. Stat. c)
Therefore, to the extent section 90527 could be read as s duty on the State Attorney
and Clerk, the duty imposed is one of secrecy, not d'
is nothing in the text of sec 'tre\ln sum, there 9 7 from which one can deduce tint the
w Legislature contemplated a member of the
cause of action to compel the State
to the contrary, section 90527 p
pleaded by The Post, they hay
or one else for that matter, having a private
Clerk to disclose grand jury records. Indeed,
State Attorney and the Clerk (assuming that, as
cunrnts) from disclosing the documents without first
being ordered to do so b urtin Reading section 90527 as creating a private cause of
action against the teAtt y and Clerk is, therefore, not only unsupported by the language of
section 905 is ctually paradoxical to its plain language of the statute. As such, this Court
lacks the construe the unambiguous language of section 90527 in a way that would
extend its press terms and create a cause of action where none exists. "To do so would be an
abrogation of legislative power."Horowilz. 959 So. 2d 176. 182 (miming Holly v. Auld. 450 So
2d 217. 219 (Fla. 198411
Conclusion
Based on the foregoing, the Court finds Count 11 of The Post's First Amended Complaint
must be dismissed with prejudice as it pursues a nonexistent cause of action under section
Page 5 of 7
EFTA02734274
Case No. 50-2019-CA-01468 I-XXXX-MB
90527. In arriving at this conclusion, the Court does not suggest The Post has no available
mechanism to obtain a court order granting it access to the grand jury proceedings. The Court
also does not render any opinion as to whether releasing these records is appropriate for the
purpose of "furthering justice" within the meaning of section 90527. Rather, the Court's
dismissal of Count II is necessitated by precedent and the simple fact that a civil lawsuit against
the State Attorney and Clerk under section 90527 is not the proper mechanism for The Post to
pursue its goal.
Therefore, it is hereby
ORDERED AND ADJUDGED that Dave Ainnberg, as State Att alm Beach
County's and Sharon R. Bock, as Clerk & Comptroller of Palm Beac s, respective
Motions to Dismiss Count Hof CA Florida Holdings, LLC, P r o the Palm Beach Post's
First Amended Complaint are GRANTED and Count II o
hereby DISMISSED with prejudice.
DONE AND ORDERED, in West Pa
of June, 2020.
first Attended Complaint is
alm Beach County, Florida this 8th day
01 MOOS
)
eittii j
14f
krIstal Maim Chief 39 gip-
50-2019-CA-014681-XXXX-MB 0608,2020
Krtsta Marx
Chief Judge
In The n•tes that, if there was a court order dkecting the State Attorney or the Clerk to
disclose re rds and the State Attorney or the Clerk refined, the remedy for disobeying a court order
is contempt or, in some instances, a mandamus proceedings — not a civil lawsuk.
COPES TO:
DOUGLAS A. WYLER
No Address Available No E-mail Address Available
961687 GATEWAY BLVD doug.wyler@comcastnet
SUITE 201-I
FERNANDINA BEACH, FL
Page 6 of 7
EFTA02734275
Case No. 50-2019-CA-014681-XXXX-MB
MICHAEL GRYGIEL
MICHAEL J. GRYGIEL
NICOLE R. FINGERHUT
32034
54 STATE STREET
6TH FLOOR
ALBANY, NY 12207
No Address Available
POST OFFICE BOX 229
WEST PALM BEACH, FL
33401
NINA D. BOYAJIAN No Address Available
NINA D. BOYAJIAN 1840 CENTURY PARK
EAST
SUITE 1900
LOS ANGELES, CA 90067
STEPHEN A. 5100 TOWN CENTER CIR
MENDELSOHN, ESQ SUITE 400
BOCA BATON, FL 3
tiff
[Email Redacted]
[Email Redacted]
CLERK E-
SERVICE@MYPALMBEACH
CLERK.COM
nfingerhia@mypalmbeachclerk
corn
boyajiann(a)gtla
riveraal@gt
No E-ma'
m
Available
[Email Redacted]
a)gtlaw.com
[Email Redacted]
Page 7 of 7
EFTA02734276
Def.Ex.A-8
A
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EFTA02734277
SCHOLZ & WYLER, LLC.
Tilt LAW orricts Or
a ASSOCIATES. PA.
ARTHUR I.
A LIMITED L MU TY COMPANY OF PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS
ATTORNEYS AT LAW
GATEWAY TO AMELIA
961007 GATEWAY BLVD.. SUITE aO1-1
FERNANDINA BRACK FLORIDA 32034
TELEPHONE ([Phone Redacted]
FAX NO. ([Phone Redacted]
June 8, 2020
VIA ELECTRONIC & U.S. MAIL
Stephen A. Mendelsohn, Esq.
Greenburg Traurig, PA.
5100 Town Center Circle, Suite 400
Boca Raton, FL 33486
RE: CA Florida Holdings, LLC v. Dave Aronbe
,.dPalm Beach County, Case No.: 2019-CA
Dear Mr. Mendelsohn:
As you are aware our firm represents the intere
County, Florida, in the above referenced
dismissal of your First Amended Complai
is made pursuant to section 57.105, Fl
As you know, Section 57
Cos
RICHARD J. SCHOLZ. P.A.
RICHARD J. SCHOLZ
DOUGLASA. WYLER, P.A.
DOUGLAS A. WYLER
Aronberg, as State Attorney of Palm Beach
tirpose of this letter is to demand the voluntary
omplaint"), dated January 17, 2020. This demand
(1) Upon the court's e or motion of any party, the court shall award a
reasonable a mey's ee, including prejudgment interest, to be paid to the
prevailing p ual amounts by the losing party and the losing party's attorney
on any im o efense at any time during a civil proceeding or action in which
the Inds that the losing party or the losing party's attorney knew or should
that a claim or defense when initially presented to the court or at any
ore trial:
Was not supported by the material facts necessary to establish the claim or
defense; or
b. Would not be supported by the application of then-existing law to those
material facts.
Today, Judge Marx granted, with prejudice, Defendant Aronberg's Motion to Dismiss Count II of the
Plaintiff's Complaint. Pursuant to the Court's ruling, the Plaintiff's only remaining cause of action
consists of Count I, for Declaratory Relief. Accordingly, we believe that the Complaint filed herein
and its sole remaining Count for Declaratory Relief is not supported by the material facts necessary to
establish the claims asserted, and that your claims are not supported by the application of current law
to said material facts.
EFTA02734278
First and foremost, the Complaint is not supported by the material facts necessary to establish the
claims asserted because neither Defendant Aronberg, nor The Office of the State Attorney for the
Fifteenth Judicial Circuit is in custody or control of the 2006 grand jury materials sought therein.
Simply put, the declaratory relief sought by the Plaintiff, seeks records from my client that are
impossible for him or his office to produce. Accordingly, Defendant Aronberg is not a proper party to
this action because no matter what, he and his office do not have possession, custody, or control of the
requested materials.
In addition to the foregoing material facts that negate the claims asserted in the Complaint, your claims
are also not supported by the application of current law. Specifically, your action ford laratory relief
fails based on the clear, unambiguous statutory language found in Section 905.27(2 Fl rids Statutes,
which states:
When such disclosure is ordered by a court pursuant to subsection (
case, it may be disclosed to all parties to the case and to their atto
to their legal associates and employees. However the rand
such persons by the court can only be used in the defense or p
criminal case and for no other purpose whatsoever.
Moreover, even if the Plaintiff were to prevail in the decla
to comply with any court order granting disclosure of
Aronberg nor The Office of the State Attorney fo
custody, or control of the 2006 Epstein grand ju
Based on the foregoing, if the Complaint is
the enclosed Motion for Attorney's Fees '
and your firm, recovery of the legal ex
Please govern yourself accordin
Douglas A. Wyler, Esq.
For the Finn
End.: Defe ion for Attorneys' Fees
use in a civil
by the latter
onv afforded
on of the civil or
Mr. Aronberg would be unable
documents because neither Mr.
nth Judicial Circuit have possession,
sed within 21 days of the service of this letter,
ed and we will seek as sanctions, from your client
erred in defending this frivolous action.
EFTA02734279
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIFTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT
IN AND FOR PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS, LLC,
Publisher of the PALM BEACH POST,
Plaintiff,
v.
DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of
Palm Beach County, Florida; SHARON R.
BOCK, as Clerk and Comptroller of Palm
Beach County, Florida.
Defendants.
DEFENDANT, DAVE ARONBERG'S M
CASE NO.: 19-CA-O14681
g AtIC
R ATTORNEYS' FEES
Defendant, DAVE ARONBERG, as Staff of Palm Beach County, Florida, by and
through the undersigned attorneys, move , pursuant to Florida Statutes, Section 57.105,
to award him reasonable attorneys' e defense of Plaintiff's First Amended Complaint,
(the "Complaint"), and as gro r, would show that on June 8, 2020, Plaintiff was served
a copy of this Motion, togeth a letter from the undersigned attorney, in accordance with
subsection (4) of the abo tute, demanding dismissal of the Complaint, at least 21 days prior
to the filing o is on. In said letter, Defendant's attorney advised Plaintiff of the facts which
establi mplaint is without support of the facts or the law.
REFORE, Defendant, DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of Palm Beach
County, Florida, respectfully requests the Court enter an Order requiring Plaintiff and Plaintiff's
attorneys to pay said Defendant's attorneys' fees incurred herein after service of this Motion.
EFTA02734280
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I hereby certify that on this day , 2020, the foregoing was electronically filed
via the Florida E-File Portal for electronic service on the parties of record herein.
SCHOLZ & WYLER, LLC
A/ Douglas A. Wyler
Arthur I.W Esquire
Ha. Bar No.: 108249
Richard J. Scholz, E
Fla. Bar No.: 0021
tic ,
Douglas A. Wyl
Fla. Bar No.: 1
961687 Gate d., Suite 201-I
Fernan4jflach,Florida 32034
9
[Email Redacted]
ttorneys for Defendant
Gs'
EFTA02734281
Def.Ex.A-9
A
COAS
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6 )-S--
I.'"
EFTA02734282
GT GreenbergTraurig
Stephen A. Mendelsohn
Tel [Phone Redacted]
FOX [Phone Redacted]
[Email Redacted]
June 23, 2020
Douglas A. Wyler
Jacob Scholz & Wyler, LLC
961687 Gateway Blvd.
Suite 201-I
Fernandina Beach, Fl. 32034
Re: CA Florida Holdings, LLC v. Dave Arenberg el at.
Case No. 2019-CA-014681
Dear Mr. Wyler:
A Cos
We are in receipt of your letter of June 8, 2020 with yeti ed Fla. Stat. section 57.105 motion.
In your letter and your proposed motion, you assert that Florida Holdings, LLC and the law
firm of Greenberg Tinting, P.A. should be li ble (the attorneys' fees to be incurred by State
Attorney Aronberg after the date of your I Yo letter cites to Fla. Stat. sections 57.105(1)
(a) and (b) for support. As shown below re t o basis for a Fla. Stat. section 57.105 motion,
and we expect that if the State Attom make such a motion, the court should deny it.
Your letter omits a citation to s
may not be awarded where
reversal of existing law or the es
a reasonable expectation
5(3). Subsection 57.105(3)(a) provides that sanctions
good faith argument for the extension, modification or
htnent of new law, as it is applied to the material facts, with
" We have such a good faith argument.
Contrary to your lysis df Fla. Stat. section 905.27, there are actually three instances where a
court may ord t e se of grand jury materials. As we argue, the court may order release "in
furtherance a jus ' There are few cases in Florida reviewing this provision and its scope. It is
an open and v estion as to whether the court may order release of grand jury transcripts to
the med1under both the statute and the First Amendment to the US Constitution in furtherance
of justice. the statutory language you cite refers to instances where a person is seeking grand jury
materials for use in a civil or in a criminal case. In these limited situations, the statute allows for
such uses and for no other reason. However, the statute does not state, as you assert, that where
the media seeks grand jury materials based upon its constitutional standing, which the Circuit
Court acknowledged at the June 2, 2020 hearing includes The Palm Beach Post, that the statutory
Greenberg Tranrig, P.A. I Attorneys at Law
5100 Tovm Center Circle I Sure 400 I Boca Raton, Florida 33486 I T +[Phone Redacted] I F [Phone Redacted]
Albany. Amsterdam. Atlanta. Austin. Berlin: Boca Raton. Boston. Chicago. Dallas. Delaware. Denver. Fon Lauderdale. Houston. Las Vegas. London'. Los Angeles.
Mexico City: Miami. Milan; Minneapolis. Nashville. New Jersey. New York. Northern Virginia. Orange Comity. Orlando. Philadelphia. Phoenix. Sacramento.
San Francisco. Seoul: Shanghai. Silicon Valley. Tallahassee. Tampa. Tel Aviv:Mks*: Warsaw: Washington, D.C. West Palm Beads. Westchester County.
cies. W.% C • tan.... ye bap Ot v lab • ci...enus, as mas sita•ompi • b as aNa.a.p.sviuddy•
Iwne.gliawcan
EFTA02734283
Correspondence to Douglas A. Wyler
June 23, 2020
Page 2
use limitation you cite applies. No reported Florida case has addressed this issue and there is a
good faith basis for our view of Fla. Stat. section 905.27
Your letter also argues that sanctions are applicable because the State Attorney has alleged that it
does not possess the Jeffrey Epstein grand jury transcripts. This allegation is also contained in the
State Attorney's Answer. Assuming that the State Attorney does not currently e physical
possession of the Epstein grand jury materials, which has yet to be demonstrated, s s not end
the matter. The State Attorney was named as a party not simply as a custo nd jury
records. The State Attorney was named in his official capacity as his office as its primary
interest the protection of its grand jury system." [Italics in original.] In re rand Jury Proceedings,
832 F. 3d 554, 559 (11th Circuit 1987). In that case, the US petitioned ate judge to order the
State Attorney to turn over grand jury transcripts. The State Attome argtt inst their release
citing to Fla. Stat. section 905.27. Later, a federal grand jury subp a the Broward County
State Attorney for delivery of state grand jury testimony. The d tate Attorney advised the
federal court that it would produce the transcripts, thereby rating that while it may not
have physical possession of the materials, he had legal autl o obtain and deliver them. It
should also be noted that the State Attorney moved t e subpoena arguing that it was
unlawful under Florida law and Fla. Stat. section 9 case indicates that where one seeks
grand jury materials, the relevant State Attorney, sary patty in order to protect the grand
jury that the Office of State Attorney supervis n o ake arguments, if need be, against release
of the grand jury materials. These are some f same reasons why the State Attorney was named
in this case.
Also, assuming the State Attome ve physical possession of the grand jury materials,
there is nothing in Florida law its the State Attorney from requesting that the Clerk
provide copies to the State Atto y. r . pter 905, Fla. Stats. does not contain a prohibition against
a State Attorney demand t the erk grant his office access to grand jury materials, even after a
criminal case has conclu n information and belief, the Clerk's office maintains a log that
tracks release of materials to the State Attorney upon its request. Please confirm
whether the Stat orney has accessed grand jury materials from the Clerk's office in other
instances or never done so. If the Clerk has such a log, then its contents should be
discoverab ect to Florida Public records laws.
Greenberg Tranrig, P.A. I Attorneys at raw
waglicrotoorn
EFTA02734284
Correspondence to Douglas A. Wyler
June 23, 2020
Page 3
For these reasons, we decline your Fla. Stat. section 57.105 demand that the case be dismissed
against the Office of the State Attorney. We expect that your demand will be withdrawn.
Thank you,
Very truly yours,
Is/Stephen Mendelsohn
Stephen Mendelsohn
SAM:Is
ACTIVE 51081659v1
Greenberg Tranrig, P.A. I Attorneys at raw
vnyvtlaw.corn
EFTA02734285
Def.Ex.A-10
EFTA02734286
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIFTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT
IN AND FOR PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS, LLC,
Publisher of the PALM BEACH POST,
Plaintiff,
v.
DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of
Palm Beach County, Florida; SHARON R.
BOCK, as Clerk and Comptroller of Palm
Beach County, Florida.
Defendants.
DEFENDANT. DAVE ARONBERG'S MO
\Defendant, DAVE ARONBERG, as State ey f Palm Beach County, Florida, by and
through the undersigned attorneys, moves t urt, ursuant to Florida Statutes, Section 57.105,
to award him reasonable attorneys' defense of Plaintiff's First Amended Complaint,
tire(the "Complaint"), and as gro , would show that on June 8, 2020, Plaintiff was served
a copy of this Motion, together
rr
• a letter from the undersigned attorney, in accordance with
subsection (4) of th b v tute, demanding dismissal of the Complaint, at least 21 days prior
to the filing of 'i on. In said letter, Defendant's attorney advised Plaintiff of the facts which
establish mplaint is without support of the facts or the law.
WW REFORE, Defendant, DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of Palm Beach
County, Florida, respectfully requests the Court enter an Order requiring Plaintiff and Plaintiff's
attorneys to pay said Defendant's attorneys' fees incurred herein after service of this Motion.
CASE NO.: 19-CA-014681
CO SA
ATTORNEYS' FEES
EFTA02734287
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I hereby certify that on this 1st day July, 2020, the foregoing was electronically filed via
the Florida E-File Portal for electronic service on the parties of record herein.
SCHOLZ & WYLER, LLC
Is/ Douglas A. Wyler
Arthur I. = Esquire
FM. Bar No.: 108249
Richard J. Scholz, Esqui
Fla. Bar No.: 002126
Douglas A. Wyle
Fla. Bar No.: 11
961687 Gateway •., Suite 201-1
Fernandi h, Florida 32034
(904)
61-7
[Email Redacted]
neys for Defendant, Dave Aron berg
EFTA02734288
Def.Ex.A-11
EFTA02734289
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIFTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT
IN AND FOR PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS, LLC,
Publisher of the PALM BEACH POST,
Plaintiff,
v.
DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of
Palm Beach County, Florida; SHARON R.
BOCK, as Clerk and Comptroller of Palm
Beach County, Florida.
Defendants.
CASE NO.: 19-CA-014681
O ISA
C
DEFENDANT DAVE ARONBERG'S MOTION F01(9)1M RY FINAL JUDGMENT
AND MEMORANDUM OF LAW IN, 1 jyRT THEREOF
Defendant DAVE ARONBERG, as S c tc tto\>ey of Palm Beach County, Florida, ASt iJ\
(hereinafter "Aronberg"), by and through cou wand pursuant to Rule 1.510 Florida Rules of
Civil Procedure, moves for entry of su judgment in his favor as to the remaining claim for
Declaratory Relief in Plaintiff's F" cd Complaint', and in support thereof states as follows:
STATE 4
C
OF THE UNDISPUTED FACTS
The following is a s
there is no germ
January
2.
nt of facts material to this motion for summary judgment as to which
t I of Plaintiff's First Amended Complaint, (hereinafter "Complaint"), filed
seeks Declaratory Relief pursuant to Section 86.011, Florida Statutes.
Specifically, Plaintiff's Count I socks a court order"declaring that pursuant to Fla. Stat.
Section 905.27(1Xe) and the Court's inherent authority, The Palm Beach Pas, may gain access to the
testimony, minutes, and other evidence presented in 2006 to the Palm Beach County grand jury" that
On June 8, 2020, this Court entered its Order Granting Defendants Motion to Dismiss Count II of the Plaintiffs First
Amended Complaint with Prejudice.
EFTA02734290
was empancled during the first Jeffrey Epstein, (hereinafter "Epstein"), sex abuse investigation,
(hereinafter "Requested Materials"). Complaint pg. 20
3. Plaintiff secics to use the Requested Materials "for the purpose of informing the public."
Id.
4. Plaintiff seeks the above-referenced declaratory relief, including copies of the
Requested Materials, from both Arenberg, as State Attorney of Palm Beach Cou lorida, and
leAd ,Defendant, Sharon R. Bock, as Clerk and Comptroller of Palm Beach County, F (hereinafter the
0 "Clerk").
5. Neither Arenberg nor the Office of the State Attorney for Fjkccnth Judicial Circuit,
("SAO"), is in control, custody, or possession of the Request
as Exhibit "A".
6.
Arenberg or the SAO to produce. Exhibit "A
7. Neither Arenberg nor as the legal authority to obtain and/or deliver the
Requested Materials. Exhibit "A" . C se)
8. The undisputed f t forth above in paragraphs 6-7 have been repeatedly made
evident by Arenberg to the tff and the public through not only the pleadings and correspondence
in this matter, but ugh an office press release and Arenberg's public social media accounts.
Exhibit"
Arenberg Aff. 13, attached
AS -'ICt The declaratory relief sought by t ' seeks materials that arc impossible for
\
either Arenberg nor the SAO has the authority to demand that the Clerk grant the
SAO access to grand jury materials after a criminal ease has concluded. Exhibit "A" 1 7.
10. During Aronbcrg's administration, neither he nor his office has accessed grand jury
materials from the Clerk's office in this or any other instance. Exhibit "A" 1 8.
2
EFTA02734291
11. As provided in section 905.17(1), Florida Statutes (2020), the Clerk has sole custody
and possession of the Requested Materials, which can only be released by the Clerk pursuant to an
order of the Court. Exhibit "A" 1 9.
MEMORANDUM OF LAW
I. Legal Standard Governing Motions For Summary Judgment
"The judgment sought shall be rendered forthwith if the pleadings, dcposi answers to
interrogatories, and admissions on file together with the affidavits, if any, show is no genuine
issue of material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a judgmen ma r of law.- Rule
1.510, Fla. R. Civ. P. It is appropriate to resolve a declaratory action on a ary judgment when, as
here, the decree seeks a legal interpretation of a statute. Rahi I Discoveries, Ltd., LLC, 252
So. 3d 804 (Fla. 5th DCA 2018).
IL The Requested Materials Can Only Be
Order
Notably, neither Aronbcrg nor the isivcontrol, custody, or possession of the Requested , e ty
uant to Section 905.27(1)(c), Florida Statutes and the
a court order declaring that Aronbcrg provide copies of the
Materials. Exhibit "A" 1 3. None
Court's inherent authority, Plain
\sed y The Clerk Pursuant To A Court
Requested Materials to Thvi lm Beach Post for the purpose of informing the public. Complaint pg. c or
20-21. Plaintiff i king telaratory relief alleging its entitlement to the Requested Materials
pursuant to dr¢ rc g justice" exception to grand jury secrecy. § 905.27, Fla. Stat. (2020).
nging its declaratory relief claim pursuant to Section 905.27, Florida Statutes, "a
single part df a statute should not be read in isolation." Universal Prop. & Cat Ins. Co. v. Loftus, 276
So. 3d 849, 851 (Fla. 4th DCA 2019). "Instead, `all parts of a statute must be read together in order to
achieve a consistent whole.'" Id. (quoting Forsythe v. Longboat Key Beach Erosion Control Dist,
604 So. 2d 452, 455 (Fla. 1992).
3
EFTA02734292
Section 905.17(1), Florida Statutes makes clear that grand jury records, like the Requested
Materials in this matter, arc to be maintained with the Clerk, and can only be released by the Clerk
pursuant to a court order. To wit
The stenographic records, notes, and transcriptions made by the court reporter or
stenographer shall be filed with the clerk who shall keep them in a sealed container not
subject to public inspection. The notes, records, and transcriptions are confidential
and exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. 1 of the late
Constitution and shall be released by the clerk only on request by a grand ju
by the grand juty or on order of the court pursuant to s. 905.27.
Section 905.17(1), Florida Statutes (2020). (Emphasis added.)
Text, context, and purpose arc the ordinary tools used for disco tory meaning, with
the overarching principle being "that judges lack the power to e an unambiguous statute in a
way which would extend, modify, or limit its express terms it ble and obvious implications.
To do so would be an abrogation of legislative powcr. , the plain language of section 905.17
is clear and unambiguous and, therefore, contro witz v. Plantation Gen. Hosp. Ltd. P 'ship,
959 So. 2d 176, 182 (Fla. 2007).
Accordingly, based on the cl at *guous statutory language set forth in section 905.17(1),
only the Clerk, not the State At rncy, ay release grand jury materials pursuant to an order of the
court. Thus, it is apparent Aronberg and the SAO lack the legal authority to obtain and deliver the tit iiir
Requested Matcria hib t "A" 1 5. Likewise, the declaratory relief sought by the Plaintiff socks
materials that o ble for Aronberg or the SAO to produce. Exhibit "A" 14. Again, the Clerk
has sol d possession of the Requested Materials. These facts have been repeatedly made
evident by onbcrg to the Plaintiff and the public through not only the pleadings and correspondence
in this matter, but also through an office press release and Aronbcrg's public social media accounts.
Exhibit "A" 1 6.
Although the above-referenced statutory authority illuminates the fact that only the Clerk may
release grand jury records like the Requested Materials herein, it remains significant to note that neither
4
EFTA02734293
Aronbcrg nor the SAO has the authority to demand that the Clerk grant the SAO access to grand jury
materials after a criminal case has concluded. Exhibit "A" 1 7. Hence, during Aronbcrg's
administration, neither he nor his office has accessed grand jury materials from the Clerk's office in
this or any other instance. Exhibit "A" 1 8.
III. Conclusion
The ultimate facts underlying the lawsuit arc not in dispute. The Court is fully owered to
dispose of this matter based on application of the undisputed facts to the plain 1 g iagc of Section
905.17, Florida Statutes, which renders the Plaintiff's action for declarato impossibility for
Aronbcrg to perfonn and that must be denied as a matter of law.
WHEREFORE, Defendant, DAVE ARONBERG. as State Attorney of Palm Beach County,
Florida, respectfully requests that this motion be granted and that summary final judgment be entered
in his favor consistent with this motion, and here cctftlly requests that this Court dismiss the
Complaint with prejudice and grant such othc4f, uding attorney's fees and costs, as this Court
deems fit and proper under the circums
Il
I HEREBY CERTIFY this 18th day of August, 2020, a copy of the foregoing has been
rdelectronically filed with the o p a E-File Portal for c-service on all parties of record herein.
AS
‘.....)
SCHOLZ & WYLER, LLC
Is/ Douglas A. Wyler
Arthur I. Esq.
Fla. Bar No.: 10249
Richard J. Scholz, Esq.
Fla. Bar No.: 0021261
Douglas A. Wylcr, Esq.
Fla. Bar No.: 119979
961687 Gateway Blvd., Suite 201-I
Fernandina Beach, Florida 32034
([Phone Redacted]
([Phone Redacted] Fax
Primary: [Email Redacted]
5
CATE OF SERVICE
EFTA02734294
General Counsel for the Florida Prosecuting
Attorney's Antsciatimt
Cog
6
EFTA02734295
EXHIBIT "A"
EXHIBIT "A"
EFTA02734296
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIFTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT
IN AND FOR PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS, LLC,
Publisher of the PALM BEACH POST,
Plaintiff,
v. CASE NO.: 19-CA-014681
DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of
Palm Beach County, Florida; SHARON R.
BOCK, as Clerk and Comptroller of Palm
Beach County, Florida.
Defendants.
STATE OF FLORIDA
COUNTY OF PALM BEACH
VIT OF D YID AR
AS VBefore rnc, the undersigned authority personally appal DA ID ARONBERG, being first duly sworn,
states:
I. My name is David (Dave) Atbn add I am the State Attorney for the Fifteenth Judicial
Circuit/Palm Beach County, Florida, si 13, a Defendant in the above-captioned matter.
2. Plaintiff is seeking decla relief, pursuant to Fla. Stat. 905.21(1)(c) and the Court's
inherent authority, allowing Plaintiff access to the testimony, minutes, and other evidence presented in 2006
to the Palm Beach County grand jury, (the "Requested Materials"), and to use those materials for the
purpose of informing the public.
3. Despite Plaintiff's above-described action for declaratory relief, neither myself nor the
Office of the State Attorney for the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, ("SAO"), is in control, custody, or possession
of the Rapes Materials.
As such, the declaratory relief sought by the Plaintiff seeks materials that are impossible
y office to produce.
To be clear, neither myself nor the SAO has the legal authority to obtain and deliver the
Requested Materials.
6. I have repeatedly made these facts evident to the Plaintiff and the public through not only
the pleadings and correspondence in this matter, but also through an office press release and my public
social media accounts.
EFTA02734297
7. Despite the contentions of Plaintiff, neither myself nor the SAO has the authority to
demand that the Clerk grant the SAO access to grand jury materials after a criminal case has concluded.
8. Moreover, during my administration, neither myself nor my office has accessed grand jury
materials from the Clerk's office in this or any other instance.
9. As provided in section 905.17(1), Florida Statutes (2020), the Clerk has sole custody and
possession of the Requested Materials, which can only be released by the Clerk pursuant to an order of the
Court.
FURTHER AFFIANT SAYETH NAUGHT.
By:
STATE OF FLORIDA
COUNTY OF PALM BEACH
Sworn to and subscribed before me this 36
C personally known' to me or has shown
Gs'
020, by DAVID ARONBERG, who is
as personal identification.
tt iss-deoe , st
t Public
Notary's Stamp or Seal,.,, LATOSIMLOWE4OCCE
Caledoil 414 ICUS
Elan My a at
iris miliestent•
EFTA02734298
Def.Ex.A-12
EFTA02734299
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIFTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT
IN AND FOR PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS, LLC,
Publisher of the PALM BEACH POST,
Plaintiff,
v. CASE NO.: 19-CA-014681
DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of
Palm Beach County, Florida; SHARON R.
BOCK, as Clerk and Comptroller of Palm
Beach County, Florida.
Defendants.
STATE OF FLORIDA
COUNTY OF PALM BEACH
VIT OF D YID AR
AS VBefore rnc, the undersigned authority personally appal DA ID ARONBERG, being first duly sworn,
states:
I. My name is David (Dave) Atbn add I am the State Attorney for the Fifteenth Judicial
Circuit/Palm Beach County, Florida, si 13, a Defendant in the above-captioned matter.
2. Plaintiff is seeking decla relief, pursuant to Fla. Stat. 905.21(1)(c) and the Court's
inherent authority, allowing Plaintiff access to the testimony, minutes, and other evidence presented in 2006
to the Palm Beach County grand jury, (the "Requested Materials"), and to use those materials for the
purpose of informing the public.
3. Despite Plaintiff's above-described action for declaratory relief, neither myself nor the
Office of the State Attorney for the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, ("SAO"), is in control, custody, or possession
of the Rapes Materials.
As such, the declaratory relief sought by the Plaintiff seeks materials that are impossible
y office to produce.
To be clear, neither myself nor the SAO has the legal authority to obtain and deliver the
Requested Materials.
6. I have repeatedly made these facts evident to the Plaintiff and the public through not only
the pleadings and correspondence in this matter, but also through an office press release and my public
social media accounts.
EFTA02734300
7. Despite the contentions of Plaintiff, neither myself nor the SAO has the authority to
demand that the Clerk grant the SAO access to grand jury materials after a criminal case has concluded.
8. Moreover, during my administration, neither myself nor my office has accessed grand jury
materials from the Clerk's office in this or any other instance.
9. As provided in section 905.17(1), Florida Statutes (2020), the Clerk has sole custody and
possession of the Requested Materials, which can only be released by the Clerk pursuant to an order of the
Court.
FURTHER AFFIANT SAYETH NAUGHT.
By:
STATE OF FLORIDA
COUNTY OF PALM BEACH
Sworn to and subscribed before me this 36
C personally known' to me or has shown
Gs'
020, by DAVID ARONBERG, who is
as personal identification.
tt iss-deoe , st
t Public
Notary's Stamp or Seal,.,, LATOSIMLOWE4OCCE
Caledoil 414 ICUS
Elan My a at
iris miliestent•
EFTA02734301
Def.Ex.A-13
EFTA02734302
Filing # 115383434 E-Fited 10(21/2020 04:13:35 PM
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE
FIFTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT IN AND
FOR PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS, LLC,
Publisher of THE PALM BEACH POST,
Plaintiff,
v.
DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of
Palm Beach County, Florida; SHARON R.
BOCK, as Clerk and Comptroller of Palm
Beach County, Florida,
Defendants.
CASE NO.: 50-2019-CA-0144581-XXXX-MB
DIVISION: AG
PLAINTIFF CA HOLDIN
NOTICE OF DROPPING STATE ATT AVE ARONBERG
Plaintiff, CA I IOLDINGS, LLC, pursuant to Fla. 50(6), hereby notifies the parties that
( iit has dropped State Attorney, Dave Aronber ro c above case.
* Respectfully submitted,
GREENBERG TRAURIG, P.A.
Attorneys for CA Florida Holdings, LLC. Publisher
of The Palm Beach Post
Stephen A. Mendelsohn, Esq.
401 East Las Olas Boulevard Suite 2000
Boca Raton, Florida 33486
Telephone: ([Phone Redacted]
Facsimile: ([Phone Redacted]
By: ZilSteMen A. Mendelsohn
STEPHEN A. MENDELSOHN
Florida Bar No. 849324
mendelsohnsOgthmcom
smithkrivtlaw.com
FLServicera)gtlaw.com
EFTA02734303
By: /s/ Michael JGrygiel
MICHAEL .1 GRYGIEL
(Admitted Pro Hac Vice)
54 State St., 6th Floor
Albany, New York 12207
Telephone: ([Phone Redacted]
Facsimile: ([Phone Redacted]
[Email Redacted]
By: /s/ Nina D. Boyajian
NINA D. BOYAJIAN
(Admitted Pro Hoc Vice)
1840 Century Park East, Sui
Los Angeles California
Telephone: (310) 586-7
Facsimile: (310) 586-7
CERTIFICATE 0
I HEREBY CERTIFY that on this 21"
foregoing has been filed with the Clerk of
will send a notice of electronic servi
ACTIVE 533173414
o
October, 2020, a true and correct copy of the
urt Jsing the State of Florida e-filing system, which
riles of record herein
/s/ Stephen A. Mendelsohn
STEPHEN A. MENDELSOHN
2
EFTA02734304
EFTA02734305
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIFTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT
IN AND FOR PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS, LLC,
Publisher of the PALM BEACH POST,
Plaintiff,
v. CASE NO.: 19-CA-014681
DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of
Palm Beach County, Florida; SHARON R. 444'
BOCK, as Clerk and Comptroller of Palm (Y
C 1
Beach County, Florida.
Defendants.
/
It i(vDEFENDANT DAVE ARONBERG'S AMENDED OR ATTORNEYS' FEES
AS4, Defendant, DAVE ARONBERG, as State A n (Palm Beach County, Florida, by and At
11%ig„through the undersigned counsel, hereby mov h cable Court, pursuant to Rule 1.525, Fla. ( s ioi
R. Civ. P. to enter an award of attom ' f 'n his favor against Plaintiff, CA FLORIDA
HOLDINGS, LLC, publisher of BEACH POST, and in support thereof states the
following:
C BATOR AWARDING ATTORNEYS' FEES
1. O vem r 14, 2019, CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS, LLC, publisher of the PALM
BEACH PO aintiff') filed a complaint against DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of
Palm unty, Florida (the "State Attorney" or "Defendant Aronberg") and SHARON R.
BOCK, as Clerk and Comptroller of Palm Beach County, Florida (the "Clerk"). The basis of the
action was asking the Court to order the State Attorney and the Clerk to disclose the 2006 Jeffrey
Epstein grand jury materials, (the "Requested Materials"), pursuant to § 905.27(1) Fla. Stat.
EFTA02734306
2. On December 6, 2019, the State Attorney filed his Motion to Dismiss, then on
December 13, 2019, the Clerk also filed a Motion to Dismiss. In response, Plaintiff filed its First
Amended Complaint on January 17, 2020, which in addition to its original claim under § 905.27
Fla. Stat. (Count II) added a claim for Declaratory Relief (Count I) that sought an order declaring
that the State Attorney and the Clerk disclose the Requested Materials to Plaintiff for the purpose
Asic
of informing the public.
3. On January 24, 2019, both the State Attorney and the Cle 's ir Answer to
the First Amended Complaint and Motion to Dismiss Count 11 (" t O ion to Dismiss).
Notably, the State Attorney's Answer/Motion to Dismiss asse 'ts t to attorneys' fees for AV
c)defending the action and requested such relief from the C
S4. On June 8, 2020, the Court ente s d Granting Defendants Motions to reS t
Dismiss Count II of Plaintiff's First Amended la with Prejudice ("Order").
5. Immediately following t Order, on June 8, 2020, the State Attorney,
through the undersigned counsel, miff with a demand pursuant to § 57.105 Fla. Stat.,
to voluntary dismiss/withdraw Amended Complaint and the claims against the State
Attorney, along with a ' for Attorneys' Fees ("57.105 Demand"). See, Exhibit "A".
Specifically, ber of te Court's Order only Count I of Plaintiff's Amended Complaint
remained, w ht Declaratory Relief under § 86.011, Fla. Stat.
ere, in properly serving his 57.105 Demand on Plaintiff, the State Attorney also
properly put Plaintiff on notice that he would seek sanctions by filing the 57.105 Motion for
Attorneys' Fees if Plaintiff failed to dismiss the remainder of its First Amended Complaint within
21 days of service of the 57.105 Demand and Motion for Attorneys' Fees.
2
EFTA02734307
7. On June 23, 2020, Plaintiff's counsel sent a response to the 57.105 Demand
refusing to withdraw the remainder of the First Amended Complaint. See, Exhibit "B".
8. § 57.105, Florida Statutes states the following:
A motion by a party seeking sanctions under this section must be served but may
not be filed with or presented to the court unless, within 21 days after service of the
motion, the challenged paper, claim, defense, contention, allegation, or denial is not
withdrawn or appropriately corrected.
9. Accordingly, after receiving Plaintiff's June 23, 2020, re refusing to
withdraw the remainder of the First Amended Complaint and waiting th 'site "21 days
after service of the motion" the State Attorney's Motion for Attom was filed with this
Court on July 1, 2020. See, Exhibit "C".
10. Thereafter, on August 18, 2020, the St y filed his Motion for Summary
i a,\ ctJudgment ("Motion") and proceeded, on October 0, to file a Motion to Set Hearing on the
State Attorney's Motion ("Motion to Set") a t ame clear that there would be no resolution
of this matter without the Court's int
11. Nonetheless, lat e
on the merits as to State Attorney otion, Plaintiff filed its Notice of Dropping the State Attorney
C I) day, rather than setting and participating in a hearing
("Notice") from the' start as See, Exhibit "13". As a consequence of filing its Notice, Plaintiff
has effectivelyiygrde dmission that its allegations against the State Attorney have no basis in
fact or la
1
12. "An essential distinction between a notice of dropping a party and a voluntary
dismissal is that the former concludes the action as to the dropped party while the latter is generally
utilized to conclude the action in its entirety." Carter v. Lake County, 840 So. 2d 1153, 1155 (Fla.
5th DCA 2003).
3
EFTA02734308
13. Specifically, Plaintiff's Notice states: "Plaintiff, [sic], pursuant to Fla. IL Civ. P.
1.250(b), hereby notifies the parties that it has dropped State Attorney, Dave Aronberg from the
above case."
14. Rule 1.250(b), Fla. R. Civ. P. states:
(b) Dropping Parties. Parties may be dropped by an adverse party in the manner
provided for voluntary dismissal in rule 1.420(a)(1) subject to the exception ted
in that rule. If notice of lis pendens has been filed in the action against a • o
dropped, the notice of dismissal shall be recorded and cancels the of s
pendens without the necessity of a court order. Parties may be drop der of
court on its own initiative or the motion of any party at any sta e on on ( k
such terms as are just.
15. Rule 1.420(aX1), Fla. R. Civ. P., Voluntary Distyissal states:
(1) By Parties. Except in actions in which prope n seized or is in the
custody of the court, an action, a claim, or an action or claim may be
dismissed by plaintiff without order of co ) f trial by serving, or during
trial by stating on the record, a notice of • al any time before a hearing on
motion for summary judgment, or if no t or if the motion is denied, before
retirement of the jury in a case tried ea j y or before submission of a nonjury
case to the court for decision, or (A) by ng a stipulation of dismissal signed by
all current parties to the actio9J1nlessetherwise stated in the notice or stipulation,
the dismissal is without prejdice. except that a notice of dismissal operates as an
adjudication on the mer wheiksetved by a plaintiff who has once dismissed in
any court an action bas on 4Pincluding the same claim.
16. Notably, " 1.250(b) expressly incorporates the procedural aspects of Florida
Rule of Civil Pro~4I. 0(aX1) governing voluntary dismissal by providing that parties may
be dropped manner provided for voluntary dismissal in rule 1.420(aX1) subject to the
excep in that rule." Siboni v. 52 So. 3d 779, 780 (Fla. 5th DCA 2010).
17. Likewise, because Rule 1.250(b) specifies that a party is dropped "in the manner
provided for voluntary dismissal in Rule 1.420(a)(1), the Siboni court concluded that "the manner"
includes the same entitlement to costs and attorney's fees which would have been enjoyed had the
dismissal occurred entirely under Rule 1.420(a)(1). Id. at 781.
4
EFTA02734309
18. Accordingly, the Siboni court held that a "party dropped from litigation under rule
1.250(b) is subject to the time limitation contained in rule 1.525 governing service of a motion
seeking a judgment for costs and attorney's fees." Id.
19. Although Plaintiff filed its Notice the claims asserted by Plaintiff have been, since
the filing of its initial complaint, completely without support of the facts or the law. At their very
core, all of Plaintiff's claims are based on the presumption that the State Attorney
to disclose the Requested Materials. Nonetheless, Section 905.17(1), FloriCi
that Plaintiffs Requested Materials can only be released by the Clerk
The stenographic records, notes, and transcriptions ma
stenographer shall be filed with the clerk who shall k
not subject to public inspection. The notes, r
confidential and exempt from the provisions of . A1/4
the State Constitution and shall be released h e
jury for use by the grand jury or on order
Section 905.17(1), Florida Statutes (2020).
20. The State Attorney h
theRequested Materials should the
authority
makes clear
a court order.
ourt reporter or
in a sealed container
d transcriptions are
) and s. 24(a), Art. I of
only on request by a grand
co t pursuant to s. 905.27.
tion to the Clerk producing and disclosing the
t an order to that effect, however, it is impossible for
the State Attorney to comply the relief sought by Plaintiff in its remaining claim for
declaratory relief as e do no possess or control the Requested Materials and is statutorily barred
from any disc
YYY
21. ough the State Attorney was prepared to make his argument to the Court,
Plaintiff &Sided instead to drop him as a party. Despite Plaintiff's decision, the Florida Rules of
Civil Procedure and the above authorities make clear that because Rule 1.250 specifies that a party
is dropped "in the manner provided for voluntary dismissal in Rule 1A20(a)(1)," it therefore
"operates as an adjudication on the merits." See, Siboni v. 52 So. 3d 779, 781 (Fla. 5th
DCA 2010); Rule 1.420(a)(1) Fla. R. Civ. P.
5
EFTA02734310
22. Consequently, the filing of Plaintiff's Notice triggered Rule 1.525, Fla. IL Civ. P.
and therefore:
Under [§ 57.105], the legislature has expressed its unequivocal intent that where a
party files a meritless claim, suit or appeal, the party who is wrongfully required to
expend funds for attorneys' fees is entitled to recoup those fees.
County Conservation Alliance v. County, 73 So. 3d 856, 857 (Fla. 1st DCA 2011)
(finding that "Courts are not at liberty to disregard the legislative mandate that coutebfigll impose
sanctions in cases without foundation in material fact or law. The word " ' 57.105, Fla.
Stat., evidences the legislative intent to impose a mandatory penalty t s baseless claims,
by placing a price tag on losing parties who engage in these a 'on 57.105 expressly
states courts "shall" assess attorney's fees for bringing, it dismiss, baseless claims or
defenses.").
23. In fact, "Section 57.105(1) clepr y eplicitly confers upon the trial court the
authority to award attorney's fees to the nth g party upon the court's initiative, if `the court
finds that the losing party . .. kne r d have known that a claim or defense when initially
presented to the court or at a efore trial . [w]as not supported by the material facts
Lir.necessary to establish th - or defense."
2010).
v. MI 47 So. 3d 320, 324 (Fla. 2d DCA
24. Th mple fact of the matter is that Plaintiff failed to withdraw its Amended
Comp st the State Attorney within the 21-day period provided for in section 57.105(4),
and therefore the State Attorney was pen-flitted to file his 57.105 Motion for Attorneys' Fees as
sanctions.
25. Furthermore, based on the impossible nature of Plaintiff's demand of the State
Attorney, it was proper to demand withdrawal of Plaintiff's remaining claim for declaratory relief
6
EFTA02734311
the Court.
and serve the 57.105 Motion for Attorneys' Fees due to Plaintiff's claim lacking any basis in fact
or law. Again, neither the State Attorney nor his office has possession, custody or control of the
Requested Materials. Likewise, the State Attorney has no objection, and never has had any
objection, to the Clerk releasing the records sought by Plaintiff, as disclosure of the Requested
Materials sought by Plaintiff lies solely within the providence of the Clerk pursuant to an order of
A)26. Consequently, the State Attorney is entitled to recover AS's reasonable
attorneys' fees in defending this suit by virtue of 57.105, Florida Sta
REASONABLENESS AND AMOUNT OF AT FEES
t27. From the service of the 57.105 Demand to this motion, the attorneys for
Sis rthe State Attorney have rendered 42.2 hours of leg e or a total amount of $18,275.00 in S in
defending this action. See time sheets detail : e ount of hours by each timekeeper, the
timekeeper's
e t
hourly rate, and a descri ' of s tasks done during those times, on attached
Exhibit "E". Of that amount, the ed has been paid $0.00 as the engagement with the
State Attorney is on a pure con en fee basis. The undersigned expects to incur an additional
r p4.0 hours at $425.00 an h reparing for and attending the hearing on attorneys' fees. Thus,
the total amount urly omeys' fees the State Attorney is seeking is 46.2 hours for a total of
e t$19,975.00. her set forth below, the State Attorney also seeks a multiplier of 2.0, which
when akes the grand total attorneys' fees as sanctions sought herein $39,950.00.
28. An Affidavit of Attorneys' Fees is attached hereto as Exhibit "F", which details
and breaks down the attorneys' fees sought herein.
EFTA02734312
29. The State Attorney would offer the following facts and arguments as they relate to
the factors promulgated in Rule 4-1.5 of the Rules Regulating the Florida Bar and Florida Patient's
Compensation Fund v.IM, 472 So. 2d 1145 (Fla. 1985):
Factor Facts and Arguments
(A) the time and labor
required, the novelty,
complexity, and difficulty
of the questions involved,
and the skill requisite to
perform the legal service
properly
The time involved by counsel was substantial, consu ng nearly
75 hours of legal work. Moreover, the issues in c y were
novel and complex in that Plaintiff sought to c to ne private
statutory cause of action under Florida Statu • • I , implicated
several 1st Amendment issues, and f i i ght declaratory
relief pursuant to said Statute. Finall . gation has been
ongoing for nearly a year and required ' 1 knowledge in these
areas of the law.
(B) the likelihood that the
acceptance of the
particular employment
will preclude other
em lo ent b the law er
Because of the amount of ti inv lved in this litigation and
considering the relative smarsize • lefirtn representing the State
Attorney, the undersigned attorneys were forced to turn away or
delay representing 44 - clients especially during critical stages of
the liti ation due time required in the instant matter.
(C) the fee, or rate of fee,
customarily charged in the
locality for legal services
of a comparable or similar
nature
The base fees c • .1. isting of $425.00/hour for Mr. Wyler's services
and $475.00 ,os for Mr. services are reasonable for
lawyers ' heir respective communities possessing equal
expert e ill.
(D) the significance of, or
amount involved in, the
subject matter of the
representation, and the
results obtained ? s ,
T e out e of this case is of great public significance to the State
o lo 'kia as it pertains to the disclosure of grand jury records and
the e of the State Attorney concerning such disclosure. Here.
results obtained were the maximum sought by Defendant
Aronberg as he was dismissed from the case, albeit not within the
time constraints of the safe-harbor provision within § 57.105, Fla.
Stat.
(E) the ti e -nii ions
imposed b tent or
by th tances and,
as betwee attorney and
client, any additional or
special time demands or
requests of the attorney by
the client
There were not any extraordinary limitations imposed by the client,
however, Defendant Aronberg expected and received zealous
representation, with the desire that the case be dispensed of quickly
and efficiently.
(F) the nature and length
of the professional
relationship with the client
As general counsel for the FPAA the undersigned counsel has
represented Defendant Aronberg since the beginning of his tenure
as State Attorney in civil matters throughout the State of Florida as
well as matters before the Florida Legislature.
8
EFTA02734313
(G) the experience,
reputation, diligence, and
This representation required experience in a field available to few
lawyers, which included defending the State Attorney from claims
ability of the lawyer or of a media entity and lawyers from multiple states regarding the
lawyers performing the release of information with a nationwide interest. Accordingly, the
service and the skill,
expertise, or efficiency of
undersigned counsel conducted the representation with skill and
efficiency wherein Defendant Aronberg was dismissed from the
effort reflected in the
actual providing of such
services
action prior to any hearing on the merits before the court.
(H) whether the fee is The fee arrangement herein was entirely contin en wherein
fixed or contingent, and, if obtaining a fee was conditioned upon prevailing a fining an
fixed as to the amount or
rate, then whether the
client's ability to pay
rested to any significant
degree on the outcome of
order awarding fees.
CO AS
the representation. "ask
JUSTIFICATION FOR MU
30. Defendant Aronberg was able to pro 's litigation only if counsel would
As ,receive a court order awarding contingency s' fees upon achievement of a successful
outcome in this case. See, Exhibit "C". en t s and the fact that counsel risked a total of 74.8
hours of work for no pay, of w ours is subject to the 57.105 Demand, Defendant
Aronberg submits that multipf of would be appropriate in this case. Based upon the hours
expended, the hourly rates 2.0 multiplier, Defendant Aronberg respectfully requests an award
of attorneys' fee anew s as stated herein.
31., regard to the application of a multiplier, the court must analyze the three
in Standard Guaranty Insurance Co. v. Quanstrom, 555 So. 2d 828 (Fla. 1990):
(1) whether the relevant market requires a contingency fee multiplier to obtain
competent counsel; (2) whether the attorney was able to mitigate the risk of
nonpayment in any way; and (3) whether any of the factors set forth in are
applicable, especially the amount involved, the results obtained, and the type of fee
arrangement between the attorney and his client
See, Citizens Prop. Ins. Corp. v. Pulloquinga, 183 So. 3d 1134 (Fla. 3d DCA 2015).
9
EFTA02734314
32. Here, as to the first factor there was no other counsel in the relevant market who
would agree to represent Defendant Aronberg under the contingency fee agreement needed due to
the financial situation of the Office of the State Attorney as a public entity funded entirely by the
taxpayers of the State of Florida. Although "Risk Mitigation" within the Florida Department of
Financial Services and the Office of the Attorney General indeed represent the State Attorney in
some instances, this case was not picked up by either and Defendant Aronberg needing
representation by other, private counsel. Although the undersigned couns arelaw firm 0
General Counsel for the Florida Prosecuting Attorneys' Association n ., AA") the instant
matter did not fall within the scope of representation for th nd required a separate
(7, engagement between Defendant Aronberg and the u ig counsel. Accordingly, the
it* undersigned counsel and his law firm agreed to rep e efendant Aronberg on a contingency i ,i,
icfee basis and to try the case to final judgment g that there was no other counsel willing s,
to represent Defendant Aronberg on suc
33. With respect to the
forth in Quanstrom, here Defe
because as a purely taxp
which to pay th
individual R
on the
s.
ors to be considered in applying a multiplier as set
nberg was unable to mitigate against non-payment of fees
ded entity, the Office of State Attorney had no other means by
ed counsel. Additionally, Defendant Aronberg meets each of the
ors as set forth in the table located above on pages 8-9. Accordingly, based
the application of a multiplier herein is proper. In this vein, the
guidelines for the size of a multiplier, as follows:
court set
Based on our review of the decisions of other jurisdictions and commentaries on
the subject, we conclude that in contingent fee cases, the lodestar figure calculated
by the court is entitled to enhancement by an appropriate contingency risk
multiplier in the range from 1.5 to 3. When the trial court determines that success
was more likely than not at the outset, the multiplier should be 1.5; when the
likelihood of success was approximately even at the outset, the multiplier should
10
EFTA02734315
be 2; and, when success was unlikely at the time the case was initiated, the
multiplier should be in the range of 2.5 to 3.
Florida Patient's Compensation Fund v. 472 So. 2d 1145 (Fla. 1985).
34. Additionally, the Quanstrom court confirmed and modified the approach, as
follows:
However, we find that the multiplier in should be modified as follows: the
trial court determines that success was more likely than not at the outse
apply a multiplier of 1 to 1.5; if the trial court determines that the lilthlihood f
success was approximately even at the outset, the trial judge may apply a multiplier
of 1.5 to 2.0; and if the trial court determines that success was unli*ly at the outset
of the case, it may apply a multiplier of 2.0 to 2.5. According! , o ?Rowe decision
is modified to allow a multiplier from 1 to 2.5.
y
Standard Guaranty Insurance Co. v. Quanstrom, 555 So. 2 (Fla. 1990). Thus, based
upon all of the foregoing factors, Defendant Aronberg \ p y submits that a multiplier of 2.0
is appropriate for this representation.
CERTIFICATION OF GO AL IEFFORT TO RESOLVE
The undersigned certifies that th effort was made to resolve the issues raised in
this motion by agreement oft The parties were unable to resolve by agreement the
issues of entitlement to fees or t ount of fees.
WHEREFO D ant, DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of Palm Beach
County, Flori at this Honorable Court will enter an Order awarding Defendant Aronberg
his reaso meys' fees with a multiplier of 2.0 against the Plaintiff, CA FLORIDA
HOLDIN LW, publisher of the PALM BEACH POST, in the amount of $39,950.00.
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I HEREBY CERTIFY that on this 9th day of November, 2020, a copy of the foregoing
Defendant, Dave Aronberg's Amended Motion for Attorneys' Fees has been electronically filed
with the Florida E-File Portal for e-service on all parties of record herein.
11
EFTA02734316
SCHOLZ & WYLER, LLC
/s/ Douglas A. Wyler
Arthur
Fla. Bar No.: 10249
Richard J. Scholz, Esq.
Fla. Bar No.: 0021261
Douglas A. Wyler, Esq.
Fla. Bar No.: 119979
961687 Gateway Blvd., Suit
Fernandina Beach, Flori • < 4,4134
([Phone Redacted]
([Phone Redacted] Fax
Primary: jacobss ,comcast.net
Attorneys nt, Dave Aron berg
12
EFTA02734317
EXHIBIT "A"
EXHIBIT "A"
EFTA02734318
Friday, September 18, 2020 at 11:09:24 Eastern Daylight Time
Subject: SERVICE OF COURT DOCUMENT; CASE NO. 2019-CA-014681; CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS, LLC V.
DAVE ARONBERG ET AL.
Date: Monday, June 8, 2020 at 3:58:58 PM Eastern Daylight Time
From: Douglas Wyler
To: '[Email Redacted]', smith' ®gtlaw.com, [Email Redacted], BoyajianN®gtlaw.com,
[Email Redacted], GRYGIELM @gtlaw.com
Attachments: 2020.06.08 Aron berg 57.105 Demand and Motion for Attorneys' Fees.pdf
Please see attached and below in this matter.
Court: Circuit Court of the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, in and for Palm Beachtounty, \ Florida - '' - s s
Case No: Case No. 2020-CA-014681
Plaintiff: CA Florida Holdings, LLC ON
Defendant: Dave Aronberg
( 1) Title of Documents
Served:
• Fla. Stat. § 57.105 Demand Letter
• Defendant, Dave Aronberg's Motionfor attorneys' Fees
Sender's Name and
Telephone Number:
Douglas Wyler
([Phone Redacted] Ac-N Sincerely,
Doug Wyler, Esq.
Scholz & Wyler, LLC
961687 Gateway Blvd., STE 201-I
Fernandina Beach, FL 32034
[Phone Redacted]
[Phone Redacted] (fax)
doug.wyleracomcast.net
Please be advised that this e-mail and any files transmitted with it are confidential attorney-client
communication or may otherwise be privileged or confidential and are intended solely for the individual or
entity to whom they are addressed. If you are not the intended recipient, please do not read, copy or
retransmit this communication but destroy it immediately. Any unauthorized dissemination, distribution or
copying of this communication is strictly prohibited.
Page 1 of 1
EFTA02734319
SCHOLZ & WYLER, LLC.
Tilt LAW orricts Or
a ASSOCIATES. PA.
ARTHUR I.
A LIMITED L MU TY COMPANY OF PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS
ATTORNEYS AT LAW
GATEWAY TO AMELIA
961007 GATEWAY BLVD.. SUITE aO1-1
FERNANDINA BRACK FLORIDA 32034
TELEPHONE ([Phone Redacted]
FAX NO. ([Phone Redacted]
June 8, 2020
VIA ELECTRONIC & U.S. MAIL
Stephen A. Mendelsohn, Esq.
Greenburg Traurig, PA.
5100 Town Center Circle, Suite 400
Boca Raton, FL 33486
RE: CA Florida Holdings, LLC v. Dave Aronbe
,.dPalm Beach County, Case No.: 2019-CA
Dear Mr. Mendelsohn:
As you are aware our firm represents the intere
County, Florida, in the above referenced
dismissal of your First Amended Complai
is made pursuant to section 57.105, Fl
As you know, Section 57
Cos
RICHARD J. SCHOLZ. P.A.
RICHARD J. SCHOLZ
DOUGLASA. WYLER, P.A.
DOUGLAS A. WYLER
Aronberg, as State Attorney of Palm Beach
tirpose of this letter is to demand the voluntary
omplaint"), dated January 17, 2020. This demand
(1) Upon the court's e or motion of any party, the court shall award a
reasonable a mey's ee, including prejudgment interest, to be paid to the
prevailing p ual amounts by the losing party and the losing party's attorney
on any im o efense at any time during a civil proceeding or action in which
the Inds that the losing party or the losing party's attorney knew or should
that a claim or defense when initially presented to the court or at any
ore trial:
Was not supported by the material facts necessary to establish the claim or
defense; or
b. Would not be supported by the application of then-existing law to those
material facts.
Today, Judge Marx granted, with prejudice, Defendant Aronberg's Motion to Dismiss Count II of the
Plaintiff's Complaint. Pursuant to the Court's ruling, the Plaintiff's only remaining cause of action
consists of Count I, for Declaratory Relief. Accordingly, we believe that the Complaint filed herein
and its sole remaining Count for Declaratory Relief is not supported by the material facts necessary to
establish the claims asserted, and that your claims are not supported by the application of current law
to said material facts.
EFTA02734320
First and foremost, the Complaint is not supported by the material facts necessary to establish the
claims asserted because neither Defendant Aronberg, nor The Office of the State Attorney for the
Fifteenth Judicial Circuit is in custody or control of the 2006 grand jury materials sought therein.
Simply put, the declaratory relief sought by the Plaintiff, seeks records from my client that are
impossible for him or his office to produce. Accordingly, Defendant Aronberg is not a proper party to
this action because no matter what, he and his office do not have possession, custody, or control of the
requested materials.
In addition to the foregoing material facts that negate the claims asserted in the Complaint, your claims
are also not supported by the application of current law. Specifically, your action ford laratory relief
fails based on the clear, unambiguous statutory language found in Section 905.27(2 Fl rids Statutes,
which states:
When such disclosure is ordered by a court pursuant to subsection (
case, it may be disclosed to all parties to the case and to their atto
to their legal associates and employees. However the rand
such persons by the court can only be used in the defense or p
criminal case and for no other purpose whatsoever.
Moreover, even if the Plaintiff were to prevail in the decla
to comply with any court order granting disclosure of
Aronberg nor The Office of the State Attorney fo
custody, or control of the 2006 Epstein grand ju
Based on the foregoing, if the Complaint is
the enclosed Motion for Attorney's Fees '
and your firm, recovery of the legal ex
Please govern yourself accordin
Douglas A. Wyler, Esq.
For the Finn
End.: Defe ion for Attorneys' Fees
use in a civil
by the latter
onv afforded
on of the civil or
Mr. Aronberg would be unable
documents because neither Mr.
nth Judicial Circuit have possession,
sed within 21 days of the service of this letter,
ed and we will seek as sanctions, from your client
erred in defending this frivolous action.
EFTA02734321
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIFTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT
IN AND FOR PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS, LLC,
Publisher of the PALM BEACH POST,
Plaintiff,
v.
DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of
Palm Beach County, Florida; SHARON R.
BOCK, as Clerk and Comptroller of Palm
Beach County, Florida.
Defendants.
DEFENDANT, DAVE ARONBERG'S M
CASE NO.: 19-CA-O14681
g AtIC
R ATTORNEYS' FEES
Defendant, DAVE ARONBERG, as Staff of Palm Beach County, Florida, by and
through the undersigned attorneys, move , pursuant to Florida Statutes, Section 57.105,
to award him reasonable attorneys' e defense of Plaintiff's First Amended Complaint,
(the "Complaint"), and as gro r, would show that on June 8, 2020, Plaintiff was served
a copy of this Motion, togeth a letter from the undersigned attorney, in accordance with
subsection (4) of the abo tute, demanding dismissal of the Complaint, at least 21 days prior
to the filing o is on. In said letter, Defendant's attorney advised Plaintiff of the facts which
establi mplaint is without support of the facts or the law.
REFORE, Defendant, DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of Palm Beach
County, Florida, respectfully requests the Court enter an Order requiring Plaintiff and Plaintiff's
attorneys to pay said Defendant's attorneys' fees incurred herein after service of this Motion.
EFTA02734322
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I hereby certify that on this day , 2020, the foregoing was electronically filed
via the Florida E-File Portal for electronic service on the parties of record herein.
SCHOLZ & WYLER, LLC
A/ Douglas A. Wyler
Arthur I.W Esquire
Ha. Bar No.: 108249
Richard J. Scholz, E
Fla. Bar No.: 0021
tic ,
Douglas A. Wyl
Fla. Bar No.: 1
961687 Gate d., Suite 201-I
Fernan4jflach,Florida 32034
9
[Email Redacted]
ttorneys for Defendant
Gs'
EFTA02734323
EXHIBIT "B"
EXHIBIT "B"
EFTA02734324
GT GreenbergTraurig
Stephen A. Mendelsohn
Tel [Phone Redacted]
FOX [Phone Redacted]
[Email Redacted]
June 23, 2020
Douglas A. Wyler
Jacob Scholz & Wyler, LLC
961687 Gateway Blvd.
Suite 201-I
Fernandina Beach, Fl. 32034
Re: CA Florida Holdings, LLC v. Dave Arenberg el at.
Case No. 2019-CA-014681
Dear Mr. Wyler:
A Cos
We are in receipt of your letter of June 8, 2020 with yeti ed Fla. Stat. section 57.105 motion.
In your letter and your proposed motion, you assert that Florida Holdings, LLC and the law
firm of Greenberg Tinting, P.A. should be li ble (the attorneys' fees to be incurred by State
Attorney Aronberg after the date of your I Yo letter cites to Fla. Stat. sections 57.105(1)
(a) and (b) for support. As shown below re t o basis for a Fla. Stat. section 57.105 motion,
and we expect that if the State Attom make such a motion, the court should deny it.
Your letter omits a citation to s
may not be awarded where
reversal of existing law or the es
a reasonable expectation
5(3). Subsection 57.105(3)(a) provides that sanctions
good faith argument for the extension, modification or
htnent of new law, as it is applied to the material facts, with
" We have such a good faith argument.
Contrary to your lysis df Fla. Stat. section 905.27, there are actually three instances where a
court may ord t e se of grand jury materials. As we argue, the court may order release "in
furtherance a jus ' There are few cases in Florida reviewing this provision and its scope. It is
an open and v estion as to whether the court may order release of grand jury transcripts to
the med1under both the statute and the First Amendment to the US Constitution in furtherance
of justice. the statutory language you cite refers to instances where a person is seeking grand jury
materials for use in a civil or in a criminal case. In these limited situations, the statute allows for
such uses and for no other reason. However, the statute does not state, as you assert, that where
the media seeks grand jury materials based upon its constitutional standing, which the Circuit
Court acknowledged at the June 2, 2020 hearing includes The Palm Beach Post, that the statutory
Greenberg Tranrig, P.A. I Attorneys at Law
5100 Tovm Center Circle I Sure 400 I Boca Raton, Florida 33486 I T +[Phone Redacted] I F [Phone Redacted]
Albany. Amsterdam. Atlanta. Austin. Berlin: Boca Raton. Boston. Chicago. Dallas. Delaware. Denver. Fon Lauderdale. Houston. Las Vegas. London'. Los Angeles.
Mexico City: Miami. Milan; Minneapolis. Nashville. New Jersey. New York. Northern Virginia. Orange Comity. Orlando. Philadelphia. Phoenix. Sacramento.
San Francisco. Seoul: Shanghai. Silicon Valley. Tallahassee. Tampa. Tel Aviv:Mks*: Warsaw: Washington, D.C. West Palm Beads. Westchester County.
cies. W.% C • tan.... ye bap Ot v lab • ci...enus, as mas sita•ompi • b as aNa.a.p.sviuddy•
Iwne.gliawcan
EFTA02734325
Correspondence to Douglas A. Wyler
June 23, 2020
Page 2
use limitation you cite applies. No reported Florida case has addressed this issue and there is a
good faith basis for our view of Fla. Stat. section 905.27
Your letter also argues that sanctions are applicable because the State Attorney has alleged that it
does not possess the Jeffrey Epstein grand jury transcripts. This allegation is also contained in the
State Attorney's Answer. Assuming that the State Attorney does not currently e physical
possession of the Epstein grand jury materials, which has yet to be demonstrated, s s not end
the matter. The State Attorney was named as a party not simply as a custo nd jury
records. The State Attorney was named in his official capacity as his office as its primary
interest the protection of its grand jury system." [Italics in original.] In re rand Jury Proceedings,
832 F. 3d 554, 559 (11th Circuit 1987). In that case, the US petitioned ate judge to order the
State Attorney to turn over grand jury transcripts. The State Attome argtt inst their release
citing to Fla. Stat. section 905.27. Later, a federal grand jury subp a the Broward County
State Attorney for delivery of state grand jury testimony. The d tate Attorney advised the
federal court that it would produce the transcripts, thereby rating that while it may not
have physical possession of the materials, he had legal autl o obtain and deliver them. It
should also be noted that the State Attorney moved t e subpoena arguing that it was
unlawful under Florida law and Fla. Stat. section 9 case indicates that where one seeks
grand jury materials, the relevant State Attorney, sary patty in order to protect the grand
jury that the Office of State Attorney supervis n o ake arguments, if need be, against release
of the grand jury materials. These are some f same reasons why the State Attorney was named
in this case.
Also, assuming the State Attome ve physical possession of the grand jury materials,
there is nothing in Florida law its the State Attorney from requesting that the Clerk
provide copies to the State Atto y. r . pter 905, Fla. Stats. does not contain a prohibition against
a State Attorney demand t the erk grant his office access to grand jury materials, even after a
criminal case has conclu n information and belief, the Clerk's office maintains a log that
tracks release of materials to the State Attorney upon its request. Please confirm
whether the Stat orney has accessed grand jury materials from the Clerk's office in other
Stances or never done so. If the Clerk has such a log, then its contents should be
discoverable.'' ect to Florida Public records laws.
Greenberg Tranrig, P.A. I Attorneys at raw
waglicrotoorn
EFTA02734326
Correspondence to Douglas A. Wyler
June 23, 2020
Page 3
For these reasons, we decline your Fla. Stat. section 57.105 demand that the case be dismissed
against the Office of the State Attorney. We expect that your demand will be withdrawn.
Thank you,
Very truly yours,
Is/Stephen Mendelsohn
Stephen Mendelsohn
SAM:Is
ACTIVE 51081659v1
Greenberg Tranrig, P.A. I Attorneys at raw
vnyvtlaw.corn
EFTA02734327
EXHIBIT "C"
EXHIBIT "C"
EFTA02734328
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIFTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT
IN AND FOR PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS, LLC,
Publisher of the PALM BEACH POST,
Plaintiff,
v.
DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of
Palm Beach County, Florida; SHARON R.
BOCK, as Clerk and Comptroller of Palm
Beach County, Florida.
Defendants.
DEFENDANT. DAVE ARONBERG'S MO
\Defendant, DAVE ARONBERG, as State ey f Palm Beach County, Florida, by and
through the undersigned attorneys, moves t urt, ursuant to Florida Statutes, Section 57.105,
to award him reasonable attorneys' defense of Plaintiff's First Amended Complaint,
tire(the "Complaint"), and as gro , would show that on June 8, 2020, Plaintiff was served
a copy of this Motion, together
rr
• a letter from the undersigned attorney, in accordance with
subsection (4) of th b v tute, demanding dismissal of the Complaint, at least 21 days prior
to the filing of 'i on. In said letter, Defendant's attorney advised Plaintiff of the facts which
establish mplaint is without support of the facts or the law.
WW REFORE, Defendant, DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of Palm Beach
County, Florida, respectfully requests the Court enter an Order requiring Plaintiff and Plaintiff's
attorneys to pay said Defendant's attorneys' fees incurred herein after service of this Motion.
CASE NO.: 19-CA-014681
CO SA
ATTORNEYS' FEES
EFTA02734329
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I hereby certify that on this 1st day July, 2020, the foregoing was electronically filed via
the Florida E-File Portal for electronic service on the parties of record herein.
SCHOLZ & WYLER, LLC
Is/ Douglas A. Wyler
Arthur I. = Esquire
FM. Bar No.: 108249
Richard J. Scholz, Esqui
Fla. Bar No.: 002126
Douglas A. Wyle
Fla. Bar No.: 11
961687 Gateway •., Suite 201-1
Fernandi h, Florida 32034
(904)
61-7
[Email Redacted]
neys for Defendant, Dave Aron berg
EFTA02734330
EXHIBIT "D"
EXHIBIT "D"
EFTA02734331
Filing # 115383434 E-Fited 10(21/2020 04:13:35 PM
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE
FIFTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT IN AND
FOR PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS, LLC,
Publisher of THE PALM BEACH POST,
Plaintiff,
v.
DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of
Palm Beach County, Florida; SHARON R.
BOCK, as Clerk and Comptroller of Palm
Beach County, Florida,
Defendants.
CASE NO.: 50-2019-CA-0144581-XXXX-MB
DIVISION: AG
PLAINTIFF CA HOLDIN
NOTICE OF DROPPING STATE ATT AVE ARONBERG
Plaintiff, CA I IOLDINGS, LLC, pursuant to Fla. 50(6), hereby notifies the parties that
( iit has dropped State Attorney, Dave Aronber ro c above case.
* Respectfully submitted,
GREENBERG TRAURIG, P.A.
Attorneys for CA Florida Holdings, LLC. Publisher
of The Palm Beach Post
Stephen A. Mendelsohn, Esq.
401 East Las Olas Boulevard Suite 2000
Boca Raton, Florida 33486
Telephone: ([Phone Redacted]
Facsimile: ([Phone Redacted]
By: ZilSteMen A. Mendelsohn
STEPHEN A. MENDELSOHN
Florida Bar No. 849324
mendelsohnsOgthmcom
smithkrivtlaw.com
FLServicera)gtlaw.com
EFTA02734332
By: /s/ Michael JGrygiel
MICHAEL .1 GRYGIEL
(Admitted Pro Hac Vice)
54 State St., 6th Floor
Albany, New York 12207
Telephone: ([Phone Redacted]
Facsimile: ([Phone Redacted]
[Email Redacted]
By: /s/ Nina D. Boyajian
NINA D. BOYAJIAN
(Admitted Pro Hoc Vice)
1840 Century Park East, Sui
Los Angeles California
Telephone: (310) 586-7
Facsimile: (310) 586-7
CERTIFICATE 0
I HEREBY CERTIFY that on this 21"
foregoing has been filed with the Clerk of
will send a notice of electronic servi
ACTIVE 533173414
o
October, 2020, a true and correct copy of the
urt Jsing the State of Florida e-filing system, which
riles of record herein
/s/ Stephen A. Mendelsohn
STEPHEN A. MENDELSOHN
2
EFTA02734333
EXHIBIT "E"
EXHIBIT "E"
EFTA02734334
Fp Scholz & Wyler, LLC
Gateway Blvd., Suite 2011
Fernandina Beach, FL 32034
United States
[Phone Redacted]
Dave Aronberg
Scholz & Wyler, LLC
Balance $32,440.00
Invoice it 00307
Invoice Date November 6, 2020
Payment Terms
Due Date
Aronberg (SAO15) adv. CA Florida Holdings, LLC
CO
09
Time Entries
Date EE Activity Description V Rate Hours Line Total
11/26/2019 DW Review Initial review of summons and COmplaint $425.00 1.5 $637.50
11/26/2019 OW Review Reviewed motion for pro Mc vice and Judge
Hafele order granting $425.00 0.2 $85.00
11/26/2019 DW Teleconference Teleconference w/ Cient, re: response to lawsuit $425.00 0.5 $212.50
11/26/2019 DW Draft Drafted engagement letter and sent to client $425.00 0.3 $127.50
11/26/2019 DW Review Reviewed 15th circuit local rules $425.00 1.0 $425.00
11/26/2019 AU Review Initial review of complaint $475.00 1.0 $475.00
11/26/2019 AIJ Meeting Meeting w/ DAW to discuss lawsuit and strategy $475.00 0.5 $237.50
11/26/2019 DW Meeting Meeting w/ AU to discuss lawsuit and strategy 3425.00 0.5 $212.50
11/26/2019 AU Teleconference Teleconference w/ Cient, re: response to lawsuit $475.00 0.5 $237.50
12/02/2019 DW Research &
Preparation Research and prep for Motion to dismiss $425.00 2.0 $850.00
12/02/2019 DW Draft 1st Draft motion to dismiss $425.00 1.0 $425.00
12/02/2019 DW Teleconference Teleconference w/ Cient, re: draft motion to
dismiss $425.00 0.5 $212.50
12/02/2019 AU Review Reviewed 1st Draft MTDismiss $475.00 0.3 $142.50
12/02/2019 AU Teleconference Teleconference w/ client, re: draft motion to
dismiss $475.00 0.5 $237.50
12/03/2019 AU Meeting Meeting w/ DAW, re: motion to dismiss $475.00 0.2 $95.00
12/03/2019 DW Meeting Meeting w/ AU, re: MTDismiss $425.00 0.2 $85.00
12/06/2019 DW Draft Completed final draft of motion to dismiss: filed with
ourt $425.00 0.7 $297.50
12/06/2019 DW Teleconference Spoke w/ client, re: final draft of motion to dismiss $425.00 0.5 $212.50
EFTA02734335
12/06/2019 DW Teleconference Spoke with Clerk's attorney, re: response $425.00 0.5 3212.50
12/06/2019 AU Review Reviewed final draft MTDismiss 3475.00 0.2 $95.00
12/06/2019 AU Review Reviewed Clerk's MTDismiss $475.00 0.2 $95.00
12/13/2019 DW Review Reviewed Clerk's Motion to Dismiss $425.00 0.5 3212.50
01/16/2020 DW Review Reviewed Order Settng Hearing on Defendants'
MTDismiss $425.00 0.1 342.50
01/16/2020 DW Review Reviewed motion for pro hac vice 3425.00 0.1 $42.50
01/17/2020 DW Review Reviewed Pi's Amended Complaint $425.00 1.0 3425.00
01/17/2020 DW Teleconference Spoke with diem, re: Amended Complaint $425.00 0.5 $212.50
01/17/2020 DW Review Reviewed Pl's notice of filing $425.00 0.1 $42.50
01/20/2020 AU Review Reviewed Pi's Am. Compl 3475.00 0.3 3142.50
01/21/2020 DW Review Reviewed Judge Man's Order Cancelling
MTDismiss Hearing $425.00 0.1 $4230
01/21/2020 DW Review Reviewed Pl's Objection to Defendants' MTDismiss $425.00 0.2 $85.00
01/21/2020 DW Teleconference Spoke with client, re: Amended complaint $425.00 0.5 $212.50
01/21/2020 AU Meeting Meeting w/ DAW, re: response to Am. Compl. 3475.00 0.2 $95.00
01/21/2020 DW Meeting Meeting w/ AIJ, re: response to Am. Compl. $425.00 0.2 $85.00
01/22/2020 DW Review Reviewed Order granting pro hac vice admission $425.00 0.1 $42.50
01/22/2020 DW Research & Draft Researched and drafted response to Amended
Complaint $425.00 1.0 3425.00
01/23/2020 DW Teleconference Spoke with Clerk's attorney, re: response to
amended complaint $425.00 0.2 $85.00
01/24/2020 DW Various Completed Answer/MTDismiss Amended
Complaint; filed with Court: sent copy to Client $425.00 1.0 3425.00
01/24/2020 DW Draft Drafted and tiled Notice of Unavailability $425.00 0.4 3170.00
01/24/2020 AU Review Reviewed final Answer/MTDismiss $475.00 0.2 $95.00
01/27/2020 DW Review Reviewed Clerk's Answer/MTDismiss 3425.00 0.3 3127.50
02/03/2020 DW Review Reviewed Order setting hearing on Deis'
MTDismiss 3425.00 0.1 $42.50
02/03/2020 DW TeleconferenCe Spoke w/ client, re: order setting MTDismiss
hearing for March 24, 2020 $425.00 0.5 $212.50
03/13/2020 DW Review Reviewed Pl's Opposition to Aronberg MTDismiss
& Clerk's MTDismiss 3425.00 1.5 $637.50
AU Review Reviewed Prs Opposition to Arenberg MTDismiss03/13/2020 & Clerk's MTDismiss $475.00 0.7 3332.50
03/18/2020 DW Teleconference Reviewed email from Pl's counsel, re: motion to
continue hearing $425.00 0.1 $42.50
03/18/2020 DW Review Reviewed Pi's unopposed motion for continuance 3425.00 0.1 $42.50
03/18/2020 DW E-mail Emails w/ Clerk's counsel, re: PI'S request to
continue hearing $425.00 0.2 $85.00
03/19/2020 DW E-mail Reviewed email from PI, re: agreed order &
responded $425.00 0.1 $42.50
03/20/2020 DW Review Reviewed Court's agreed order continuing hearing $425.00 0.1 $42.50
EFTA02734336
04/21/2020 DW Review
Reviewed order reschedufing hearing on Defs'
MTDismiss $425.00 0.1 $42.50
04/21/2020 DW Teleconference Spoke w/ client, re: order rescheduling MTDismiss
hearing for June 3,2020 $425.00 0.3 $127.50
04/21/2020 AU Review Reviewed Order rescheduling MTDismiss hearing $475.00 0.1 $47.50
05/2212020 DW Review Reviewed order setting Zoom hearing, re:
MTDismiss $425.00 0.1 $42.50
05/22/2020 DW Teleconference Spoke w/ client, re: hearing will be via Zoom $425.00 0.2 $85.00
05/27/2020 DW Review Reviewed Clerk's filing: change of atty of record $425.00 0.1 $42.50
05/27/2020 DW Teleconference Spoke with Clerk's new counsel. Nicole Fingerhut $425.00 0.2 $85.00
05/28/2020 DW E-mail Reviewed Prs email, re: cases and authorities for
MTDismiss hearing; responded $425.00 0.1 $42.50
05/29/2020 DW Preparation Began oral argument prep for 6/8 MTDismiss
hearing $425.00 1.0 3425.00
06/01/2020 DW E-mail Reviewed email from Judge Marx's JA and
responded $425.00 0.1 $42.50
06/02/2020 DW Various Reviewed Prs 500+ page binder, re: MTDiemieS &
prepped for hearing $425.00 3.0 $1,275.00
06/02/2020 DW E-mail Draftedrro
and sent email to client, re: MTD hearing
tnenew $425.00 0.1 $42.50
06/03/2020 DW Attend Hearing Prepped for and attended MTDismiss hearing via
Zoom $425.00 1.5 3637.50
06/03/2020 DW Teleconference Spoke w/ Client, re: debrief MTDismiss hearing $425.00 0.5 3212.50
06/03/2020 DW E-mail Entailed courtesy copies of Aronbergs Answer and
MThismisS to Judge Man( 5425.00 0.1 $42.50
06/03/2020 DW E-mail Reviewed response from Client and replied $425.00 0.1 $42.50
06/03/2020 AU Attend Hearing Attended MTDismiss hearing via Zoom $475.00 1.0 3475.00
06/03/2020 AU Review Reviewed order granting MTDismiss w/ prejudice $475.00 0.3 3142.50
06/08/2020 DW Review Reviewed Court's Order Granting Defendants
MTDismiss Count II w/ Prejudice $425.00 0.5 $212.50
06/08/2020 DW Various Shared order w/ Client and spoke wr, re: result and
plan going forward, re: 57.105 $425.00 0.5 $212.50
06/08/2020 DW Various
Researched § 57.105 Fla. Stat.: drafted 57.105
demand letter and proposed motion for attorneys'
lees/sancti0ns; Served Prs counsel with demand
letter and proposed motion.
$425.00 2.0 3850.00
06/08/2020 AU Meeting Meeting w/ DAW, re: Order & 57.105 $475.00 0.3 3142.50
06/08/2020 DW Meeting Meeting w/ AU, re: Order & 57.105 3425.00 0.3 3127.50
06/08/2020 AU Review Reviewed 57.105 demand and proposed motion for
sanction 3475.00 0.2 $95.00
06/10/2020 DW Various Reviewed notice of change of attorney, re: Clerk;
called and spoke w/ new counsel Cynthia Guerra $425.00 0.3 3127.50
06/23/2020 DW Various
Reviewed PI'S letter refusing to voluntarily dsmiss
amended complaint despite 57.105 demand; called
and spoke w/ client. re: Prs refusal & next steps
$425.00 1.0 $,425.00
EFTA02734337
06/23/2020 DW E-mail Sent client copy of Pfs letter refusing lO dismiss
complaint $425.00 0.1 $42.50
06/23/2020 AU Review Reviewed Ks letter refusing to dismiss Count liAm. C
ompl. $475.00 0.1 $47.50
07/01/2020 DW Various
Spoke w/ client, re: fling of 57.105 motion for
fees/sanctions; filed motion for attorneys' fees
based on PI'S faikre to voluntarily dismiss
amended complaint count 1
$425.00 0.5 $212.50
07/02/2020 DW E-mail Email to client, re: affidavit and summary judgment $425.00 0.1 $42.50
07/68/2020 DW Teleconference Discussed w/ Cleat drafting and filing Motion for
Summary Judgment and MSJ evidence $425.00 0.7 $297.50
07/08/2020 AU Teleconference Discussed w/ Cleat drafting and filing Motion for
Summary Judgment and MSJ evidence $475.00 0.7 $332.50
07/10/2020 DW Draft Created 1st draft of Arenberg Affidavit; shared w/
client via® 1.0 $425.00
07/10/2020 AIJ Various Reviewed draft affidavit and discussed w/ DAW $475.00 0.3 $142.50
07/10/2020 DW Meeting Discussed draft affidavit w/ AU 1 $425.00 0.2 $85.00
07/13/2020 DW Review Reviewed Pi's Request to Produce, re: Cleric $425.00 0.1 $42.50
07/13/2020 DW Teleconference Spoke w/ Clerk's counsel, re: Request to Produce $425.00 0.2 $85.00
07/27/2020 DW Review Reviewed Pi's Amended Request to Produce, re:
Clerk $425.00 0.1 $42.50
07/27/2020 DW Teleconference Spoke w/ Clerk's counsel, re: Amended Request to
Produce $425.00 0.1 $42.50
07/28/2020 DW Draft Revised Arenberg affidavit $425.00 0.5 $212.50
07/29/2020 OW Draft Finalized Arenberg Affidavit and sent to client $425.00 0.5 $212.50
07/29/2020 DW Research &
Preparation
Research and prep tor Motion for Summary
Judgment $425.00 1.0 $425.00
07/30/2020 OW Various Received executed Arenberg Affidavit $425.00 0.1 $42.50
07/30/2020 DW Draft Began drafting Motion for Summary Judgment $425.00 2.0 $850.00
08/05/2020 DW Draft Continued drafting Motion for Summary Judgment $425.00 1.0 $425.00
08/07/2020 DW Review Reviewed email from Plaintiff attempting to set
hearing on 57.105 motion for fees/sanctions $425.00 0.1 $42.50
08/10/2020 DW , - A
E-mail Sent responsive email to P1's counsel $425.00 0.1 $42.50
08/17/2020 DW Meeting Discussed draft MSJ w/ AU $425.00 0.2 $85.00
08/17/2020 Al.) Various Reviewed draft MSJ and met w/ DAW to dscuss $475.00 0.5 $237.50
08/18/2020 DW Draft Finalized Motion for Summary Judgment; filed w/
court along with Arenberg affidavit $425.00 2.0 $850.00
08/27/2020 DW Teleconference Spoke w/ Clerk's counsel, re: request to produce $425.00 0.1 $42.50
09/01/2020 DW Various Reviewed PI'S email and accepted conference call
invite for 9/2/20 $425.00 0.1 $42.50
09/02/2020 DW Review Reviewed Clerk's response to request for
production $425.00 0.2 $85.00
09/02/2020 DW Teleconference
Spoke w/ Pt's counsel, re: dispute as to whether
MSJ should be heard before 57.105 fee motion or
vis versa - call was unsuccessful
$425.00 0.5 $212.50
EFTA02734338
09/02/2020 AU Meeting Discussed w/ DAW phone call w/ Prs counsel $475.00 0.2 $95.00
09/02/2020 DW Meeting Discussed w/ AU phone call w/ Prs counsel $425.00 0.2 $85.00
09/16/2020 DW E-mail
Reviewed email from Ks counsel requested
Aronberg to withdraw sanctions motion w/o
Prejudice
$425.00 0.1 $42.50
09/17/2020 DW Meeting Discussed wl AU filing motion for CMC $425.00 0.1 $42.50
09/17/2020 AU Meeting Discussed wl DAW filing motion for CMC $475.00 0.1 $47.50
09/18/2020 DW Various Drafted and filed motion to set case management
conference; re: MSJ 1st or Fee hearing 1st $425.00 0.5 $212.50
09/18/2020 DW E-mail
Responded to PI% 9/16/20 email and refused to
withdraw 57.105 motion; provided copy of motion to
set CMC and available dates for hearing
$425.00 0.1 $42.50
09/18/2020 DW E-mail Reviewed Prs email insisting that 57.105 motion be
withdrawn $425.00 0.1 $42.50
09/18/2020 DW E-mail
Replied to PI'S counsel that the 57.105 motion for
sanctions will not be withdrawn and asking for
response, re: CMC
$425.00 0.1 $42.50
09/18/2020 DW E-mail Sent client copy of email exchange w/ Prs counsel;
called and spoke w/ Client $425.00 0.5 3212.50
09/22/2020 DW Various Drafted and filed Notice of Hearing on 10/15/20: set
up Court Call; spoke w/ client, re: hearing date $425.00 0.7 $297.50
10/02/2020 DW Review Reviewed Prs Memo of Law opposing Aronberg's
57.105 motion for fees/sanctions $425.00 0.7 3297.50
10/02/2020 DW Review Reviewed Prs Response to Aronberg's request to
schedule 57.105 motion for fees after MSJ $425.00 0.5 $212.50
10/02/2020 AU Review Reviewed P1% Memo of Law opposing 57.105
motion $475.00 0.5 3237.50
10/02/2020 AU Review Reviewed Prs Response to Aronberg's request to
schedule 57.105 motion after MSJ $475.00 0.4 $190.00
10/12/2020 DW Research Research caselaw & statutes, re: response to Prs
Memo of Law $425.00 1.0 $425.00
10/13/2020 DW Research &
Analyze
Continued re-searching caselaw, re: response to
Prs memo of law $425.00 1.0 $425.00
10/13/2020 DW Draft Created 1st draft of Response to Prs Memo of Law
and shared w/ Client $425.00 4.0 $1,700.00
10/13/2020 DW Meeting Discussed w/ AIJ caselaw and draft response to
memo $425.00 0.5 3212.50
10/13/2020 AU Various Reviewed draft MSJ, discussed draft w/ DAW and
caselaw $475.00 0.7 $332.50
10/14/2020 DW Draft Finalized and filed Response to Prs Memo of Law $425.00 1.0 3425.00
10/14/2020 DW Telephone Spoke w/ client, re: memo of law $425.00 0.2 $85.00
10/14/2020 DW Telephone Spoke w/ client again, re: response to memo of law $425.00 0.1 $42.50
10/15/2020 DW Attend Hearing Attended hearing, re: Motion to Set CMC; called
client to discuss $425.00 1.5 $637.50
10/15/2020 DW Various Reviewed email and letter from P1, re: settlement.
Sent copy to Client and called to discuss. $425.00 0.5 $212.50
EFTA02734339
10/15/2020 DW Telephone Spoke w/ PPS counsel, re: settlement $425.00 0.1 $42.50
10/15/2020 DW Telephone Spoke w/ client, re: Prs settlement proposal $425.00 0.2 $85.00
10/15/2020 AL) Various Attended hearing, re: motion to set CMC;
discussed wl client
$475.00 1.0 $475.00
10/15/2020 AU Various Discussed Ks settlement proposal w/ DAW and
then w/ Client $475.00 0.4 3190.00
10/15/2020 DW Meeting Discussed Prs settlement proposal w/ AU $425.00 0.2 $85.00
10/16/2020 DW Various Drafted and shared proposed order w/ PPS counsel $425.00 0.5 $212.50
10/16/2020 DW Telephone Spoke w/ Prs counsel, re: settlement $425.00 0.2 $85.00
10/16/2020 DW Telephone Spoke wl client, re: Pt's settlement proposal $425.00 0.5 $212.50
10/16/2020 DW Meeting Discussed Pt's settlement proposal w/ AU $425.00 0.2 $85.00
10/16/2020 AU Meeting Discussed Prs settlement proposal w/ DAW $475.00 0.2 $95.00
DW Various Uploaded proposed order. re: CMC for Judge10/19/2020 Hafele $425.00 0.1 $42.50
10/19/2020 DW Telephone Spoke w/ client. re: Pt's settlement proposal $425.00 0.2 $85.00
10/19/2020 DW Telephone Spoke w/ Prs counsel, re: settlement $425.00 0.1 $42.50
10/19/2020 AU Meeting Discussed Prs settlement proposal w/ DAW $475.00 0.2 $95.00
10/19/2020 DW Meeting Discussed Prs settlement proposal w/ AU $425.00 0.2 $85.00
10/20/2020 DW Various $425.00 Reviewed email from PI, re: settlement; sent copy
to Client and caled to discuss 0.5 $212.50
10/20/2020 DW Telephone Spoke w/ client, re: settlement $425.00 0.4 3170.00
10/20/2020 DW Telephone Spoke w/ PI'S counsel, re: settlement $425.00 0.1 $42.50
10/20/2020 DW Telephone Spoke w/ client, re: settlement $425.00 0.1 $42.50
10/20/2020 OW Meeting Discussed Prs settlement proposal w/ AU $425.00 0.2 $85.00
10/20/2020 AU Meeting Discussed PPS settlement proposal w/ DAW $475.00 0.2 $95.00
10/21/2020 DW Various
Drafted end filed Motion to Set Hearing on
Arenberg MSJ; drafted proposed order granting
motion to set; checked court availability; emailed
Prs counsel, re: choose date for hearing
$425.00 1.0 $425.00
10/21/2020 DW Review Reviewed Order. re: CMC unnecessary $425.00 0.1 $42.50
10/21/2020 DW Telephone Spoke w/ client, re: media response $425.00 0.2 $85.00
10/21/2020 DW Telephone Spoke w/ client, re: media response $425.00 0.1 $42.50
10/21/2020 DW Telephone Spoke w/ client, re: media response $425.00 0.1 $42.50
10/21/2020 DW Telephone Spoke w/ client, re: media response 5425.00 0.1 $42.50
10/21/2020 DW Telephone Spoke w/ client. re: media response 5425.00 0.1 $42.50
10/21/2020 DW E-mail Sent email w/ Arenberg statement to media $425.00 0.1 $42.50
10/21/2020 AU Meeting Discussed media response w/ DAW $475.00 0.3 $142.50
10/21/2020 DW Meeting Discussed media response w/ AU $425.00 0.3 3127.50
10/22/2020 DW Various
Reviewed Pl's Notice of Dropping Arenberg as
party; spoke w/ Client and AU, re: notice and next
steps
$425.00 0.5 $212.50
EFTA02734340
Reviewed Ks Notice of Dropping Aronberg as
10/22/2020 AIJ Various party; SPOke w/ Client and DAW, re: notice and next
steps
$475.00 0.5 $237.50
Totals: 74.8 $32,440.00
Time Entry Sub-Total: $32,440.00
Sub-Total: $32,440.00
Total: $32,440.00
Amount Paid: $0.00
Balance Due: $32,440.00
EFTA02734341
EXHIBIT "F"
EXHIBIT "F"
EFTA02734342
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIFTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT
IN AND FOR PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS, LLC,
Publisher of the PALM BEACH POST,
Plaintiff,
v. CASE NO.: 19-C I4681
DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of
Palm Beach County, Florida; SHARON R.
BOCK, as Clerk and Comptroller of Palm
Beach County, Florida.
Defendants.
STATE OF FLORIDA
COUNTY OF NASSAU
CC A 1
AFFIDAVIT OF ATTORNUS' En.>
S9BEFORE ME, the undersigned aut Douglas A. Wyler, Esq., who, after
being first duly sworn, deposes and sa
I. Affiant is a partner of ACOBS, SCHOLZ & WYLER, LLC, counsel for
Defendant, DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of Palm Beach County, Florida, ("Aronberg"),
as well as general counsel to the Florida Prosecuting Attorneys Association, ("FPAA"), and makes
this Affidavit S cs own' personal knowledge.
2. ffiant is licensed to practice law in the State of Florida, is an active member of
c ".14
the Flo a r in good standing and has engaged in the practice of law in the State of Florida since
2015.
3. As detailed herein, the services rendered by Affiant and his firm pertain to Affiant's
demand letter and motion for attorneys' fees sent to Plaintiffs counsel pursuant to § 57.105,
Florida Statutes, on June 8, 2020, in defending against Count I of Plaintiff's Amended Complaint
EFTA02734343
and Plaintiffs October 21, 2020 Notice of Dropping State Attorney, Dave Aronberg from the
above-captioned lawsuit. See, Exhibits "A" and "B" attached hereto.
4. The total time Affiant's law firm has expended services rendered to date is 74.8
hours, however, from the date of Defendant Aronberg's 57.105 demand, Affiant's law firm has
expended a total of 42.2 hours. Of the 42.2 hours expended since Defendant Aronberg's 57.105
demand was served, the Affiant
5. Of the 42.2 hours expended since Defendant Aronberg' emand was
served, the total time Affiant has expended services rendered to date A boars at the rate of
$425.00 per hour. Likewise, the total time Affiant's law partner, Arthur CM, has expended
services rendered to date is 6.8 hours at the rate of S475.00 per hour.
6. Accordingly, since Defendant Aronberg's 57.105 demand was served, Defendant
Aronberg's counsel, SCHOLZ & WYLER, LLC, has rendered services in the amount
of $18,275.00. in conjunction with the defense of the instant action pursuant to § 57.105, Florida
Statutes. See. Exhibit "C" attached hereto.
7. Affiant expects to incur an additional 4.0 hours at $425.00 an hour in preparing for
and attending the hearing on attorneys' fees. Thus, the total amount of hourly attorneys' fees the
State Attorney is seeking is 46.2 hours for a total of $19,975.00. Additionally, the State Attorney
seeks a multipliN12.0, which when applied makes the grand total attorneys' fees sought herein
$39,1.9
Dat h day of November, 2020.
FURTHER AFFEANT SAYETH NOT.
Douglas Wyler, Esq., Fla. 8.2 No. 119979
EFTA02734344
STATE OF FLORIDA
COUNTY OF NASSAU
The foregoing instrument was acknowledged before me this 9th day of November, 2020,
by Do Wyler, Esquire, who is personally known to me and who did take an oath.
Sign f otary Public — State of Florida
4-årark. R. 1 -CtC1(.50111
Name typed, printed or stamped
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I HEREBY CERTIFY that on this 9th day of Novem
been electronically filed with the Florida E-File Portal
TAAAN
Motley Pobik • State of P:of
Commission a GG 354141
My Comm. Expires Aug 17. 2023
!abed throws, h edam: Mowry Aur.
, a copy of the foregoing has
on all parties of record herein.
SCHOLZ & WYLER, LLC
Douglas A. fyyler
Artlurq.
Fla. Bar No.: 10249
Richard .1. Scholz. Esq.
Fla. Bar No.: 0021261
Douglas A. Wyler, Esq.
Fla. Bar No.: 119979
961687 Gateway Blvd., Suite 201-I
Fernandina Beach, Florida 32034
([Phone Redacted]
([Phone Redacted] Fax
Primary: [Email Redacted]
Attorneys for Defendant, Dave Aronberg
EFTA02734345
EXHIBIT "A"
EXHIBIT "A"
EFTA02734346
Friday, September 18, 2020 at 11:09:24 Eastern Daylight Time
Subject: SERVICE OF COURT DOCUMENT; CASE NO. 2019-CA-014681; CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS, LLC V.
DAVE ARONBERG ET AL.
Date: Monday, June 8, 2020 at 3:58:58 PM Eastern Daylight Time
From: Douglas Wyler
To: '[Email Redacted]', [Email Redacted], [Email Redacted], [Email Redacted],
[Email Redacted], [Email Redacted]
Attachments: 2020-05.08 Aronberg 57.105 Demand and Motion for Attorneys' Fees.pdf
Court: Circuit Court of the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, in and for Palm Eteat*ty,
Florida
Case No: Case Na. 2020-CA-014681
Plaintiff:
Defendant:
CA Florida Holdings, LLC
Dave Aronberg (..)
Title of Documents • Fla. Stat. 4 57.105 Demand Letter
Served: • Defendant, Dave Aronberg's Motion j tt ' Fees
Sender's Name and Douglas Wyler
Telephone Number: ([Phone Redacted]
Sincerely, 4/
961687 Gateway
?S.
Doug Wyler, Esq.
_Scholi a & Wyle Tr, LLC
Blvd., SE 201-I
< C0*)
Fernandina Beach, FL 32034
[Phone Redacted]
[Phone Redacted] (fax)
Please be advised that this e-mail ny files transmitted with it are confidential attorney-client
communication or may otherwise be privileged or confidential and are intended solely for the individual or
entity to whom they are addressed. If you are not the intended recipient, please do not read, copy or
retransmit this communication but destroy it immediately. Any unauthorized dissemination, distribution or
copying of this commtvccation is strictly prohibited.
Page 1 of 1
EFTA02734347
THE LAW (H, ICES Of
JACOBS IL ASSOCIATES. P.A.
AlitTtiLl9
SCHOLZ & WYLER, LLC. A LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY OF PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS
ATTORNEYS AT LAW
GATEWAY TO AMELIA
Boles, GATEWAY BLVD.. SUITE EL31.1
FtlItHA-VDDIA BEACH. FLORIDA 02034
TELEPHONE 19041 261.3693
mom NO. [Phone Redacted]
June 8, 2020
VIA ELECTRONIC & U.S. MAIL
Stephen A. Mendelsohn, Fsq.
Grccnburg Traurig, P.A.
5100 Town Center Circle, Suite 400
Boca Raton, FL 33486
RE: CA Florida Holdings, LLC v. Dave Aronberg et
Palm Beach County. Case No.: 2019-C4
Dear Mr. Mendelsohn:
zfr ,
As you are aware our firm represents the interests of Dave Aronberg, as State Attorney of Palm Beach
County, Florida, in the above referenced matter. The purpose of this letter is to demand the voluntary
dismissal of your First Amended Complaint, (the "Complaint"), dated January 17, 2020. This demand
is made pursuant to section 57.105, Florida Statutes.
RICHARDJ. SCHOL2. P.A.
RCHARDJ SCHOLZ
DOUGLAS A. WYLER. P.A.
DOUGLAS A WYLER
As you know, Section 57.105 provides.
(I) Upon the court's initiative or motion of any party, the court shall award a
reasonable attorney's fee. including prejudgment interest, to be paid to the
prevailing party in equal amounts by the losing party and the losing party's attorney
on any claim or defense at any time during a civil proceeding or action in which
the court finds that the losing party or the losing partys attorney knew or should
have known that a claim or defense when initially presented to the court or at any
tine before trial:
Oa. ' Was not supported by the material facts necessary to establish the claim or
defense; or
b. Would not be supported by the application of then-existing law to those
material facts.
Today, Judge Marx granted, with prejudice. Defendant Aronberg's Motion to Dismiss Count II of the
Plaintiff's Complaint. Pursuant to the Court's ruling, the Plaintiff's only remaining cause of action
consists of Count t, for Declaratory Relief. Accordingly, we believe that the Complaint filed herein
and its sole remaining Count for Declaratory Relief is not supported by the material facts necessary to
establish the claims asserted, and that your claims are not supported by the application of current law
to said material facts.
EFTA02734348
First and foremost, the Complaint is not supported by the material facts necessary to establish the claims asserted because neither Defendant Aronberg, nor The Office of the State Attorney for the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit is in custody or control of the 2006 grand jury materials sought therein. Simply put, the declaratory relief sought by the Plaintiff, seeks records from my client that are impossible for him or his office to produce. Accordingly, Defendant Aronberg is not a proper party to this action because no matter what, he and his office do not have possession, custody, or control of the requested materials.
In'addition to the foregoing material facts that negate the claims asserted in the Complaint, your claims are also not supported by the application of current law. Specifically, your action for declaratory relief fails based on the clear, unambiguous statutory language found in Section 905.27(2)414 cca Statutes, which states:
When such disclosure is ordered by a court pursuant to subsection ( ) fotuse in a civil
case, it may be disclosed to all parties to the case and to their attorneys and by the latter to their legal associates and employees. However, the grand kttry testimony afforded
such persons by the court can only be used in the defense ocp •ecution of the civil or
criminal case and for no other ramose whatsoever.
Moreover, even if the Plaintiff were to prevail in the declaratory ion, Mr. Aronberg would be unable to comply with any court order granting disclosure of the. requested documents because neither Mr. Aronberg nor The Office of the State Attorney for the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit have possession, custody, or control of the 2006 Epstein grand jury‘
Based on the foregoing, if the Complaint is neitittmt d within 21 days of the service of this letter,
E
the enclosed Motion for Attorney's Fccs will be filed and we will seek as sanctions, from your client and your firm, recovery of the legal expenses incurred in defending this frivolous action.
Please govern yourself according)
4
Douglas A. Wyler, Esq.
For the Firm
t eEncl.: Defect s Mo for Attorneys' Fees
EFTA02734349
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIFTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT IN AND FOR PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS, LLC,
Publisher of the PALM BEACH POST,
Plaintiff;
v.
DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of
Palm Beach County, Florida; SHARON R.
BOCK, as Clerk and Comptroller of Palm
Beach County, Florida.
Defendants.
CASE NO.: 19- -014681 4 .0„
O 'S
DEFENDANT. DAVE ARONBF.RG'S MOTION FOR ATTORNEYS' FEES
Defendant, DAVE ARONBERG, as tStat A orney of Palm Beach County, Florida, by and s i o
i ,through the undersigned attorneys, moves unuant to Florida Statutes, Section 57.105, < te,
to award him reasonable attorneys' foSr defense of Plaintiffs First Amended Complaint,
(the "Complaint"), and as grounds the would show that on June 8. 2020, Plaintiff was served
a copy of this Motion, together with / a letter from the undersigned attorney, in accordance with J
subsection (4) of the above Statute, demanding dismissal of the Complaint, at least 21 days prior
to the filing of this Motion. In said letter. Defendant's attorney advised Plaintiff of the facts which
establish that the Complaint is without support of the facts or the law.
WHEREFORE. Defendant. DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of Palm Beach
County, Florida, respectfully requests the Court enter an Order requiring Plaintiff and Plaintiff's
attorneys to pay said Defendant's attorneys' fees incurred herein after service of this Motion.
EFTA02734350
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
hereby certify that on this day , 2020, the foregoing was electronically filed
via the Florida E-File Portal for electronic service on the parties of record herein.
-SCHOLZ & WYLER, LLC
4/ Douglas A. Wyler
Ha. Bar .1 8249
Arthur I. Esquire
Richard J. Scholz, Esquire
Fla. Bar No.: 0021261
Douglas A. Wyler, Esquire
Fla. Bar No.: 119979
961687 Gateway Blvd., Suite 201-1
Fernandina Beach, Florida 32034
([Phone Redacted]
(9,7879
[Email Redacted] A sh
fro eys for Defendam
EFTA02734351
EXHIBIT "B"
EXHIBIT "B"
EFTA02734352
Filing if 115383434 E-Filed 10/21/2O20 04:13:35 PM
CA FLORIDA HOLDINGS, LLC,
Publisher of THE PALM BEAC I POST
Plaintiff;
v.
DAVE ARONBERG, as State Attorney of
Palm Beach County, Florida; SHARON R.
BOCK, as Clerk and Comptroller of Palm
Beach County, Florida,
Defendants.
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE
FIFTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT IN AND
FOR PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA
CASE NO.: 50-2019-CA-014681-XXXK-MB
DIVISION: AG
PLAINTIFF CA HOLDING', ,
NOTICE OF DROPPING STATE ATTORN V.IsAVE ARONBERG < 5,),
A
Plaintiff; CA HOLDINGS, LLC, pursuant to Fla. . 0(b), hereby notifies the panics that
it has dropped State Attorney, Dave Aronber Ar sec ,
+6s
above cue.
Respectfully submitted,
GREENBERG I RAURIG, P.A.
Anorneysjor CA Florida Holdings, LLC Publisher
of The Palm Beach Post
Stephen A. Mendelsohn, Esq.
401 East Las Olas Boulevard Suite 2000
Boca Raton, Florida 33486
Telephone: ([Phone Redacted]
Facsim i le: ([Phone Redacted]
By: is/ Stephen A. Mendelsohn
STEPHEN A. MENDELSOHN
Florida Bar No. 849324
mendelsohnscvolaw.com
smithkittplaw.com
aServiceOutlaw.com
EFTA02734353
By: is/Michael Grygiel
MICHAEL J GRYGIEL
(Admitted Pro Hac Vice)
54 State St., 6th Floor
Albany, New York 12207
Telephone: ([Phone Redacted]
Facsimile: ([Phone Redacted]
grvgielnentlaw.com
By: /s/ Nina D Bovolian
NINA D. BOYAJIAN
(Admitted Pro Hoc Vice)
1840 Century Park East, Sui
Los Angeles California 9006
Telephone: (310) 586-7
Facsimile: (310) 586-7
bovaiiannegtlaw.eom
rise razI41).
CERTI AT O I
I HEREBY CERTIFY that on this 2Ia ' r, 2020, a true and correct copy of the
foregoing has been tiled with the Clerk of ng the State of Florida e-filing system, which
will send a notice of electronic service for all parties of record herein
Cis< pir
/s/Steohen A. Mendelsohn
x
O
ACTIVE 53317341v1
STEPHEN A. MENDELSOHN
2
EFTA02734354
EXHIBIT "C"
EXHIBIT "C"
EFTA02734355
IV Scholz & Wyler, LLC
Gateway Blvd., Suite 2011
Femandina Beach, FL 32034
United States
[Phone Redacted]
Dave Aronberg
Aronberg (SA015) adv. CA Florida Holdings, LLC
Time Entries
Scholz & Wyler, LLC
Balance
Invoice #
Invoice Date
Payment Term
Due Date
$32,440.00
00307
November 6, 2020
Date EE Activity Description
11/26/2019
Rate Hours Line Total
OW Review
\si N iwer
Initial review of summons _4 corn $425.03 1.5 $637.50
1 1 /26120 1 9 OW Review Reviewed motion for pro hoc vice and Judge
lialele' order granting $425.00 0 2 $85.00
11/26/2019 OW Teleconference Teleconference wL Client, ro: response to lawsuit $425.00 0.5 $212.50
11/26/2019 OW Draft Drafted engagement letter and sent to client $425.00 0.3 $127.50
11/26(2019 DW Review Reviewed 15th cIrcuil local rules $425.00 1.0 $42500
11/26/2019 AU Review Initial review of complaint $475.00 1.0 $475.00
11/26/2019 AU Meeting Meeting w/ OAW to discuss lawsuit and strategy $475.00 0.5 $237.50
11/26/2019 DW Meetng Meeting w/ AU to discuss lawsuit and strategy $425.00 0.5 $212.50
11;26/2019 AU Teleconference Teleconference w! Client. re: response to lawsuit $475.00 0.5 $237.50
12/022 019 OW Research 3Preparation Research and prep for Maori to dismiss $42500 2.0 $650.00
12/02/2019 OW Draft 1st Draft motion to dismiss $425.00 1.0 $42500
12/022019 DW Teleconference Teleconference w/ Ckent, re: draft nation to
dismiss $425.00 0.5 $212.50
12/02/2019 AU Review Reviewed 1st Draft MIDismiss $475.00 0.3 $142.50
1 210 2/2 0 1 9 AU Teleconference Teleconfe rce w/ client, re: draft motion to
dismiss
re $475.00 0.5 $237.50
12/03/2019 AU Meeting Meeting wr DAW, re: motion to dismiss $475.00 0.2 $95.00
12/03/2019 DW Meeting Meeting we AU, re: MTDisrniss $425.00 0.2 $85.00
12/06/2019 OW Draft Completed final draft of motion to dismiss; filed with
Court 5425.00 0.7 $297 50
12/06/2019 DW Teleconference Spoke w/ client. re, final draft of motion to dismiss $425.00 0.5 $212.50
EFTA02734356
12/062019 DW Teleconference Spoke with Clerk's attorney, re: response $425.00 0.5 $212.50
12/06/2019 AIJ Review Reviewed final draft MTDismiss $475.00 0.2 $95.00
12/06/2019 AU Review Reviewed Clerk's MTDismiss $475.00 0.2 $95.00
12/13/2019 OW Review Reviewed Clerk's Motion to Dismiss $425.00 0.5 $212.50
01/16/2020 OW Review Reviewed Order Setting Hearing on Delendants'
MTDismiss $42500 0.1 $42.50
01/16/2020 DW Review Reviewed motion fOr pro hac vice $425.00 0.1 $42.50
01/17/2020 DW Review Reviewed Prs Amended Complalm $425.00 1.0 $425.00
01/17/2020 DW Teleconference Spoke with client, re: Amended Complaint $425.00 0.5 $21250
01/17/2020 OW Review Reviewed Prs notice of filing $425.00 ., 0.1 $42.50
01/20/2020 AU Review Reviewed Pt's Am. Comps $475.00 03 $142.50
01/21/2029 OW Review Reviewed Judge Manes Order Canceling
MTOismiss Hearing 542500 0.1 $42.50
01/21/2020 DW Review Reviewed Prs Objection to Defendants' MTDismiss --- $425.00 0.2 $85.00
01/21/2020 DW Teleconference Spoke with then!, re: Amended complaint $425.00 0.5 $212.50
01/21/2020 AIJ Meeting Meeting w/ DAW, re: response to Am. Cornet: $475.00 0.2 $95.00
01/212020 OW Meeting Meeting w/ AU, re: response to Am. Cornpl. $425.00 0.2 $85.00
01/22/2020 OW Review Reviewed Order granting pro hat vice admission $425.00 0.1 $42.50
01/22/2020 DW Research 8 Draft Researched and dratted response to Amended
Complaint . $42500 1.0 $425.00
01/23/2020 OW Teleconference Spoke with Clerk's attorney, re: response to
amended complaint $425.00 0.2 $85.00
01/24/2020 DW Various Completed Answer/MTClismiss Amended
Complaint: tiled with Court: sent copy lo Client 5425.00 1.0 $425.00
01/24/2020 DW Draft Dratted and Ned Notice of Unavailability $42500 0.4 $170.00
0124/2020 AU Review Reviewed foal Answer/MTDismiss $475.00 0.2 $95.00
01/27/2020 OW Review Reviewed Clerk's Answer/MTDismiss $425.00 0.3 $127.50
02/03/2020 OW Review Reviewed Order setting hearing on Defs'
MTDismiss $425.00 0.1 $42.50
02/03/2020 DW Teleconference $425.00 Spoke w/ client. re: order seeing MTDismiss
hearing for March 24, 2020 0.5 $212 50
03/13/2020 DW Review Reviewed Prs Opposition to Aronberg MTDismiss
8 Clerk's MTDismiss 5425.00 1.5 $637.50
03/13/2020 AU Review Reviewed Prs Opposition to Arenberg MTDismiss
8 Clerk's MTDismiss 5475.00 0.7 $332.50
03/1e/2020 OW Teleconference Reviewed email from PI'S counsel, re: motion to
continue hearing $425.00 0.1 $42.50
03/16/2020 OW Review Reviewed Prs unopposed motion for continuance $425.00 0.1 $42.50
03/18/2020 DW E•mai Entails w/ Clerk's counsel, re: Prs request to
continue hearing $425.00 0.2 $85.00
03/19/2020 DW Email Reviewed email from Pl. re: agreed order 8,
responded $425.00 0.1 $42.50
03/202020 OW Review Reviewed Court's agreed order continuing Mating $425.00 0.1 $42.50
EFTA02734357
04/21/2020 DW Review
Reviewed order rescheduling hearing on Deis'
MTDismiss $425.00 0.1 $42.50
04/21/2020 DW Teleconference Spoke w/ client. re: order rescheduling MTDIsrmiss
hearing for June 3, 2020 $425.00 0.3 $127.50
0421/2020 AU Review Reviewed Order resehoduing MTOismiss hearing $475.00 0.1 $47.50
05/222020 DW Review Reviewed order setting Zoom hearing. re:
MTOismiss $425.00 0.1 $42.50
05/22/2020 DW Teleconference Spoke kW client. re: hearing will be via Zoom $425.00 0.2 $85.00
05/27/2020 DW Review Reviewed Clerk's fling: change of atty of record $425.00 0.1 $42.50
05/27/2020 DW Teleconference Spoke with Clerk's new counsel, Nicole Flngerhut $425.00 - il 0.2 $85.00
05/28/2020 OW E. mall Reviewed Pi's email. re: cases and authorities for
MTDismiss hearing, responded $425.00 0.1 $42.50
05/29/2020 DW Preparation Began oral argument prep for 6/8 MTOismiss
hearing $425.00 1.0 $425.00
06/01/2020 OW Email Reviewed email from Judge Marx's JA and
responded $425.00 0.1 $42.50
06/02/2020 OW Various Reviewed Ks 500+ page binder. re: MTOisneelk$
prepped for hearing $425 00 3.0 $1,275.00
06/02/2020 OW E-mail Drafted and sent email to client, re: MID hearing
tomorrow $425.00 0.1 $42.50
06/03/2020 OW Attend Hearing Prepped for and attended MT0Lcrnl% hearing via
Zoom 5425.00 1.5 $637.50
06/03/2020 DW Teleconference Spoke w/ Client, re; debrief MTDIsmiss hearing $425.00 0.5 $212.50
06/032020 OW E-mail Emailed courtesy copies of Aronberg's Answer and
MTOismiss to Judge Mani
5425.00 0.1 $42.50
06/03/2020 DW E-mag Reviewed response from Client and replied $425.00 0.1 542.50
06/032020 AU Attend Hearing Attended MTOismiss hearing via Zoom $475.00 1.0 $475.00
06103/2020 AU Review Reviewed order granting MTDism ss ve prejudice $475.03 0.3 $142.50
06/08/2020 OW Review Reviewed Courts Order Granting Defendants
MTDismiss Counl II w/ Prejudice $425.00 0.5 $212.50
0608/2020 OW Various Shared order wi Client and spoke wi, re: result and
plan going forward, re: 57.10$
5425.00 0.5 $212.50
0608/2020 OW Various
Researched § 57.105 Fla. Stat.:drafted 57.105
demand letter and proposed motion for attorneys'
feestsanctions: Served PEI counsel with demand
letter and proposed motion
$425.00 2.0 $850.00
06108/2020 AIJ Meeting Meeting Iv/ OAW. re: Order & 57.105 $47500 0.3 $142.50
06108/2020 DW Meeting Meeting w/ AIJ, re: Order & 57.106 5425.00 0.3 $127.50
06/08/2020 AU Review Reviewed 57.105 demand and proposed motion for
sanction $475.00 0.2 $95.00
06/10/2020 DW Various Renewed notice of change of attorney. re: Clerk;
called and spoke w/ new counsel Cynthia Guerra $425.00 0.3 $127.50
08232020 OW Various
Reviewed PIS letter refusing to voluntarily chsness
amended complaint despite 57.105 demand; called
and spoke vir client, re: Prs refusal 8 next steps
$425.00 1.0 $425.00
EFTA02734358
01323/2020 DW Email Sent client copy of Pis letter refusing to dismiss
complaint $425.00 0.1 54250
06'23/2020 AIJ Review Reviewed R's lobar refusing to dismiss Count I/Am.
Comet. $475.00 0.1 $47.50
07/01/2020 DW Various $425.00
Spoke iv/ client. re: filing of 57.105 motion for
fees/sanctions: tiled motion for attorneys' fees
based on Pre faiure to voluntarily dismiss
amended complaint count 1
0.5 $212.50
07/02/2020 DW E-mail Email to client, re: affidavit and summary judgment $425.00 0.1 $42.50
07/08/2020 DW Teleconference Discussed w/ Client drafting and Wing Motion for
Summary Judgment and MSJ evidence $425.00 0.7 $297.50
07/08/2020 AU Teleconference Discussed w/ Client drafting and filing Motion for
Summary Judgment and MSJ evidence $475.00 ' 0.7 $332.50
DW Draft Created 1st draft of Arenberg Affida 1; shared w!07/10/2020 dent $425.00 1.0 $425.00
07/10/2020 AU Various Reviewed draft affidavit and discussed vi/ DAW $475.00 0.3 $142.50
07/10/2020 OW Meeting Discussed drab affidavit w/ ALI 5425.00 0.2 $85.00
07/13/2020 OW Review Reviewed Pt's Request to Produce, re: Clerk $425.00 0.1 $42.50
07/13/2020 OW Teleconference Spoke vt/ Clerk's counsel, re: Request to Produce $425.00 0.2 $85.00
07/27/2020 OW Review Reviewed Prs Amended Request to Produce. re:
Clerk 5425.00 0.1 $42.50
07/27/2020 DW Teleconference Spoke w/ Oldies counsel. re: Amended Request to
Produce $425.00 0.1 $42.50
07/28/2020 DW Draft Revised Arenberg affidavit $425.00 0.5 5212.50
07/29/2020 OW Draft Finalized Arenberg Affidavit and sent to dent $425.00 0.5 $212.50
07/29/2020 DW Research &
Preparation
Research and prep for Motion for Summary
Judgment $42500 1.0 $425.00
07/30/2020 DW Various Received executed Azonberg Affidavit $425.00 0.1 $42.50
07/30/2020 OW Draft Began drafting Motion for Summary Judgment $425.00 2.0 $850.00
08/0512020 DW Draft Continued drafting Motion for Summary Judgment $425.00 1.0 $425.00
08/07/2020 DW Review Reviewed email from Plaintiff attempting to set
hearing on 57.105 motion for fees/sanctions $425.00 0.1 $42.50
08/10/2020 DW &man Sent responsive email to Prs counsel 5425.00 0.1 $42.50
08/17/2020 DW . Meeting Discussed draft MSJ w/ AU 5425.00 0.2 $85.00
Oen7/2020 AU Va.Mius Reviewed draft MS-Jand me: vii DAW to discuss $475.00 0.5 $237.50
OW Draft Finalized Motion for Summary Judgment; filed w/08/1/Y2020 court along with Arenberg affidavit $425.00 2.0 $850.00
08/27/2920 OW Teleconference Spoke w/ pork's counsel. re: request to preclude $425.00 0.1 $42.50
09/01/2020 DW Various Reviewed its email and accepted conference cal
invite for 9/2/20 $425.00 0.1 $42.50
09/02/2020 DW Review Reviewed Clerk's response to request for
production $425.00 0.2 $85.00
09/02/2020 DW Teleconference
Spoke w/ Prs counsel, re: dispute as to weather
MSJ should be heard before 57.105 fee motion or
vis versa - calf was unsuccessful
$425.00 0.5 $212.50
EFTA02734359
09(0212020 AU Meeting Discussed w/ DAW phone caN w/ Pt's counsel $475.00 0.2 $95.00
09/02/2020 DW Meeting Discussed w/ AU phone cal w/ PIS counsel $425.00 0.2 $85.00
09/16/2020 DW Email
Reviewed email from Prs counsel requested
Arenberg to withdraw sanctions motion w/o
prejudice
$425.00 0.1 $42.50
09/17/2020 DW Meeting Discussed *1 AIJ filing motion for CMC $425.00 0.1 $42.50
OW17/2020 AU Meeting Discussed w/ DAW filing motion for CMC $475.00 0.1 $47.50
09/18/2020 DW Various Drafted and filed motion to sot case management
conference; re: MSJ 1st cr Fee hearing 1st $42500 0.5 $212.50
09/18/2020 DW E-mai
Responded to Prs 9/16/20 email and refuSed to
withdraw 57.105 motion: provided copy of motion to
set CMC and available dates for hearing
$425.00 0.1 $42.50
09/18/2020 DW Email Reviewed Prs email insisting mat 57.105 motion be
withdrawn $425c 0.1 $42.50
09/18/2020 DW E-mail
Replied to Prs counsel that the 57.105 motion for
sanctions will not be withckawn and asking for i
response. re: CMC
%
wiP.Illi )
'--1/4 t425.06 0.1 $42.50
09/18/2020 DW E-mail Sent client copy of email exchange w' Prs ' called and spoke ve/ Client $425.00 0.5 $212.50
0922/2020 DW Various Drafted and filed Notice of 'Joann° orri0/1 t
up Court Cal; spoke w/ client. re: hearinhate $425.00 0.7 $297.50
1002/2020 DW Review Reviewed Pt's Memo of Law-Opposing Arenberg's
57.105 motion for feestsancOons . $425.00 0.7 $297.50
10/02/2020 OW Review Reviewed Pr to,Prs Aroeberg's request to
schedule 57.105 motion for Noes after MSJ $42500 0.5 $212.50
10/02/2020 AU Review Reviewed PraMemo Of Law opposing 571 D5
motion $475.00 0.5 $237.50
10.02/2020 AU Review Reviewed Pi's Response to Aroriberg's request to soiled* 57.105 motion after MSJ $475.00 0.4 $190.00
10/12/2020 OW Research Research caselaw 8 statutes, re: response to Prs
Memo el Law $425.00 1.0 $425.00
10/13/2020 DW Research 8
Analyze
Continued researching Caselaw, re: response to
Pt's memo of law $425.00 1.0 5425.00
10/13/2020 DW Draft Created 1st draft of Response to Firs Memo of Law
and shared WI Client $425.00 4.0 $1,700.00
10/13/2020 OW Meeting Discussed w/ caselaw and draft response to
memo $425.00 0.5 $212.50
10/13/2020 ALl Various Reviewed draft MSJ, discussed draft w/ DAW and
easelaw $475.00 0.7 $332.50
10/14/2020 OW Draft Finakzed and filed Response to Ks Memo of Law $425.00 1.0 $425.00
10/102020 DW Telephone Spoke w/ client, re: memo of law $425.00 0.2 $85.00
10/14/2020 DW Telephone Spoke w/ client again, re: response to memo of law $425.00 0.1 $42.50
10/192020 DW Attend Hearing Attended hearing. re: Motion to Set CMC: called
client to discuss $425.00 1.5 $637.50
10/1512020 DW Various Reviewed email and letter from Pt re: settlement.
Sent copy to Client and caked to discuss. 5425.00 0.5 $212.50
EFTA02734360
10/15/2020 DW Telephone Spoke wi Prs counsel, re: settlement $425.00 0.1 $42.50
10/15/2020 OW Telephone Spoke w/ client, re: Prs settlement proposal $425.00 0.2 585.00
10/15/2020 AU Various Attended hearing, re: motion to set CMC:
discussed &client
$475.00 1.0 $475.00
10/15/2020 AU Various Discussed Pie settlement proposal w/ DAW and
then w/ Client $475.00 0.4 $190.00
10/15/2020 OW Meeting Discussed Prs settlement proposal WI AIJ $425.00 0.2 $8500
10/16/2020 DW Various Drafted and shared proposed order w/ Prs counsel $425.00 0.5 $212.50
10/16/2020 OW Telephone Spoke w/ Pt's counsel, re: settlement $425.00 0.2 $85.00
10/16'2020 DW Telephone Spoke w/ client. re: Prs settlement proposal $425.00 -!y 0.5 $212.50
10/16/2020 OW Meeting Discussed Pi's settlement proposal tiv/ AU $425.00 1-4"•%9 .2 $8500
10/16/2020 AU Meeting Discussed Prs settlement proposal tiv1 DAW $475001 02 $95.00
1a/9,2020 DW Various Uploaded proposed order, re: CMC for Judge
Hafele
', $425.00 0.1 $42.50
10/19/2020 DW Telephone Spoke iv/ client. re: Prs settlement proposal $425.00 02 $85 00
10/19,2020 DW Telephone Spoke wr Pt's counsel. re: settlement $425.00 0.1 $42.50
10/19'2020 AU //atilt; Discussed PIS settlement proposal w/ DAW $475.00 0.2 $95.00
10/19/2020 DW Meeting Discussed Prs settlement proposal w/ AU $425.00 0.2 $85.00
10/20/2020 OW Various Reviewed erne from Pl. re: settlement, sent copy
to Client and cared to discuss $425.00 0.5 $212.50
10/20/2020 OW Telephone Spoke w/ client. re: settlement $425.00 0.4 $170.00
10/20/2020 OW Telephone Spoke w/ Prs counsel, re: setttement $425.00 0.1 $42.50
1020/2020 OW Telephone Spoke w/ client, re: sentment $425.00 0.1 $42.50
1020V2020 OW Meeting Discussed Pre settlement proposal w/ AU $425.00 0.2 $85.00
10262020 AIJ Meeting Discussed P1's settlement proposal w/ DAW $475.00 0.2 $95.00
10/21/2020 DW Various
Drafted and fled Motion to Set Hearing on
Arenberg MSJ; drafted proposed order granting
motion to set; checked court availability: mailed
Prs counsel. re: choose date for hearing
$425.00 1.0 $425.00
1021/2020 DW Review Reviewed Order, re: CMC unnecessary 5425.00 0.1 $42.50
10/21/2020 DW Telephone Spoke w/ client. re: media response 5425.00 0.2 $85.00
10/21/2020 OW Telephone Spoke w/ client, re: media response $425.00 0.1 $42.50
10212020 DW Telephone Spoke w/ client. re: media response $425.00 0.1 $42.50
1021/2020 DW Telephone Spoke w/ client, re: media response $425.00 0.1 542.50
10121/2020 DW Telephone Spoke w/ client, re: media response $425.00 0.1 $42.50
10/21/2020 DW E-mail Sent email w/ Arenberg statement to media $425.00 0.1 $42.50
10/21/2020 AIJ Meeting Discussed media response w/ DAW $475.00 0.3 $142.50
10/21/2020 DW Meeting Discussed media response WI AU $425.00 0.3 $127.50
10.22/2020 DW Various
Reviewed P1's Notice of Dropping Arenberg as
party: spoke wr Client and AU. re: notice and next
steps
$425.00 0.5 $212.50
EFTA02734361
Reviewed Pi's Notice of Dropping Aronberg as
10/22/2020 AU Various party; spoke w/ Client and DAW, re: notice and next
steps
$475.00 0.5 $237.50
Totals: 74.8 $32,440.00
Time Entry Sub•Total:
Sub•Total:
$32,440.00
$32,440.00
Total: $32,440.00
Amount Paid: $0.00
Balance Due: $32,440.00
EFTA02734362
EXHIBIT "G"
EXHIBIT "G"
EFTA02734363
INC LAW OFFICES OF
. P.A.
ARTHUR I.
Mill.Al !LITT COMPANY Or PROFESSIONAL ASSOC.AVORS
ATTORNEYS AT LAW
GATEWAY TO AMELIA
SHIMS? GATEWAY BLVD.. SUITE SCUT
FERNANDINA Basra. FLORIDA 00034
TELEPHONE (904) EGI-31193
FAX NO (004) to .7679
November 26, 2019
Office of the State Attorney
15th Judicial Circuit
Ann: Jeanne Howard
401 North Dixie Highway
West Palm Beach, FL 33401
SCHOLZ 8c WYLER, LW.
RIC HAND a SCHOLZ. PA. Arcnanc. J. SCHOLZ
00U04Als A. WV'S& P.A. DOUGLAS A VMS
O SA
CRe: CA Florida Holdings, LLC v. Dave Arenberg et al.
Case No.: 2019-CA-014681
Dear Mrs. Howard:
The purpose of this letter is to confirm that Schott & Wyler, LLC will represent you regarding the
above-referenced matter.
Our fees will be contingent upon our success in this matter. You will not be liable or required to pay any
monies to our office unless we are sores-Wu( in ow representation of you regarding the above-referenced
litigation and receive a court order awarding attorneys' fees.
Accordingly, should we be successful in this matter, you agree to be billed for the time incurred in defending
this action at our current hourly rates. At this time, our current hourly rates are: $475.00/hour for senior
partners, $425.00/hour for other partners. $375.00/hour for associate attorneys, and $125.00/hour for
paralegal time.
Furthermore, the attorneys' fees paid to our firm shall be calculated by the above listed hourly rates
multiplied by the number of hours expended in defending this action or the total fee mandated and awarded
by the court order herein, whichever is greater.
By signing below, you agree to the terms as set forth above. Please return a signed and dated copy of this
letter to our office. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact our office. On behalf of the
firm, we are proud to represent you in this matter.
Sincerely,
k t — iji h
Douglas A. Wyler, Esq.
For the Firm
LA/1,,ta-DDate
EFTA02734364