EFTA00231917

30 
1 
assert his fifth amendment right against 
2 
self incrimination, and we believe on a 
3 
good faith believe that on the contents of 
4 
that document speak to the issues of 
5 
whether or not he can or cannot deny the 
6 
claims that have been brought against him 
7 
both in state and federal court. In other 
8 
words, whether or not he must, in fact, 
9 
admit that he molested these 14 year old 
10 
girls, so, therefore, the content of that 
11 
document is paramount as to the issues in 
12 
the civil proceedings that are currently 
13 
pending in state court which is why we 
14 
would like that document. 
15 
THE COURT: Okay. Thank you. Thank 
16 
you so very much. Ms. Shullman from the 
17 
Post. 
18 
MS. SHULLMAN: Thank you, your Honor. 
19 
I feel a little bit like I have stepped 
20 
into the twilight zone here, so I'd like to 
21 
address a couple of the things we've 
22 
addressed and get us to what we are really 
23 
here to do today. 
24 
THE COURT: I don't know if you are 
25 
referring specifically to the courtroom or 
SUSAN WIGGINS, R.P.R. AND OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER 
EFTA00232497

31 
1 
2 
3 
4 
5 
6 
7 
8 
9 
10 
11 
12 
13 
14 
15 
16 
17 
18 
19 
20 
21 
22 
—23 
24 
25 
the convoluted situation that brings us to 
the courtroom. 
MS. SHULLMAN: Just this whole 
federal state situation. There is no hill 
for the public and the press to march up in 
Judge Marra's court as Mr. Edwards pointed 
out, Judge Marra has specifically held the 
agreement was not filed in this case under 
seal or otherwise, so were I to march into 
Judge Marra's courtroom and do my whole 
public access spiel, he would say take it 
to you, your Honor, because it's not a 
record in my court. It is a record here, 
and in the state court as we talked about 
the last time, 
presumption of 
Mr. Epstein to 
While he filed 
we were here, there's a 
openness. The burden is on 
overcome that presumption. 
a very brief memorandum 
after our last hearing, which identified 
for interest, he has by no means met the 
test of either establishing those interest 
or establishing the remainder of that test 
whiff would be that closures no broader 
than necessary ineffective no other 
reasonable alternatives, so if I could, I'd 
SUSAN WIGGINS, R.P.R. AND OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER 
EFTA00232498

32 
1 
like to sort of focus us back to the 
2 
inquiry we're here to make today in this 
3 
court, and that is whether your Honor is 
4 
going to provide public access to two 
5 
records that are, I think, indisputably in 
6 
your Honor's court file in this court's 
7 
file. 
8 
It's a plea agreement and an 
9 
addendum; those are historically and 
10 
typically open records. 
11 
Mr. Goldberger mentioned that the 
12 
plea agreement was sort of incidentally 
13 
filed in this court file, and that it was 
14 
sort of an afterthought that happened. He 
15 
never came into court intending that it 
16 
even be part of the court file, but 
17 
Judge Pucillo specifically said, this is a 
18 
significant inducement to accepting the 
19 
plea in my court. This agreement that you 
20 
have with federal prosecutors is 
21 
significantly the reason why you're 
22 
entering this plea before me. And she took 
23 
those records into the court file 
24 
presumably because they are significant to 
25 
this litigation. Even if there was an 
SUSAN WIGGINS, R.P.R. AND OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER 
EFTA00232499

1 
2 
3 
4 
5 
6 
7 
8 
9 
10 
11 
12 
13 
14 
15 
16 
17 
18 
19 
20 
21 
22 
23 
24 
25 
33 
incidental filing, which cannot possibly be 
the case here, there is no mechanism in 
Florida law to call a Mulligan and to pull 
it out of the court file. As you know, the 
Floridians have a constitutional right of 
access, there's no mechanism in that law to 
just say, oopsy, let's take it out of the 
file, so they have to meet their burden and 
they have to show under Rule 2.420 that one 
of those interests is satisfied. They have 
identified four here. I have not heard 
them discuss them at any great length. But 
I will go through them quickly. 
The imminent threat to the fair, 
impartial orderly administration of 
justice, or to protect a compelling 
government interest. As your Honor is 
aware, the federal government is not here 
today. I have spoken with the state 
attorney's office who has indicated that 
their only interest is in protecting to the 
extent necessary because I've not seen 
these documents the identity of the victims 
of these crimes. 
The Post in its motion to intervene 
SUSAN WIGGINS, R.P.R. AND OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER 
EFTA00232500

34 
1 
has already set forth that we have no 
2 
objection to redacting the victim's names 
3 
if, in fact, that is required because we 
4 
haven't seen the agreement. To avoid 
5 
substantial injury to innocent third 
6 
parties, again, absolutely no showing on 
7 
that test. I have no burden at this point, 
8 
but I will simply state that the law in 
9 
Florida is clear that Mr. Epstein doesn't 
10 
have standing to assert that interest. 
11 
And, finally, something else I heard 
12 
nothing about to avoid substantial injury 
13 
to a party which, I guess, presumably would 
14 
be Mr. Epstein by disclosure of matters 
15 
protected by a privacy right not generally 
16 
inherent in this specific type of 
17 
proceedings. Again, I have not heard any 
18 
attempt to meet the burden on that issue, 
19 
however, Florida law is equally clear that 
20 
participants in crimes lose their privacy 
21 
interest in the matters and facts and 
22 
circumstances of the commission of those 
23 
crimes, so Mr. Epstein surely cannot 
24 
establish that there is a separate privacy 
25 
interest not inherent in a criminal 
SUSAN WIGGINS, R.P.R. AND OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER 
EFTA00232501

35 
1 
prosecution regarding the molestation of 
2 
young girls. 
3 
The circumstances under which closure 
4 
is allowed in Florida are exceedingly 
5 
narrow. We first -- and before we do 
6 
anything else -- have to find that one of 
7 
those interests is met here, that it exists 
8 
and that the movant has met its burden in 
9 
demonstrating that it's significant enough 
10 
to require the court to consider closure. 
11 
That's not the end of inquiry. And, of 
12 
course, I have not yet heard anything else 
13 
about that second half of the test which 
14 
talks about the idea that closure is no 
15 
broader than necessary to protect that 
16 
interest and that it would be effective and 
17 
that there are no other alternatives. 
18 
In speaking of the federal litigation 
19 
there are instances when both Mr. Epstein's 
20 
lawyers and the federal prosecutors have 
21 
placed portions of the agreement into the 
22 
public court file. There are -- thus 
23 
attempts to seal those records in the 
24 
federal litigation have been unsuccessful, 
25 
so part of this agreement the cat is 
SUSAN WIGGINS, R.P.R. AND OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER 
EFTA00232502

36 
1 
already out of the bag. But there is also 
2 
an enormous public interest in what's going 
3 
on here, apart from the idea that this man 
4 
is accused of having many, many victims who 
5 
were all young children which, of course, 
6 
in itself creates a lot of public concern, 
7 
the chief of police at the time sent a 
8 
letter to the state prosecutors and said, 
9 
what are you guys doing, how are you 
10 
handling this, this is highly unusual; I 
11 
don't like what I'm seeing here. And even 
12 
went so far as to say, state attorney's 
13 
office, should you all step away from this 
14 
case. 
15 
So we have public interest from the 
16 
perspective of the police chief questioning 
17 
the state attorney's office about whether 
18 
it's doing its job. We have public 
19 
interest that's spurned by the idea that 
20 
some of the victims in the federal 
21 
prosecution -- in the federal court claimed 
22 
they weren't aware of it, we just heard 
23 
Mr. Edwards talk about the fact that his 
24 
clients weren't aware of the agreement 
25 
unless it all went down, so we have a 
SUSAN WIGGINS, R.P.R. AND OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER 
EFTA00232503

37 
1 
significant public interest about how 
2 
everybody in this litigation is doing their 
3 
job. There is nothing more fundamentally 
4 
important than the ability of the public 
5 
and the press to observe how its 
6 
government, all branches of its government, 
7 
do its job. 
8 
There are multiple, as Mr. Edwards 
9 
also mentioned, multiple civil lawsuits 
10 
that have spurned as a result of 
11 
Mr. Epstein's conduct, and, again, the 
12 
public has an interest in what's going on 
13 
in civil litigation matters. 
14 
In short, this matter involves a 
15 
major public interest from a lot of 
16 
different levels. There is no basis for 
17 
closure that has been asserted here. It's 
18 
a heavy burden to meet. We start with the 
19 
idea that openness is the right thing to do 
20 
but there is essentially no purpose served 
21 
at this point by keeping these agreements 
22 
sealed in this case. 
23 
Unless your Honor has any questions, 
24 
I think that's it. 
25 
THE COURT: Okay. Thank you so very 
SUSAN WIGGINS, R.P.R. AND OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER 
EFTA00232504

38 
1 
much. Ms. Burns, on behalf of the state of 
2 
Florida, anything you'd like to add or 
3 
advocate? 
4 
MS. BURNS: If I may, your Honor. 
5 
THE COURT: Sure. 
6 
MS. BURNS: Good afternoon, your 
7 
Honor. 
8 
THE COURT: Good afternoon. 
9 
MS. BURNS: Your Honor, the State is 
10 
not here to take a position on whether or 
11 
not this court should seal -- continue to 
12 
seal the records or unseal the records. 
We 
13 
are here merely to uphold the state laws 
14 
which require all of us as members of the 
15 
judicial system to protect the rights of 
16 
the confidentiality of the victims. I do 
17 
see two issues here, your Honor. 
18 
One is if you decide to unseal the 
19 
records based upon the arguments that have 
20 
been presented to you, then the State would 
21 
ask that the court first do an incamera 
22 
viewing, not just merely open up that 
23 
portion of the file for viewing by all 
24 
interested parties, first, that the Court 
25 
do an incamera viewing to make two 
SUSAN WIGGINS, R.P.R. AND OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER 
EFTA00232505

39 
1 
evaluations. 
2 
Number one, does the document, in 
3 
fact, have a relationship to the criminal 
4 
case in the state matter. And, number two, 
5 
evaluate the right of public access versus 
6 
the victim's right to confidentiality. If 
7 
this Court does decide to unseal those 
8 
records, then the State would ask that this 
9 
Court before making the document public 
10 
access, then make certain that in place is 
11 
that the victim's identities are amended to 
12 
initials if their names are used. 
13 
The State does have a concern 
14 
regarding the argument of the Federal Rule 
15 
Six in that is this Court bound by a 
16 
federal rule which perhaps has been made 
17 
unenforcible by virtue of making it a part 
18 
of the state file, so I think the Court 
19 
also would need to address that issue 
20 
before making its ruling. 
21 
THE COURT: All right, great. Thank 
22 
you so much. 
23 
MS. BURNS: Thank you, Judge. 
24 
THE COURT: One last chance for the 
25 
federal government, they're not here and 
SUSAN WIGGINS, R.P.R. AND OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER 
EFTA00232506

40 
1 
I'll let rebuttal of any other 
2 
presentation, Mr. Goldberger, or, 
3 
Mr. Critton, you'd like to make. 
4 
MR. GOLDBERGER: Thank you, your 
5 
Honor. As to the last argument made by 
6 
Ms. Burns as to the applicability of 
7 
Federal Rule 6 of the Rules of Federal 
8 
Criminal Procedure it's something that we 
9 
learned in the law school that the 
10 
supremacy clause controls and to the extent 
11 
there's a conflict between the federal 
12 
doctrine and the state doctrine, the 
13 
supremacy clause requires the federal rule 
14 
of law to apply and to control. And 
15 
certainly in this case you cannot use a 
16 
state procedure to circumvent a federal 
17 
rule of criminal procedure that confers 
18 
secrecy to a grand jury proceeding. 
19 
And the Palm Beach Post response to 
20 
the argument never made note of the grand 
21 
jury rule, they simply avoided that issue 
22 
and that in our mind is equally important 
23 
as the fact in the interest of comity this 
24 
Court should defer to the rulings of 
25 
Judge Marra already. 
SUSAN WIGGINS, R.P.R. AND OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER 
EFTA00232507

41 
1 
As to Mr. Kuvin's argument that he 
2 
has a client that is in state court and is 
3 
not in federal court and therefore he 
4 
doesn't have a remedy in federal court. 
5 
With all due respect to Mr. Kuvin, that's 
6 
similarly wrong. Judge Marra's order 
7 
spebifically dealt with a class of 
8 
individuals who were identified as victims 
9 
of Mr. Epstein's conduct, and Judge Marra's 
10 
order says that anyone who's been 
11 
identified by the United States attorney's 
12 
office as a victim has right to the 
13 
nonprosecution agreement under the same 
14 
rules. 
15 
Just so the Court understands, I know 
16 
we are talking like the Court understands 
17 
everything about this case. There was a 
18 
list of victims that was created at the 
19 
time that the nonprosecution agreement was 
20 
entered into and Mr. Kuvin's client is on 
21 
that list. That list was created by the 
22 
U.S. attorney's office. He has the same 
23 
rights to the nonprosecution agreement as 
24 
if he filed this case in federal court and 
25 
he knows that we've told him that he has 
SUSAN WIGGINS, R.P.R. AND OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER 
EFTA00232508

42 
1 
that access. 
2 
As to the fact that the 
3 
nonprosecution agreement is presumably not 
4 
filed in the federal case in our last 
5 
hearing in front of Judge Marra on June 5th 
6 
-- I'm sorry, June 12th, Mr. Edwards 
7 
advised Judge Marra that he had, in fact, 
8 
filed a nonprosecution agreement to no 
9 
one's surprise under seal in the federal 
10 
file, so the nonprosecution agreement 
11 
according to Mr. Edwards' declaration at 
12 
that hearing is contained in the federal 
13 
court system. 
14 
For all of those reasons, your Honor, 
15 
and the reasons that I previously indicated 
16 
to the Court, we would ask the Court to 
17 
defer to the federal court in this matter. 
18 
THE COURT: Okay. Thank you very 
19 
much. Here is what I'm planning on doing, 
20 
so you know where I'm going on this. I'll 
21 
make an oral announcement and I'll follow 
22 
it up with a written order so that you all 
23 
can have something to take to wherever you 
24 
want to take it. 
25 
I find that the appropriate procedure 
SUSAN WIGGINS, R.P.R. AND OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER 
EFTA00232509

43 
1 
to seal or close these documents has not 
2 
been met, so I'll deny the motion to seal 
3 
the documents. I'll grant the motion to 
4 
unseal them. I will take a look at the 
5 
documents. I will redact out of them 
6 
the -- what I'll do is, I'll leave the 
7 
originals intact sealed in the court file 
8 
to protect the names of any underage 
9 
victims. 
10 
I will make copies of those. I'll 
11 
redact out the names leaving -- expose the 
12 
initials of any of the individuals. I'll 
13 
get that done -- I'll get my written order 
14 
out granting and denying the respective 
15 
motions hopefully by the end of today. If 
16 
not today, tomorrow. I plan on releasing 
17 
the redacted versions probably Monday, so 
18 
that those will be available for public 
19 
consumption on Monday. 
20 
MR. GOLDBERGER: Your Honor, thank 
21 
you. Thank you for the oral pronouncement. 
22 
Your Honor, based on the Court's ruling, we 
23 
do have a motion to stay disclosure of the 
24 
nonprosecution agreement. The rules of 
25 
appellate procedure require us to file that 
SUSAN WIGGINS, R.P.R. AND OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER 
EFTA00232510

44 
1 
before, your Honor. 
2 
Your Honor, we do intend to take 
3 
certiorari on this to the Fourth District 
4 
Court. 
5 
THE COURT: That's why I figure 
6 
between the written rule and the disclosure 
7 
give you a chance to catch your breath and 
8 
do that. I guess you might want that. Is 
9 
Monday 5 p.m. enough time for you to get 
10 
over to the DCA? 
11 
MR. GOLDBERGER: Actually, your 
12 
Honor, the Rule of Appellate Procedure 
13 
maintains jurisdiction with you on this 
14 
matter to entertain the motion to stay. 
15 
THE COURT: So I need to handle the 
16 
motion to stay? 
17 
MR. GOLDBERGER: Correct, your Honor. 
18 
THE COURT: Do you want to argue that 
19 
now? Do you want to take a look at that, 
20 
catch your breath, come back and see me 
21 
Monday sometime; what's your pleasure? 
22 
MR. GOLDBERGER: We're ready to do it 
23 
now, your Honor. We're ready to do it now. 
24 
THE COURT: All right. Interveners, 
25 
your thoughts. 
SUSAN WIGGINS, R.P.R. AND OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER 
EFTA00232511

45 
1 
MR. KUVIN: Matter of procedure 
2 
point, I just want to make sure that the 
3 
motion to intervene is, in fact, granted. 
4 
THE COURT: You're BB's motion to 
5 
intervene is granted. Do you have a 
6 
written order for me to sign off on there? 
7 
MR. KUVIN: I can submit that. 
8 
THE COURT: Why don't you catch your 
9 
breath and come back tomorrow and I'll hear 
10 
argument. It will give me a chance to read 
11 
the motion, check out the rules, take a 
12 
look, got to get myself gassed up. Anybody 
13 
want to drop anything off for me to read 
14 
before the hearing, please do that. Why 
15 
don't we do that tomorrow morning, and why 
16 
don't we reconvene here tomorrow at 1:30 on 
17 
the motion to stay. 
18 
MR. GOLDBERGER: That's fine. 
19 
THE COURT: How does your schedule 
20 
look? 
21 
MR. GERBER: Your Honor, is it 
22 
possible to have it a little later, perhaps 
23 
24 
25 
an hour later tomorrow? 
THE COURT: 2:30. 
MR. GERBER: If possible. 
SUSAN WIGGINS, R.P.R. AND OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER 
EFTA00232512

46 
1 
THE COURT: How about a little later 
2 
than that still, let me take a look at our 
3 
official calendaring system here. 
4 
MR. CRITTON: Judge Colbath, I'm gone 
5 
tomorrow, I'm going to Gainesville at one 
6 
or 12:30-ish. I told my wife I would be 
7 
home at one. My daughter's birthday, 21, 
8 
she's having a party, I plan to be there. 
9 
Can we do it tomorrow morning any time, it 
10 
would be great. 
11 
THE COURT: Tomorrow morning is ugly. 
12 
This isn't going to take long. 
13 
MS. BURNS: This is a five-minute 
14 
motion. 
15 
THE COURT: Why don't we do this, 
16 
meet at 8:15? 
17 
MS. SHULLMAN: Your Honor, I'm not 
18 
going to be able to get my kids to school 
19 
if I have to be here at 8:15. My husband 
20 
is in California right now. 
21 
MR. GOLDBERGER: I don't mean to jump 
22 
in. I wonder if we can do some of this 
23— 
telephonically. 
24 
MS. SHULLMAN: Yes, I can appear by 
25 
phone or I can have one of my partners. 
SUSAN WIGGINS, R.P.R. AND OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER 
EFTA00232513

47 
1 
THE COURT: In the morning what would 
2 
be a good start time for you? 
3 
MS. SHULLMAN: Nine would be getter. 
4 
I can't drop them off before eight. 
5 
THE COURT: It's going to be brief 
6 
argument, let's do it 9:00 tomorrow 
7 
morning; 9:00 work for you? 
8 
MR. CRITTON: Yes, sir. Thank you. 
9 
MR. GOLDBERGER: Just very briefly, 
10 
the Court is going to look at the 
11 
nonprosecution agreement and do some 
12 
redacting, I believe. I just need to 
13 
advise the court in addition to Mr. Epstein 
14 
and perhaps victims mention the 
15 
nonprosecution agreement, there are third 
16 
parties who the Court needs to look about 
17 
redacting their names also, and that's 
18 
contained in the nonprosecution agreement. 
19 
In other words, there are other 
20 
people beside Mr. Epstein and Mr. Victims 
21 
whose names are mentioned in the 
22 
nonprosecution agreement, and I would ask 
23 
the Court to look at those names also for 
24 
the purpose of redacting. 
25 
THE COURT: I'll like a look. 
SUSAN WIGGINS, R.P.R. AND OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER 
EFTA00232514

48 
1 
MR. EDWARDS: Your Honor, those are 
2 
not names of victims, those are 
3 
co-conspirators as listed in the agreement 
4 
and we would object to any redaction of 
5 
those names. I don't think there's any 
6 
standing to ask for that. 
7 
THE COURT: I'll take a look. All 
8 
right. See you all tomorrow morning at 
9 
nine. If you want to send anything to me 
10 
later this afternoon or tomorrow morning 
11 
before we take the bench, I'm happy to 
12 
receive it. Have a good afternoon. 
13 
(Proceedings concluded.) 
14 
15 
16 
17 
18 
19 
20 
21 
22 
23  
24 
25 
SUSAN WIGGINS, R.P.R. AND OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER 
EFTA00232515

49 
1 
2 
CERTIFICATE 
3 
4 
THE STATE OF FLORIDA, 
5 
COUNTY OF PALM BEACH. 
6 
I, SUSAN S. WIGGINS, R.P.R. Official 
7 
Court Reporter for the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, 
8 
Criminal Division, in and for Palm Beach County, 
9 
Florida; do hereby certify that I was authorized 
10 
to and did report the foregoing proceedings before 
11 
the Court at the time and place aforesaid; and 
12 
that the preceding pages numbered from 1 to 48, 
13 
inclusive, represent a true and accurate 
14 
transcription of my steno notes taken at said 
15 
proceedings. 
16 
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto 
17 
affixed my official signature this 29th day of 
18 
June, 2009. 
19 
20 
21 
22 
_ _ 
23 
— 
24 
25 
C2644424 (.143ttli
4 
SUSAN S. WIGGINS, 
P.R.
.P
SUSAN WIGGINS, R.P.R. AND OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER 
EFTA00232516