Who’s Watching the Watchmen? Calls Grow for an IG Probe Into the DOJ’s Epstein File Delay (1/9/26)

Calls for the Department of Justice’s Inspector General to step in and investigate the handling of the Epstein files release have intensified as delays, contradictions, and shifting explanations continue to pile up. What began as cautious skepticism has hardened into open frustration from lawmakers, transparency advocates, and legal experts who argue that the DOJ’s conduct no longer passes the smell test. Despite Congress passing legislation mandating disclosure, the DOJ has repeatedly claimed it needs years to review and redact millions of documents—an assertion that critics say directly conflicts with the government’s long-standing position that Epstein was thoroughly investigated years ago. If the material was already reviewed, categorized, and litigated over in past prosecutions and civil cases, the argument goes, then the idea that it suddenly requires a near-decade scrub looks less like due diligence and more like institutional stalling.


As a result, pressure has mounted for the Inspector General to examine whether the DOJ is acting in good faith or deliberately slow-walking compliance to shield itself from embarrassment, exposure, or liability. Lawmakers have raised concerns that the department may be protecting its own past misconduct—failed prosecutions, ignored evidence, sweetheart deals, and inter-agency breakdowns—by burying the record under procedural excuses. Survivor advocates have echoed those demands, warning that endless delays amount to a second betrayal, one that favors bureaucratic self-preservation over transparency and accountability. With every missed deadline and shifting justification, calls for an independent IG probe grow louder, fueled by the belief that the only way the public will ever learn the truth about Epstein’s protection is if the DOJ is investigated by someone who doesn’t have a vested interest in keeping the lid on.



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Delayed release of Epstein files triggers calls for internal watchdog review - CBS News