WHILE EPSTEIN AND I HAD reached a final agreement, nothing was ever final with him. There were only a few days between our Starbucks meeting and the trial date, which was when Epstein planned to deliver the public apology, but you never knew what could take the deal apart: the release of Julie’s story, some aspect of the still-scheduled trial, something totally unknown and unpredictable. The trial was set to go forward on December 4, on my oldest son’s birthday, and only a select few other people knew the trial was not going to happen.
The Epstein camp was fuming about the timing of the Miami Herald story. It was impossible to know for sure if this saga was really going to end. Even as Brittany and I drove to the courthouse the morning of the trial, I was waiting for a last-minute maneuver.
Driving north on I-95 from Fort Lauderdale to Palm Beach, I felt as if I were trapped in some alien territory in my own mind. Brittany turned to me and asked, “What’s going on? I’ve seen you happy, mad, frustrated, anxious, but never like this.” I really didn’t know how to respond. I was conflicted between wanting this trial to proceed at long last, and knowing it was smart to settle it. Especially since it was settling on my terms.
After years of work, the first trial I could control completely was not going to happen. I had uncovered so many witnesses, put together Epstein’s scheme, and had solid proof of the crimes he had committed throughout the country. While I knew how the judge had ruled on what would and would not be allowed into evidence, and I knew that much of the information I had accumulated would not be aired in this trial, this ending still felt deeply anticlimactic. I explained as much before we parked.
Brittany looked at me and said, “This has never been the case you cared about. Helping the girls through the CVRA has been your mission; making sure Epstein faces criminal charges, that’s all that matters. That’s all still alive. You’ve won at every stage of that case and you are going to win in the end. Today, Jeffrey is telling the world that you were doing the right thing all along and he intentionally tried to derail you. What more do you want?”
She was right. We parked next to Jack and walked into the courthouse together. The walls were lined with reporters waiting for jury selection to begin. When I entered the courtroom that morning, I didn’t see Jeffrey. This was not a good sign, but also not a surprise. I never believed he would actually show up.
Judge Hafele took the bench and the parties informed the court of the settlement. I heard a gasp from the crowd. Scott Link faced the reporters from the well of the courtroom and read a document that was a statement from Jeffrey Epstein:
While Mr. Edwards was representing clients against me, I filed a lawsuit against him in which I made allegations about him that the evidence conclusively proves were absolutely false. The truth was that his aggressive investigation and litigation style was highly effective and therefore troublesome for me. The lawsuit I filed was my unreasonable attempt to damage his business reputation and cause Mr. Edwards to stop pursuing cases against me. It did not work. Despite my efforts, he continued to do an excellent job for his clients and, through his relentless pursuit, held me responsible. I am now admitting that I was wrong and that the things I said to try to harm Mr. Edwards’s reputation as a trial lawyer were false. I sincerely apologize for the false and hurtful allegations I made and hope for some forgiveness for my acknowledgment of wrongdoing.
I never thought I’d hear those words or anything close to them. Even after he had said them to me at Starbucks. But, he stayed true to his word and delivered on his promise to publicly apologize to me.
After the apology was read to everyone in the courtroom, Judge Hafele spoke. He tried to find his usual way of being even-keeled by thanking everyone for their professionalism along the way. I don’t remember his exact words, but he gave a special thank-you to the victims who were courageous enough to come forward and stand up, like Courtney, Lynn, and Marissa.
It was difficult to reconcile his closing remarks with those that he spoke at the hearing many years earlier when he had caused me to move to recuse him from the case. But like everyone involved, I think he, too, had matured and had developed a better understanding of the case over the years.
The press was ready for a trial and not sure what to make of what had just happened. The words of the apology caught everyone off guard. It was an extraordinary and powerful ending caught on tape.
Those in the courtroom who were set up with video cameras permitted by the judge were rewinding and replaying the apology over and over. Jack Scarola spoke last before we left the courtroom, thanking the judge and explaining to the court and the public, “This was no settlement, it was a surrender.”
Our team filed down the hallway, passing reporters who were shoving microphones in our faces. We walked out the doors and across the street to where Jack had stacked dozens of boxes of Epstein trial material and exhibits for everyone to see. He had prepared the display and organized a massive press conference. He had not told me this was going to happen, but I was impressed. He stepped up to the microphones and began to speak.
I had planned to be a good client and let my lawyer talk, but many of the reporters’ questions felt as though they deserved answers only I could give.
I don’t remember what I said, only that I spoke with pure, unlawyerlike emotion and rawness including whatever came to mind. Video cameras captured it, so there must be a record of it somewhere. I think at some stage during the press conference, I even told the somewhat embarrassing story of how I entered this fight by scribbling the word “Emergency” on the top of the first pleading that I ever filed in federal court. I wasn’t there to pretend to be someone I wasn’t. I tried to give an earnest account of what had happened beyond this particular case, and why I would continue to fight with the CVRA case.
The press conference had ended, but it wasn’t really over. People had traveled from all over the country for the trial and were pulling me into unavoidable interviews. I was even filmed in an impromptu scene for a Netflix documentary where my legal team and I shared our thoughts on the settlement that had just occurred. When I finally left, I got home to see my family and celebrate what was left of my son’s birthday. Just like that, it was over.
This was the first time in a decade when there wasn’t personal litigation going on between Jeffrey Epstein and me. We were done. Or were we?
The public apology on the heels of Julie Brown’s story got the attention of the U.S. Attorney’s office in the Southern District of New York. They opened a highly secretive investigation knowing that if Jeffrey Epstein ever caught wind of it, he would find a way to shut it down. While they could covertly obtain information that our extensive investigation had uncovered, they could not talk to victims directly without risking it tipping off Epstein. However, by pure coincidence, or karma, they could catch a break.