EFTA00804864.pdf

Editor:Re "The > Cowardly Labor Secretary" (editorial, March 3):Your editorial's > conclusions are in profound conflict with the reality as we, > Jeffrey Epstein's current and former lawyers, knew it. > Alexander > Acosta, the labor secretary, as United States attorney for > the Southern District of Florida in 2007, oversaw a plea > deal for Mr. Epstein involving charges of solicitation of prostitution involving > young women. Your underlying premise is that Mr. Acosta had > capitulated and not filed federal charges because Mr. > Epstein had a "high-priced defense team." This was categorically > denied by the Southern District's then first assistant, > Jeffrey H. Sloman, in an Op-Ed > article in The Miami Herald on Feb. 15. Mr. Sloman > correctly represented the existence of "significant legal impediments to {federally} prosecuting what was, at heart, a local sex abuse case." He also correctly represented that the government > had achieved its principal objectives — a felony plea, > incarceration, millions of dollars in > monetary settlements, and lifetime sex offender registration > — through its agreement with Mr. Epstein. That agreement was > reviewed at multiple levels of the Justice Department. An > agreement rather than a trial is how over 97 percent of > federal cases get resolved, > through negotiations by two teams of experienced EFTA00804864 > professionals. The case lacked the credible and compelling proof that is required by federal criminal statutes. That the guilty plea > was required in a state not federal court reflected the absence of > evidence that Mr. Epstein used the internet, or commercially trafficked women to others, > engaged in force, fraud or coercion, used drugs or alcohol > to entice young women who came to his house to exchange > sexual massages for money, or in > other ways violated federal law. Your claims regarding > the number of young women involved in the investigation were > vastly exaggerated, there was no "international > sex-trafficking operation" > and there was never evidence that Mr. Epstein "hosted sex > parties" anywhere, at anytime > . Finally, Mr. Epstein > has gone to prison and made enormous monetary settlements > required under his negotiated agreement. He is entitled to > finality like every other defendant. EFTA00804865