Overview
- New Mexico filed a federal lawsuit on Wednesday, August 5, 2026, asking a court to compel the Department of Justice and acting Attorney General Todd Blanche to turn over unredacted Epstein-related records.
- Attorney General Raúl Torrez says his office made roughly ten formal requests that were ignored or denied and that a 2019 federal request to pause the state probe came with a promise to share information that never materialized.
- The DOJ says it is bound by federal court orders that bar revealing information that identifies victims and that New Mexico has not provided a legal basis for broader disclosures.
- The complaint accuses the DOJ and Blanche of obstructing the state investigation and of withholding material that could identify victims, witnesses, and possible additional suspects, and it seeks a judicial order to produce the files.
- The case raises political pressure on Blanche as his Senate confirmation is pending and renews scrutiny of the Justice Department’s December document releases under the Epstein archives law, which lawmakers and survivors criticized for excessive redactions and sealing.