Justice Department Report Finds Negligence and Misconduct Enabled Jeffrey Epstein’s Suicide in Federal Jail

A new report from the Justice Department’s inspector general has concluded that a “combination of negligence and misconduct” enabled financier Jeffrey Epstein to take his own life at a federal jail in New York City while he was awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.

The report, released Tuesday, found that systemic negligence, misconduct, and overall under-resourcing among federal prison staff and facilities contributed to the conditions that enabled Epstein to die by suicide in his prison cell in August 2019.

Epstein, 66, was found dead in his New York prison cell a little over a month after federal authorities took him into custody for the alleged sex trafficking of minors. Inspector General Michael Horowitz cited the federal Bureau of Prisons’ failure to assign Epstein a cellmate after his previous one left and problems with surveillance cameras as factors in Epstein’s death.

The inspector general’s report is the latest in a series of official inquiries into Epstein’s death. In August 2019, a medical examiner ruled that Epstein had died by suicide from an apparent hanging.

The inspector general’s report also found that the Bureau of Prisons had failed to properly monitor Epstein’s mental health and had not taken adequate steps to ensure his safety. The report recommended that the Bureau of Prisons take steps to improve its monitoring of inmates and ensure that staff are properly trained and equipped to handle inmates with mental health issues.