Florida Judge Says 'Hands Are Tied,' Won't Unseal Epstein Grand Jury Transcripts | 23 July 2025 | A federal judge has denied the Trump administration's request to unseal transcripts from Florida grand jury proceedings related to a 20-year-old criminal investigation into Jeffrey Epstein, saying her "hands are tied." U.S. District Court Judge for the Southern District of Florida Robin Rosenberg wrote in her denial that an unrelated 2020 ruling by the Eleventh U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals "does not permit" her to unseal grand jury records in instances not covered by the criminal procedure rule, CNBC reported. "Eleventh Circuit law does not permit this Court to grant the Government's request; the Court's hands are tied -- a point the Government concedes," Rosenberg wrote.