Alexander Acosta is an Republican politician. He began his career clerking for Justice Samuel Alito before getting hired by the world’s largest law firm Kirkland and Ellis, specializing in labor law. He did some teaching in labor law as well, before he was appointed to the National Labor Relations Board by George W. Bush. He then worked By the end of Bush’s term, he was Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights and did some good work, defending the right of students to wear a hijab and re-opening the Emmett Till Case. He also got dinged for lax supervision and allowing partisan hiring practices.
He was then appointed U.S. Attorney for Southern District of Florida where he had some big cases, prosecuting Jack Abramoff, Jose Padilla, the Swiss Bank, the Cali Cartel. So it’s bizarre that he made a sweetheart deal with Jeffrey Epstein, but he did. By the time it came to public attention, though, he was Trump’s Secretary of Labor. The outrage over that plea deal forced his resignation.
The Palm Beach Police Department had been told that Epstein was acting inappropriately with a minor. They began investigating and found so much that the case overwhelmed the department and they called in the FBI. But then Acosta stepped in. He approved a federal non-prosecution agreement with Epstein.
He agreed that Epstein would not be prosecuted federally for anything except one charge and would serve on year in a Palm Beach jail, let out twelve hours a day on work release. He also agreed to keep the agreement secret from the victims (why it was eventually thrown out.) The investigation was shut down and the indictment was sealed.
It was a secret agreement that was ruled illegal because it violated the Crime Victims Rights Act. Among the rights enumerated in the act is the right to be informed, but Epstein’s victims were not informed of the non-prosecution agreement. The deal also included any co-conspirators, which could have meant the rich and famous he hung out with, victims he converted to assistants, or even his lawyers.
- Miami Herald: Alexander Acosta gave Jeffrey Epstein the deal of a lifetime
- NBC News: Jeffrey Epstein’s slap on the wrist raises a lot of questions. The DOJ needs to get answers.
- Miami Herald: Epstein victims want Alexander Acosta to explain himself
- Washington Post: Acosta defends wealthy sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s plea deal, says Epstein would’ve had no jail time if his office had not intervened
- Washington Post: Alex Acosta resigns as labor secretary, the latest Trump official to leave amid scandal
Miami, Florida · Sunday, March 05, 2017