00:00We may look like grown adults when you see us now, but we were children, young girls at the time
00:06of our abuse.
00:07These are the photos of when our innocence, dreams, and lives were stolen.
00:11In December, before the document release, our attorneys submitted 350 victims' names to the Department of Justice as victims' names
00:19to be redacted.
00:21Prior to the relation, these documents contained disturbing yet incomplete accounts of my abuse.
00:26They were available not only for the entire world to see, but my child, my students, my friends, my employers,
00:34my colleagues, and my family.
00:36It was human.
00:37Survivors in this room repeatedly asked to meet with Todd Blanche through multiple channels.
00:42He never responded.
00:43Yesterday, he said he would meet with us, with our attorneys, if they were present.
00:48But let's be clear, that was the first time that that was ever communicated to us before.
00:53First, I'd like to thank you all, and thank you to the committee for hearing survivor voices.
00:58I'd like to remind you of who you're hearing from today.
01:01At this time, can my survivor sisters and family please rise?
01:08We may look like grown adults when you see us now, but we were children, young girls at the time
01:14of our abuse.
01:15These are the photos of when our innocence, dreams, and lives were stolen.
01:19Please take these faces in as you think of us as your own family, daughters, nieces, sisters.
01:27Now look at our faces and remember the women and families of who the DOJ re-victimized.
01:33Thank you so much.
01:46Today, Todd Blanche has been at the helm of the release of nude images of survivors, the outing of Jane
01:59Doe's, and the exposure of more than 100 victims identifying information.
02:05And documents describing horrific acts of abuse, including my own.
02:11Instead of treating this release as its own violation and holding the man who led it accountable,
02:17you have a decision on whether you place him in the highest law enforcement position in this country.
02:27In December, before the document release, our attorneys submitted 350 victims' names to the Department of Justice as victims' names
02:35to be redacted prior to the release.
02:39In that first release, I found my name in two places.
02:42In that next release in January, my name appeared again, but this time the redactions were so far worse.
02:47The files displayed not only my name, but my phone number, my former addresses, where I worked, and other identifying
02:54information.
02:55When my name appeared in the third file release, it became difficult to believe that this was not intentional.
03:03Despite my lawyer repeatedly contacting the DOJ, seeking protection, my information continued to be exposed.
03:11And it's not just my name, it's the identifying information.
03:15These documents contain disturbing, yet incomplete accounts of my abuse.
03:20They were available not only for the entire world to see, but my child, my students, my friends, my employers,
03:27my colleagues, and my family.
03:29It was humiliating.
03:31Worse, my FBI 302 exposed a Jane Doe, who had fought for decades to conceal her identity.
03:39It's been absolutely devastating.
03:43Outing survivors causes real and irrevocable harm.
03:47While coping with our emotional distress and psychological trauma, we also have lost our privacy and confidentiality,
03:55suffered reputational harm, lost jobs, and now fear for our personal safety.
04:01We are not activists.
04:04We are crime victims.
04:06For us, this has never been about politics.
04:10It has been about getting justice for the crimes committed against us.
04:15And the redactions are not the only problem with Todd Blanche's nomination.
04:19Todd Blanche has never attempted to listen to us, the crime victims.
04:23Survivors in this room repeatedly asked to meet with Todd Blanche through multiple channels.
04:28He never responded.
04:29Yesterday, he said he would meet with us, with our attorneys, if they were present.
04:34But let's be clear, that was the first time that that was ever communicated to us before yesterday.
04:40He simply ignored us for the last eight months.
04:44He has been radio silent, and the silence was deafening.
04:48Crime victims deserve better from the nation's highest level of law enforcement officials.
04:54We deserve to be heard directly, not dismissed and ignored.
04:58There are numerous investigative leads that must be followed, despite Mr. Blanche's claim that there are none.
05:06Epstein and Maxwell did not abuse women and children alone.
05:10They did not build their operation alone.
05:13Others enabled these crimes, exploited victims, and avoided accountability for decades.
05:20You do not have to take my word for it.
05:22Several weeks ago, after examining the evidence, Chairman James Comer directed Todd Blanche to open investigations into two men connected
05:30to Epstein.
05:32The Epstein files are not merely a collection of embarrassing names and politically damaging associations.
05:39They are records connected to the sexual exploitation and trafficking of girls and young women.
05:47They contain information about how Epstein's network worked, who assisted him, and whether additional crimes can still be investigated.
05:56The Department of Justice should pursue every credible lead, not just tirelessly, tirelessly, work tirelessly, not just to shut down
06:06the investigations.
06:07The survivors in this room know there are investigative leads because they are our stories.
06:14Mr. Blanche knows it too, yet he has chosen not to pursue them.
06:18Mr. Blanche's actions have destroyed survivors' trust.
06:23According to public reporting, Mr. Blanche spent approximately nine hours meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell.
06:29He did not even spend nine minutes meeting with a survivor.
06:34Afterward, Maxwell was transferred to what many have described as a summer camp prison.
06:39We learned all of this through the news.
06:42Imagine what that feels like as a survivor to sit there if you were exploited by Ghislaine Maxwell and you're
06:48hearing this for the first time with no explanation, no outreach, and no transparency from your...
06:53And to add insult to injury, the information that Todd Blanche gathered in the White House Situation Room last summer
07:00to curb the political fallout from the Epstein files was absolutely abhorrent.
07:06Instead of following investigative leads, our government treated and continued to treat this as a political crisis that needs to
07:13be managed.
07:14In our nation, everyone deserves equal protection under the law.
07:19Todd Blanche has been unwilling to protect Epstein survivors' personal information, and he has been resistant to investigate the people
07:28who helped Epstein and Maxwell commit those crimes.
07:31We need an Attorney General committed to ensuring that everyone who facilitated Epstein's crimes is held accountable.
07:39Please, I implore you, please, think carefully, and think about the girls in these photos.
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