Perversion of Justice: The Jeffrey Epstein Story

by Julie K. Brown

Overview

The New York Times Bestseller

“A gripping journalistic procedural… Spotlight meets Erin Brockovich.” —Michelle Goldberg, The New York Times

“Julie K. Brown's important book offers not just a definitive account of the Epstein case, but a compelling window into her own experiences as a dogged reporter at a regional newspaper, facing off against powerful interests set against her reporting.” —Ronan Farrow, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Catch and Kill

Dauntless journalist Julie K. Brown recounts her uncompromising and risky investigation of Jeffrey Epstein's underage sex trafficking operation, and the explosive reporting for the Miami Herald that finally brought him to justice while exposing the powerful people and broken system that protected him.

For many years, billionaire Jeffrey Epstein's penchant for teenage girls was an open secret in the high society of Palm Beach, Florida and Upper East Side, Manhattan. Charged in 2008 with soliciting prostitution from minors, Epstein was treated with unheard of leniency, dictating the terms of his non-prosecution. The media virtually ignored the failures of the criminal justice system, and Epstein's friends and business partners brushed the allegations aside. But when in 2017 the U.S Attorney who approved Epstein's plea deal, Alexander Acosta, was chosen by President Trump as Labor Secretary, reporter Julie K. Brown was compelled to ask questions.

Despite her editor's skepticism that she could add a new dimension to a known story, Brown determined that her goal would be to track down the victims themselves. Poring over thousands of redacted court documents, traveling across the country and chasing down information in difficulty and sometimes dangerous circumstances, Brown tracked down dozens of Epstein's victims, now young women struggling to reclaim their lives after the trauma and shame they had endured.

Brown's resulting three-part series in the Miami Herald was one of the most explosive news stories of the decade, revealing how Epstein ran a global sex trafficking pyramid scheme with impunity for years, targeting vulnerable teens, often from fractured homes and then turning them into recruiters. The outrage led to Epstein's arrest, the disappearance and eventual arrest of his closest accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell, and the resignation of Acosta. The financier's mysterious suicide in a New York City jail cell prompted wild speculation about the secrets he took to the grave-and whether his death was intentional or the result of foul play.

Tracking Epstein’s evolution from a college dropout to one of the most successful financiers in the country—whose associates included Donald Trump, Prince Andrew, and Bill Clinton—Perversion of Justice builds on Brown's original award-winning series, showing the power of truth, the value of local reportage and the tenacity of one woman in the face of the deep-seated corruption of powerful men. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780063000582
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	07/20/2021
Pages:	464
Sales rank:	185,179
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 9.00(h) x 1.60(d)

About the Author

Julie K. Brown is an investigative reporter with the Miami Herald. During her 30-year career, she has worked for a number of newspapers, focusing on crime, justice and human rights issues. As a member of the Herald’s prestigious Investigative Team, she has won dozens of awards, including a George Polk Award in 2018 for “Perversion of Justice,” a series that examined how a rich and powerful sex trafficker, Jeffrey Epstein, managed to arrange a secret plea deal and escape life in prison — even though he was suspected of sexually abusing more than 100 underage girls and young women. The series, and her subsequent dogged coverage of the case in 2019, led to the resignation of President Trump’s labor secretary, Alex Acosta, Epstein’s arrest on new federal charges in New York and reforms in the way that prosecutors treat victims of sex crimes.

Brown previously won acclaim for a series of stories about abuses and corruption in Florida prisons. The stories led to the resignations of top agency officials, firings of corrupt corrections officers and an overhaul in the treatment of inmates with mental and physical disabilities, as well as women in Florida prisons. That series also won a Polk Award. A native of Philadelphia, she is a graduate of Temple University.

Table of Contents

Author's Note ix

Preface xi

Introduction 1

Chapter 1 Joe 7

Chapter 2 Finding Jane Doe 17

Chapter 3 The Police Probe 31

Chapter 4 Eppy 41

Chapter 5 The Miami Herald 55

Chapter 6 Dead Ends 65

Chapter 7 The First Deal 75

Chapter 8 Music City 93

Chapter 9 Blood Money 103

Chapter 10 Hike 115

Chapter 11 Follow the Money 127

Chapter 12 Forever Changed 135

Chapter 13 Operation Leap Year 143

Chapter 14 The Sweetheart Deal 155

Chapter 15 Dancing with Wolves 163

Chapter 16 Courtney 171

Chapter 17 Virginia 183

Chapter 18 Finding Mr. Epstein 197

Chapter 19 Mar-A-Lago 203

Chapter 20 Madam Shislaine 213

Chapter 21 The Prince and the Piper 225

Chapter 22 Starr Power 233

Chapter 23 Bait and Switch 241

Chapter 24 The Get Out of Jail Free Card 249

Chapter 25 Shoe-Leather Reporting 257

Chapter 26 Milestones 263

Chapter 27 Morning Sickness 269

Chapter 28 Aftershocks 279

Chapter 29 Dershowitz V. Brown 289

Chapter 30 The Feds 297

Chapter 31 The Journalism Resistance 307

Chapter 32 Katie Johnson 311

Chapter 33 Fireworks 325

Chapter 34 No Apologies, No Regrets 337

Chapter 35 Inmate 76318-054 343

Chapter 36 Pedophile Island 353

Chapter 37 Harvard, MIT, and the Billionaires Club 369

Chapter 38 In Plain Sight 381

Chapter 39 Jeffrey Epstein Didn't Kill Himself 391

Chapter 40 The Boss 403

Chapter 41 Conspiracies 407

Chapter 42 The Reckoning 413

Epilogue 419

Acknowledgments 433

Notes 437

Editorial Reviews

"A gripping journalistic procedural. . . Spotlight meets Erin Brockovitch. . . Brown's book is richer for including lots of reportorial impasses and rabbit holes; it shows what a painstaking and often maddening process investigative journalism is." — Michelle Goldberg, The New York Times

"Julie K. Brown's important book offers not just a definitive account of the Epstein case, but a compelling window into her own experiences as a dogged reporter at a regional newspaper, facing off against both powerful interests set against her reporting, and a wider moment in which local news is a precious and vanishing resource. The book is subtitled "The Jeffrey Epstein Story," but its lessons about courage in the face of adversity, and the crucial role of journalism in holding the powerful to account, go far beyond that case." — Ronan Farrow, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Catch and Kill

"Class, as much as the dismal state of journalism, is the great undercurrent in Perversion of Justice and gives this scrappy book its heart." — Laura Miller, Slate

"Brown pulls back the curtain on her life behind the headlines." — Daily Beast

"[Brown's] description of both the hard work of investigation and the perilous current state of newspapers adds an important dimension to the story." — Tampa Bay Times

From the Publisher

★ 07/23/2021

Jeffrey Epstein's decades-long criminal sex trafficking enterprise is laid bare by Brown, the Miami Herald reporter who shined the brightest spotlight on the case in 2018. The book is based on her original reporting of interviews, court documents, and government records that name everyone from Donald Trump and Prince Andrew to Stephen Hawking as beneficiaries of Epstein's sexual or financial favors. Brown interweaves the Epstein story with that of her experience investigating it, including receiving threats from private investigators presumably hired by Epstein. Though the chapters on the survivors' stories are explicit, they are also the most affecting part of the book, and Brown gives the survivors the respect they deserve and have often been denied. She offers detailed accounts of claims against Trump and Prince Andrew that she says lend credibility to previous allegations. The biggest takeaway will be Epstein's sweeping reach; Brown writes that initially he got away from the accusations thanks to powerful people who saw Epstein as "an emperor worthy of entertaining because there was cash in those new clothes." VERDICT While the book would benefit from more specific notes about interviews with the people involved, Brown tells a gripping, horrifying tale, and few are spared her critique. A must for public library collections, and especially noteworthy for readers of Ronan Farrow's Catch and Kill: Lies, Spies, and a Conspiracy To Protect Predators.—Jessica Hilburn, Benson Memorial Lib., Titusville, PA

Library Journal

"[Brown's] description of both the hard work of investigation and the perilous current state of newspapers adds an important dimension to the story."

Tampa Bay Times

"Julie K. Brown's important book offers not just a definitive account of the Epstein case, but a compelling window into her own experiences as a dogged reporter at a regional newspaper, facing off against both powerful interests set against her reporting, and a wider moment in which local news is a precious and vanishing resource. The book is subtitled "The Jeffrey Epstein Story," but its lessons about courage in the face of adversity, and the crucial role of journalism in holding the powerful to account, go far beyond that case."

Ronan Farrow

"A gripping journalistic procedural. . . Spotlight meets Erin Brockovitch. . . Brown's book is richer for including lots of reportorial impasses and rabbit holes; it shows what a painstaking and often maddening process investigative journalism is."

Michelle Goldberg

"Class, as much as the dismal state of journalism, is the great undercurrent in Perversion of Justice and gives this scrappy book its heart."

Laura Miller

"Brown pulls back the curtain on her life behind the headlines."

Daily Beast

The account of Brown’s dogged reporting, her willingness to spend hours digging, traveling, and interviewing, even in the face of threats and stonewalls, is inspiring, and ultimately her work led to Epstein’s arrest. Brown lays out a lot about the way the world works, and much of it isn’t good. But, sometimes, when enough people stand up, justice prevails.

Booklist

A harrowing and illuminating read.

Town & Country

The account of Brown’s dogged reporting, her willingness to spend hours digging, traveling, and interviewing, even in the face of threats and stonewalls, is inspiring, and ultimately her work led to Epstein’s arrest. Brown lays out a lot about the way the world works, and much of it isn’t good. But, sometimes, when enough people stand up, justice prevails.

Booklist