DOJ ordered to release unredacted Epstein files or explain why it can't

A federal judge on Thursday ordered the U.S. Department of Justice to release additional unredacted Jeffrey Epstein records or explain by July 2 why it can't.

Why it matters: The ruling could force the DOJ to release previously withheld Epstein records or publicly explain why they remain sealed.

Driving the news: U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan in D.C. gave the DOJ until July 2 to comply with a preliminary injunction in media legal analyst Katie Phang's lawsuit alleging the department failed to comply with last year's Epstein Act.

• The department has already released 3.5 million pages under the law, but Phang argues it still improperly withheld or redacted additional material.
• Phang alleges in her suit against acting Attorney General Todd Blanche that the department nevertheless violated the Epstein Act for several reasons.

Zoom in: In his opinion granting the preliminary injunction, Sullivan noted that Phang alleges the DOJ redacted the names of senders and recipients in "at least eight email exchanges" with Epstein regarding a "torture video" and alleged sexual activity involving young women, including minors.

• She accuses Blanche of "redacting the names of co-defendants in a draft indictment, the names of individuals identified as 'co-conspirators.'"
• Phang also alleges that Blanche withheld 36 materials mentioning President Trump, specifically, "notes from FBI interviews with a victim who has alleged that in the 1980s, when she was about 13 years old, Epstein introduced her to Trump, who in turn assaulted her."

State of play: The DOJ said in a filing this month that Phang can't sue because she should have made a Freedom of Information Act request, but the journalist's lawyers argued that she had been denied FOIA requests related to the Epstein files, CBS News reported.

• Trump has denied wrongdoing in relation to Epstein allegations and he hasn't been charged with a crime in connection with them.
• Representatives of the DOJ did not immediately respond to Axios' Thursday evening request for comment.