To begin the year, on Jan. 3 through the efforts of the Miami Herald reporter Julie K. Brown, nearly one-thousand legal documents from the Jeffrey Epstein case were released to the public for the first time. Epstein had been involved in many cases involving molestation and sex trafficking since 2005, however these documents in particular came from a 2015 case.

Among theses documents are flight logs to an island Epstein owned, called Epstein Island, as well as a list of Epstein’s associates, which have become known as the “Epstein List.” The names on the list are not necessarily involved in sex trafficking alongside Epstein, however prosecutors argue that the names in these lists could be involved or know about it at the very least.

High profile individuals included Prince Andrew, Bill and Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump, Stephen Hawking, and Michael Jackson.

While Epstein and his list are infamous worldwide, a lesser known detail about Epstein’s crimes is their origins in south Florida.

The story of Epstein’s downfall began in 2005, where an anonymous 14 year old girl confessed to her parents that Epstein molested her at his Palm Beach Mansion. The girl claimed she was brought in by two girls, whom when questioned claimed they were also brought in by two different girls.

Epstein was arrested in 2006 for molestation, however through the efforts of his lawyer Alex Acosta, Miami’s top prosecutor, Epstein would be able to stay in his home and prevent any of his co-conspirators from being federally charged. When Epstein had to stay in prison, it was only a county jail in Palm Beach rather than a Federal detention center. Moreover, Epstein was able to leave this county jail six days a week. Epstein’s later trials would occur in the late 2010s up until his death in July of 2019.