As the Epstein files continue to unravel in late 2025, the journalist who courageously exposed the scandal—Miami Herald’s Julie K. Brown—faces a stunning personal shock: buried in the newly unsealed Trump-era Justice Department documents are her own 2019 American Airlines travel records, quietly subpoenaed just weeks before Epstein’s arrest, complete with her maiden name and precise booking details. Brown, whose groundbreaking reporting forced federal prosecutors to act after years of inaction, now demands answers about why the government was collecting her private movements during the height of her investigation. While officials suggest the records were linked to victim travel she helped facilitate, the revelation sparks widespread alarm over potential surveillance of a reporter challenging entrenched power. In an era meant to protect press freedom, this discovery raises profound questions: was the pursuit of truth itself under watch—and who else might have been targeted?
As the U.S. Department of Justice continued releasing Epstein-related documents in late December 2025 under the Epstein Files Transparency Act, Miami Herald investigative journalist Julie K. Brown—the reporter whose 2018 series “Perversion of Justice” exposed Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes and helped prompt his 2019 federal charges—faced a personal shock. On December 28, Brown revealed that her own American Airlines travel records from July 2019 appeared in the unsealed files, attached to a grand jury subpoena.
Brown posted on X and her Substack: “Does somebody at the DOJ want to tell me why my American Airlines booking information and flights in July 2019 are part of the Epstein files? … Why was the DOJ monitoring me?” The records included her maiden name, which she rarely uses professionally, and detailed bookings timed just weeks before Epstein’s July 6, 2019, arrest.
Brown’s reporting had interviewed dozens of victims and highlighted Epstein’s 2008 lenient plea deal, pressuring the Southern District of New York to reopen the case. While she anticipated mentions of her work, the personal travel data raised alarms about potential government surveillance of a journalist challenging powerful interests during the first Trump administration.
The discovery sparked widespread concern. Democrats on the House Oversight Committee demanded explanations, stating the DOJ must clarify why a journalist’s travel itineraries were included. Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) called Brown a “tireless truth-seeker” and urged accountability.
A DOJ official explained to media that the records resulted from subpoenas for victim travel during the Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell investigations. Prosecutors sought commercial airline data—separate from Epstein’s private jet—to corroborate victim timelines. Brown had booked the flight for accuser Annie Farmer, as noted in her 2020 book Perversion of Justice. The airline’s response incidentally included Brown’s details.
Brown acknowledged assisting victims with travel but questioned the lack of notification and broader press freedom implications. No evidence indicates targeted monitoring; it appears incidental to evidentiary collection.
Amid criticism of the releases—initially on December 19, criticized for redactions and incompleteness—the DOJ announced over a million additional documents pending phased disclosure into 2026. Brown’s work led to Epstein’s charges (before his suicide), Maxwell’s conviction, and Alex Acosta’s resignation.
This revelation underscores ongoing debates over transparency, journalist protections, and accountability in probes involving elite networks, as advocates push for full disclosure.
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