The Senate minority leader said the Justice Department is flouting a law requiring it to make public information regarding Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., in Washington on Oct. 29. Jim Watson / AFP via Getty Images

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Monday he is introducing a resolution directing the Senate to "initiate legal action against the DOJ for its blatant disregard of the law in its refusal to release the complete Epstein files."

"The law Congress passed is crystal clear: release the Epstein files in full so Americans can see the truth," Schumer wrote in a post on X. "Instead, the Trump Department of Justice dumped redactions and withheld the evidence - that breaks the law."

Schumer will force consideration of the measure in January when the Senate reconvenes. The Senate returns from recess on Monday, Jan. 5.

The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif. - who cowrote the bill that compelled the DOJ to release its records on Jeffrey Epstein - said over the weekend they plan on taking action in the House as well. The DOJ on Friday released only a portion of its investigative files on Epstein and his co-conspirator, Ghislaine Maxwell.

"The quickest way, and I think most expeditious way, to get justice for these victims is to bring inherent contempt against Pam Bondi," Massie said Sunday on CBS`s "Face the Nation."

The law, which President Donald Trump signed into law on Nov. 19, gave the attorney general 30 days to "make publicly available in a searchable and downloadable format all unclassified records, documents, communications, and investigative materials in the possession of the Department of Justice" involving Epstein, "including all investigations, prosecutions, or custodial matters."

A group of Epstein victims urged the lawmakers to interview in a statement Monday.

The "public received a fraction of the files, and what we received was riddled with abnormal and extreme redactions with no explanation. At the same time, numerous victim identities were left unredacted, causing real and immediate harm," the statement said.

They said the DOJ "violated the law," and urged "immediate congressional oversight, including hearings, formal demands for compliance, and legal action, to ensure the Department of Justice fulfills its legal obligations."

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche on Friday acknowledged in an interview with Fox News that the Justice Department had not met the Dec. 19 deadline to make all the information public, but said that was because the department was still working to redact information to protect victims` identities, as is also required under the new law.

The Justice Department has said that Epstein, who died by suicide in his jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges, preyed on over 1,200 women and girls.

The department has defended its rollout of the files, some of which have been heavily redacted, as well as its decision to remove over a dozen photographs it initially released - one of which included pictures of Trump. Trump and Epstein were friends for years, but the president has said they had a falling out. There`s no evidence the president was involved in any wrongdoing related to Epstein.

That sparked criticism that the DOJ was trying to cover for the president, something Blanche denied in an interview Sunday with NBC`s "Meet the Press."

That decision "has nothing to do with President Trump" and was made because "victims` rights groups" were concerned about other images that were captured in the photo, Blanche said. The photo was put back up on the DOJ`s Epstein files database later on Sunday.

"The Southern District of New York flagged an image of President Trump for potential further action to protect victims. Out of an abundance of caution, the Department of Justice temporarily removed the image for further review," the DOJ said in a post on X. "After the review, it was determined there is no evidence that any Epstein victims are depicted in the photograph, and it has been reposted without any alteration or redaction."

Blanche has said he expects the entirety of the files to be public in two weeks.

In a "fact sheet" released by the DOJ on Sunday, the department said it "has more than 200 lawyers working around the clock reviewing each individual file for release. This is an arduous process, as each document and photograph must be individually reviewed by DOJ and the Southern District of New York for potential redactions to protect victims or potential victims."

"The Department is required by law to redact identifying information about the victims, minors, or potential victims, as well as privileged material. NO redactions have been or will be made to protect famous individuals or politically exposed persons," it said.