"[N]ewly obtained records offer no support to the explosion of conspiracy theories that Mr. Epstein's death was not a suicide. They also shed no light on questions raised by his brother and one of his lawyers that he might have been assisted in killing himself. But they do paint a picture of incompetence and sloppiness by some within the Bureau of Prisons, which runs the federal detention center.

"The [New York] Times obtained the materials after suing the Bureau of Prisons, which had repeatedly rejected its public-records requests. As part of a settlement, the agency agreed to turn over internal memos and emails, visitor logs, handwritten notes from inmates, and the psychological reconstruction of Mr. Epstein's death. Many of the documents were heavily redacted; some were withheld entirely, including a number of records associated with the earlier suicide attempt.

"At a hearing in April regarding The Times's lawsuit, Judge Paul A. Engelmayer of Federal District Court in Manhattan said he was 'struck by the audacity of the initial denial by the Bureau of Prisons' to make the records available in a case that he described as a 'high-profile epic failure.'

"'It certainly does raise a concern,' the judge added, 'that the wagons are being circled.'"