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Case 1:19-cr-00490-RMB Document6 - Filed 07/11/19 Page 5 of 16
Though the Bail Reform Act contains a rebuttable presumption in favor of detention
based on the crimes charged, the presumption shifts only the burden of production, not
persuasion. See United States v. Martir, 782 F.2d 1141, 1144 (2d Cir. 1986). Accordingly, the
statutory demand on defendants “‘is fairly easily met.” United States v. Conway, No. 4-11-70756,
2011 WL 3421321, at *2 (N.D. Cal. Aug. 3, 2011). To rebut the presumption, a defendant need
only “show that the specific nature of the crimes charged, or that something about their
individual circumstances, suggests that ‘what is true in general is not true in the particular
case...” United States v. Dominguez, 783 F.2d 702, 707 (7th Cir. 1986) (quoting United States
v. Jessup, 757 F.2d 378, 384 (1st Cir.1985)). “The quantum of evidence required to rebut the
presumption is not high.” United States v. Thompson, No. 16-CR-00019, 2018 WL 447331, at *2
(M.D. Pa. Jan. 17, 2018) (citation omitted). “Any evidence favorable to a defendant that comes
within a category listed in § 3142(g) can affect the operation of [the presumption], including
evidence of their marital, family and employment status, ties to and role in the community, clean
criminal record and other types of evidence encompassed in § 3142(g)(3).” Dominguez, 783 F.2d
at 707 (clean record plus socioeconomic stability sufficed to rebut presumption).
In short, evidence that the defendant is unlikely to flee or commit crimes rebuts the
presumption, forcing the government to persuade the court that detention is warranted. See
Conway, 2011 WL 3421321, at *5 (§ 1591 defendant released pending trial). While not
disappearing entirely, the presumption thus recedes to one factor among many in determining
whether there are sufficient conditions to “reasonably assure” both presence and safety. See
Martir, 782 F.2d at 1144; see also United States v. Orta, 760 F.2d 887, 891 (8th Cir. 1985)
(“[R]easonably assure” doesn’t mean “guarantee.”). Even in a presumption case, then, “the
government retains the ultimate burden of persuasion by clear and convincing evidence that the
defendant presents a danger to the community,” and by a “preponderance” that he poses a flight
“risk.” United States v. English, 629 F.3d 311, 319 (2d Cir. 2011) (citation and internal quotation
marks omitted).
Il. Mr. Epstein’s 14-year record of law-abiding behavior rebuts any presumption in
favor of pretrial detention
In this case, any danger presumption attending the § 1591 charges evaporates against Mr.
Epstein’s meticulous obedience, from 2005 to date, to both the law’s commands and his rigorous
registration and reporting obligations as a convicted sex offender. The indictment does not allege
that Mr. Epstein committed any crime in the 14-year interval between the end of the alleged
conduct and the initiation of this case. The dangerousness prong of the Bail Reform Act is
predictive, asking whether it’s likely that Mr. Epstein will reoffend if released. A spotless 14-
year record of walking the straight and narrow, complemented by an exemplary 10-year history
of diligent sex offender registration and reporting, is compelling proof he was able, once the
prior investigation commenced, to conform his conduct to the law’s dictates. The time lag
between the offenses charged and today is particularly compelling in terms of a prediction of
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| Filename | DOJ-OGR-00000278.jpg |
| File Size | 1087.6 KB |
| OCR Confidence | 94.1% |
| Has Readable Text | Yes |
| Text Length | 3,445 characters |
| Indexed | 2026-02-03 15:59:37.700693 |