Alan Dershowitz, a professor emeritus at Harvard Law School who worked to craft the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s 2008 plea deal, will not appear before the House Oversight Committee for his scheduled transcribed interview Monday, according to two committee aides granted anonymity to speak candidly.
Lawyers for Dershowitz told the Oversight panel that he would not show up as planned, and the committee has reached out to Dershowitz’s team to put another meeting on the schedule, said one of the aides.
Dershowitz is a well-known criminal defense attorney who has represented high profile clients such as President Donald Trump and O.J. Simpson. Many have contended Dershowitz’s work to get Epstein the plea deal in Florida allowed him to continue victimizing young women and girls for years until his subsequent arrest and suicide in prison in 2019.
The Oversight Committee continues to interview people tied up in Epstein’s web as part of its ongoing investigation. Jes Staley, a former JPMorganChase and Barclays executive, is set to sit for an interview with the panel July 23. The committee is also scheduled to have billionaire investor Leon Black, the co-founder of Apollo Global Management, appear for a videotaped deposition Sept. 3 that will be conducted under oath.
Dershowitz did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Â