It is a treat to choose one's time to say goodbye
In a courthouse in White Plains, a federal judge has released what may be the last written words of Jeffrey Epstein — a note discovered by his cellmate, sealed for years within layers of legal dispute, and now returned to public view. The document neither confesses nor fully exonerates; it protests, it grieves, and it reaches for control over a story that had long since escaped its author. Its release, amid millions of newly disclosed pages from the Justice Department, reminds us that even in death, some figures remain contested terrain — their silences and their words alike subject to interpretation.
- A sealed document purporting to be Epstein's suicide note has been made public for the first time, reigniting scrutiny over the circumstances of his 2019 death in federal custody.
- The note's defiant, fragmented tone — claiming investigators 'FOUND NOTHING' and framing death as a personal choice — unsettles rather than resolves the long-standing questions surrounding his case.
- Its discovery was itself strange: Epstein's cellmate found it tucked inside a graphic novel after a failed suicide attempt weeks before Epstein's death, a detail that deepens the mystery rather than clarifying it.
- The document's authenticity remains unverified, though linguistic patterns in the note echo Epstein's known correspondence, giving researchers cautious reason to treat it seriously.
- The release follows a broader Justice Department disclosure of millions of Epstein-related records, suggesting a slow, contested movement toward transparency — though closure remains elusive.
On Wednesday, a federal judge in White Plains unsealed a document that may be Jeffrey Epstein's final written words — a note that had been locked inside court records for years before Judge Kenneth M. Karas ordered its release following a petition from The New York Times.
The note is a strange artifact. It opens with a claim of vindication — insisting that investigators found nothing despite charges stretching back fifteen years — and moves into something between protest and resignation. "It is a treat to be able to choose one's time to say goodbye," it reads, closing with an underlined "NOT WORTH IT!!!" It does not confess, nor does it clearly proclaim innocence. It occupies an uneasy middle ground, suggesting a man determined to control the story of his own exit.
The note's path to the public was circuitous. Epstein's cellmate, Nicholas Tartaglione, discovered it tucked inside a graphic novel after Epstein had been moved from their shared cell following a failed suicide attempt weeks before his death. "I opened the book to read and there it was," Tartaglione said. The document then became entangled in attorney-client privilege disputes, keeping it sealed until the Times sought its release last week.
Authenticity remains unverified — the Times has not independently confirmed the document — though certain phrases mirror language found in Epstein's known emails and in another note recovered from his cell at the time of his death. The release arrives alongside millions of newly disclosed Justice Department pages, part of a broader push for transparency. Yet the note raises more questions than it answers, offering a portrait of a man who was defiant, aggrieved, and insistent on his own agency — while leaving the deeper circumstances of his death as contested as ever.
A federal judge in White Plains unsealed a document on Wednesday that purports to be a suicide note written by Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted financier who died in custody at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Lower Manhattan. The note had remained sealed for years, locked away in court records until Judge Kenneth M. Karas ordered its release following a petition from The New York Times.
The alleged note opens with a defiant claim of vindication. "They investigated me for month — FOUND NOTHING!!!" it reads, before pivoting to the charges against him, which the writer says stretch back fifteen years. The tone throughout is peculiar—part protest, part resignation. "It is a treat to be able to choose one's time to say goodbye," the note continues. "Watcha want me to do — Bust out cryin!! NO FUN." The final line, underlined for emphasis, reads "NOT WORTH IT!!!" The document does not amount to a clear confession, nor does it constitute an unambiguous proclamation of innocence. Instead, it occupies an uncertain middle ground, suggesting grievance and a desire to control the narrative of his own exit.
The note's discovery is itself a strange detail. Nicholas Tartaglione, Epstein's cellmate at the time, found it tucked inside a graphic novel after Epstein had been removed from their shared cell following a failed suicide attempt—an incident that occurred weeks before Epstein's death. Tartaglione described the moment plainly: "I opened the book to read and there it was." At the time of that earlier attempt, Epstein had claimed that Tartaglione attacked him and denied any suicidal intent, allegations that Tartaglione has consistently rejected.
The authenticity of the note remains unverified. The New York Times, which broke the story after Tartaglione described it in an interview, has not independently authenticated the document. However, researchers and analysts have noted that certain phrases in the note—"bust out cryin" and "no fun"—appear in Epstein's known emails and in another note discovered in his cell at the time of his death, lending the document a degree of linguistic consistency with his documented writing.
The note's path to public view was circuitous. After Tartaglione found it, the document became entangled in legal disputes involving his attorneys. Court filings indicate that related materials were sealed to protect attorney-client privilege, which is why the note remained hidden from public scrutiny for so long. The Times petitioned the court last Thursday to unseal it, and Judge Karas granted the request, placing the note on the court docket Wednesday evening.
The release comes amid a broader opening of Epstein-related records. The Justice Department has disclosed millions of pages connected to the case in recent months, part of a larger effort to bring transparency to the investigation and prosecution. Yet the note itself raises more questions than it answers about the circumstances of Epstein's death and the state of mind he was in during his final days in custody. The document offers a window into how he may have wanted to be remembered—defiant, aggrieved, and insistent on his own agency—but it does not settle the deeper questions about what happened in his cell.
Notable Quotes
They investigated me for month — FOUND NOTHING!!!— From the alleged Epstein note
I opened the book to read and there it was— Nicholas Tartaglione, describing how he found the note
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why did it take so long for this note to surface? It seems like something this significant would have been public immediately.
It got caught in legal machinery. The cellmate's lawyers had it, disputes arose over who owned it and what could be disclosed, and the whole thing got sealed under privilege rules. It wasn't hidden on purpose so much as trapped in the normal friction of the court system.
Do we know if the note is actually authentic?
Not definitively. The Times hasn't verified it. But the language in it—certain phrases and expressions—matches things Epstein wrote in emails and in another note found in his cell. That's suggestive, though not proof.
What strikes you most about what the note actually says?
The tone. It's not a confession. It's not a clear goodbye. It's almost petulant—he's angry about the investigation, he's asserting he was cleared of something, but then he's also talking about choosing when to die. It's contradictory in a way that feels very human and very confused.
The cellmate found it in a graphic novel. That's an odd detail.
It is. It suggests Epstein was trying to hide it, or at least keep it private. He didn't leave it on the bunk or on a desk. He tucked it inside something he was reading. That's deliberate.
And the cellmate—Tartaglione—he's been consistent about all this?
Yes. He's maintained his account for years. He says he found the note, he says Epstein claimed he attacked him when he didn't. The legal disputes that followed were about what could be done with the note, not about whether Tartaglione's basic story was true.