Leon Black Sues Rep. Robert Garcia Over Epstein Comments

Billionaire Leon Black has filed a defamation lawsuit against Robert Garcia, a California congressman and the top Democrat on the House oversight committee, over statements Garcia made about Black's ties to Jeffrey Epstein. The suit was filed in federal court in New York on Wednesday, Nov. 4.

Defamation is a legal claim that a person has made false statements that damage someone's reputation. According to the lawsuit, Garcia said on national television that "Leon Black is at the center of Jeffrey Epstein's crimes." The complaint alleges that Garcia later said on television that Black was one of the last people to interact with Epstein before Epstein was found dead in jail in 2019.

The lawsuit also alleges that Garcia said he had spoken with survivors who credibly named Black as involved in direct abuse of women and in Epstein's trafficking network. Epstein was convicted of sex trafficking crimes, and his case has drawn wide attention in Washington and New York for years. Black is seeking $7.5 million in damages, The Guardian reported.

The dispute comes after the House voted to hold Black in contempt of Congress, a formal finding that a person has refused to obey a lawful congressional demand. The vote came almost two months before Nov. 5, and it followed Black's refusal to comply with House oversight committee subpoenas, which are legal orders to provide documents or testimony, in the committee's Epstein investigation. As of Nov. 5, the Department of Justice had not filed contempt charges against Black.