Background: From U.S. Attorney to Cabinet Secretary
Alexander Acosta served as the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida from 2005 to 2009, the period during which his office negotiated the controversial non-prosecution agreement with Jeffrey Epstein. In 2017, President Donald Trump nominated Acosta as Secretary of Labor. During his Senate confirmation hearings, the NPA was raised but did not derail his confirmation. He was confirmed by a 60–38 vote and took office in April 2017.
For two years, Acosta served without major incident at the Department of Labor, focusing on workforce development and apprenticeship programs. That changed in July 2019.
Epstein’s Arrest and Renewed Scrutiny
On July 6, 2019, federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York arrested Jeffrey Epstein on charges of sex trafficking conspiracy and sex trafficking of minors. The arrest immediately directed public attention back to the 2008 deal, which had allowed Epstein to avoid federal prosecution in exchange for guilty pleas to state charges in Florida.
The Miami Herald’s November 2018 investigative series, which had documented the NPA’s sweeping immunity provisions and the failure to notify victims, had already placed pressure on Acosta. Following Epstein’s 2019 arrest, Democratic members of Congress called for Acosta’s resignation, and a House Education and Labor subcommittee hearing was announced.
The July 10 Press Conference
On July 10, 2019, Acosta held a lengthy press conference at the Department of Labor to defend his handling of the Epstein case. He argued that the 2008 deal had resulted in Epstein actually serving time in jail, whereas the alternative — pursuing a federal case at the time — risked an acquittal. He stated, “We wanted to see him in jail,” and characterized the state plea as the best outcome achievable given the evidence available.
Acosta also placed responsibility on Palm Beach County state prosecutors, arguing that it was state charges, not federal ones, that formed the core of the deal. Critics disputed this framing, noting that the NPA granted Epstein and unnamed co-conspirators broad federal immunity that went well beyond the state charges.
Resignation on July 19, 2019
Nine days after the press conference, on July 19, 2019, Acosta announced his resignation alongside President Trump at the White House. Trump praised Acosta’s work at Labor and stated that the resignation was Acosta’s own decision. Acosta said he did not want the Epstein situation to be a “distraction” for the administration.
His resignation became effective one week later. Deputy Secretary Patrick Pizzella assumed the role of acting Labor Secretary.
DOL Ongoing Matters
The Department of Labor’s own role in Epstein-related matters did not end with Acosta’s departure. Oversight committees examined whether the NPA had undermined the federal government’s ability to investigate labor trafficking and whether the DOL had any investigative obligations it had failed to fulfill. The DOJ’s Office of Inspector General launched a separate review of the NPA’s compliance with DOJ policies.
Legacy and Assessment
Acosta’s tenure became permanently linked to the Epstein case. He remained the only Cabinet-level official to resign directly as a result of Epstein-related controversy. Legal scholars debated whether his press conference defense — that the deal was the best available — was historically accurate or a post-hoc rationalization. The DOJ IG report released in 2020 found that DOJ prosecutors had violated department policy by failing to consult with victims before finalizing the agreement, contradicting a key element of Acosta’s public defense.