Epstein Didn't Kill Himself
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"Epstein didn't kill himself" is a phrase referring to multiple
conspiracy theories A conspiracy theory is an explanation for an event or situation that asserts the existence of a conspiracy (generally by powerful sinister groups, often political in motivation), when other explanations are more probable.Additional sources: * ...
surrounding the cause of Jeffrey Epstein's death that dispute the official ruling of
suicide by hanging Suicide by hanging is the intentional killing of oneself (suicide) via suspension from an anchor-point such as an overhead beam or hook, by a rope or cord or by jumping from a height with a noose around the neck. Hanging is often considered to ...
.
Jeffrey Epstein Jeffrey Edward Epstein ( , ; January 20, 1953August 10, 2019) was an American financier and child sex offender. Born and raised in New York City, Epstein began his professional career as a teacher at the Dalton School, despite lacking a col ...
was an American
financier An investor is a person who allocates financial capital with the expectation of a future return (profit) or to gain an advantage (interest). Through this allocated capital the investor usually purchases some species of property. Types of in ...
and convicted
sex offender A sex offender (sexual offender, sex abuser, or sexual abuser) is a person who has committed a Sex and the law, sex crime. What constitutes a sex crime differs by culture and legal jurisdiction. The majority of convicted sex offenders have convi ...
with connections to powerful and wealthy people, and his reported suicide led to numerous hypotheses about the nature and cause of his death. The phrase became a colloquialism as well as an
internet meme An Internet meme, or meme (, Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''MEEM''), is a cultural item (such as an idea, behavior, or style) that spreads across the Internet, primarily through Social media, social media platforms. Internet memes manif ...
, gaining traction in November 2019 as more of the circumstances around his death became public. The most common theory asserts that the true cause of his death was homicide, via
strangulation Strangling or strangulation is compression of the neck that may lead to unconsciousness or death by causing an increasingly hypoxic state in the brain by restricting the flow of oxygen through the trachea. Fatal strangulation typically occurs ...
, arranged by one or more co-conspirators to prevent him from revealing any compromising information. The phrase "Epstein didn't kill himself" is often inserted into unexpected contexts like a photo caption of the painter
Bob Ross Robert Norman Ross (October 29, 1942 – July 4, 1995) was an American painter and art instructor who created and hosted '' The Joy of Painting'', an instructional television program that aired from 1983 to 1994 on PBS in the United States, ...
or at the end of a social media post as a '' non sequitur''. The meme has appeared at multiple televised sports games in the form of signs and painted bodies. Several people have also randomly interjected the phrase at the end of interviews. It is used by individuals of all sides of the
political spectrum A political spectrum is a system to characterize and classify different Politics, political positions in relation to one another. These positions sit upon one or more Geometry, geometric Coordinate axis, axes that represent independent political ...
without agreement on the specific details of Epstein's death.


Background

On August 10, 2019, American financier and convicted sex offender
Jeffrey Epstein Jeffrey Edward Epstein ( , ; January 20, 1953August 10, 2019) was an American financier and child sex offender. Born and raised in New York City, Epstein began his professional career as a teacher at the Dalton School, despite lacking a col ...
was found unresponsive in his Metropolitan Correctional Center jail cell, where he was awaiting trial on new sex trafficking charges. According to the
Department of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...
,
Federal Bureau of Prisons The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is a Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement agency of the United States Department of Justice that is responsible for all List of United States federal prisons, federal prisons ...
official statement, "He was transported to a local hospital for treatment of life-threatening injuries and subsequently pronounced dead by hospital staff." The
New York City medical examiner The Office of Chief Medical Examiner of the City of New York (OCME) is a department within the city government that investigates cases of persons who die within New York City from criminal violence; by casualty or by suicide; suddenly, when in ap ...
ruled Epstein's death a suicide by hanging. Epstein's lawyers challenged that conclusion and opened their own investigation. Epstein's brother Mark hired board-certified forensic pathologist
Michael Baden Michael M. Baden (born July 27, 1934) is an American physician and board-certified forensic pathologist known for his work investigating high-profile deaths and as the host of HBO's ''Autopsy''. Baden was the chief medical examiner of the Ci ...
to oversee the autopsy. In late October, Baden announced that autopsy evidence indicated homicidal strangulation more than suicidal hanging. Both the
FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...
and the U.S. Department of Justice's inspector general conducted investigations into the circumstances of his death, and the guards on duty were later charged with conspiracy and record falsification. Due to violations of normal jail procedures on the night of Epstein's death, the malfunction of two cameras in front of his cell, and his claims to have compromising information about powerful figures, his death generated doubt about his apparent suicide and speculation that he was murdered. At an August 27 hearing, Epstein defense attorney Reid Weingarten expressed "significant doubts" that Epstein's death was due to suicide. According to Weingarten, when attorneys met with their client shortly before his death, "we did not see a despairing, despondent, suicidal person". Epstein's brother, Mark, has rejected the possibility of Jeffrey's suicide, claiming, "I could see if he got a life sentence, I could then see him taking himself out, but he had a bail hearing coming up." He also claimed his "life may also be in danger", if Epstein was indeed murdered. In a press conference about two months after Epstein's death,
Bill de Blasio Bill de Blasio (; born Warren Wilhelm Jr., May 8, 1961; later Warren de Blasio-Wilhelm) is an American politician who was the List of mayors of New York City, 109th mayor of New York City, mayor of New York City from 2014 to 2021. A member of t ...
, the then
mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...
of
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
, declined to endorse chief medical examiner Sampson's conclusions, saying, "Something doesn't fit here. It just doesn't make sense that the highest-profile prisoner in America—you know, someone forgot to guard him." Former US Attorney and Senate Judiciary Committee counsel
Brett Tolman Brett L. Tolman (born June 10, 1970) is an American lawyer. He served as a United States attorney for the District of Utah from July 2006 to December 2009. Before becoming U.S. attorney, Tolman worked as counsel in the Senate Judiciary Commit ...
said the death was "more than coincidental" considering Epstein's "many connections to powerful people".


Mainstreaming

At the end of an interview with
Jesse Watters Jesse Bailey Watters (born July 9, 1978) is an American conservative political commentator and television program host on the Fox News cable television network. He frequently appeared earlier in his media career on the political talk show '' ...
on
Fox News The Fox News Channel (FNC), commonly known as Fox News, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conservatism in the United States, conservative List of news television channels, news and political commentary Television stati ...
, former Navy SEAL and founder of the Warrior Dog Foundation Mike Ritland asked if he could give a "
PSA PSA, PsA, Psa, or psa may refer to: Biology and medicine * Posterior spinal artery * Primary systemic amyloidosis, a disease caused by the accumulation of abnormal proteins * Prostate-specific antigen, an enzyme used as a blood tracer for pro ...
". After being told that he could, he stated, "If you see the coverage bout combat dogsand you decide I want one of these dogs, either buy a fully trained and finished dog from a professional or just don't get one at all. That, and Epstein didn't kill himself." Ritland later stated his purpose for suddenly mentioning the phrase was to keep the Jeffrey Epstein story alive. According to ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...
'', the meme gained a large amount of attention in the immediate aftermath of this interview. Arizona Republican Congressman
Paul Gosar Paul Anthony Gosar ( ; born November 27, 1958) is an American politician and dentist who has represented in the U.S. House of Representatives since 2023 and represented from 2013 to 2023. A Republican, he was elected in 2010 to represent the ...
shared the meme in a series of 23 tweets where the first letter of each tweet spelled out the phrase. Australian rapper Matthew Lambert of
Hilltop Hoods Hilltop Hoods are an Australian hip hop group that formed in 1994 in Blackwood, Adelaide, South Australia. They are regarded as pioneers of the " larrikin-like" style of Australian hip hop. The group was founded by Suffa (Matthew David Lambert) ...
, after winning the 2019 ARIA Music Award for Best Australian Live Act, included the phrase in his acceptance speech. In his opening monologue at the
77th Golden Globe Awards The 77th Golden Globe Awards honored the best in 2019 in film, film and 2019 in American television, American television of 2019, as chosen by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Produced by Dick Clark Productions and the HFPA, the ceremony ...
, host and comedian
Ricky Gervais Ricky Dene Gervais ( ; born 25 June 1961) is an English comedian, actor, writer, television producer and filmmaker. He co-created, co-wrote, and acted in the British television sitcoms ''The Office (British TV series), The Office'' (2001–2003) ...
joked that the suicidal character of his show '' After Life'' will come back for a second season. He added: "So in the end, he obviously didn't kill himself—just like Jeffrey Epstein. Shut up. I know he's your friend, but I don't care."


Platforms

The meme has been shared by people on a number of platforms, including Facebook and Twitter. Podcast host
Joe Rogan Joseph James Rogan (born August 11, 1967) is an American podcaster, Ultimate Fighting Championship, UFC color commentator, comedian, actor, and former television host. He hosts The Joe Rogan Experience, ''The Joe Rogan Experience'', which is o ...
and Internet personality Tank Sinatra used Instagram to spread the meme to their followers, who in Rogan's case included Mike Ritland. The meme has also appeared in
TikTok TikTok, known in mainland China and Hong Kong as Douyin (), is a social media and Short-form content, short-form online video platform owned by Chinese Internet company ByteDance. It hosts user-submitted videos, which may range in duration f ...
videos. Several users on
dating app An online dating application, commonly known as a dating app, is an online dating service presented through a mobile phone application. These apps often take advantage of a smartphone's GPS location capabilities, always on-hand presence, and acc ...
s, such as
Tinder Tinder is easily Combustibility and flammability, combustible material used to Firemaking, start a fire. Tinder is a finely divided, open material which will begin to glow under a shower of sparks. Air is gently wafted over the glowing tinder unt ...
and
Hinge A hinge is a mechanical bearing that connects two solid objects, typically allowing only a limited angle of rotation between them. Two objects connected by an ideal hinge rotate relative to each other about a fixed axis of rotation, with all ...
, have written in their profiles that whether someone accepts the meme's premise is a relationship
deal breaker ''Deal Breaker'' is a 1995 thriller novel by Harlan Coben and is the first in his Myron Bolitar series. Plot Investigator and sports agent Myron Bolitar is poised on the edge of the big-time. So is Christian Steele, a rookie quarterback and M ...
. In the 2020
Mardi Gras Mardi Gras (, ; also known as Shrove Tuesday) is the final day of Carnival (also known as Shrovetide or Fastelavn); it thus falls on the day before the beginning of Lent on Ash Wednesday. is French for "Fat Tuesday", referring to it being ...
celebration in
New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...
, a Le Krewe d'Etat parade float featured a large float with effigies of Epstein and
Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...
.


Products

Two beer companies, the Michigan-based Rusted Spoke Brewing Co. and the
California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
n Tactical OPS Brewing, advertised specialty-branded beers in connection to the meme. Rusted Spoke's operations manager told the ''
Detroit Free Press The ''Detroit Free Press'' (commonly referred to as the ''Freep'') is a major daily newspaper in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest local newspaper owned by Gannett (the publisher of ''USA Today''), and is operated by the Detro ...
'' that people just thought the meme was funny. In Switzerland, the
Zürich Zurich (; ) is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 448,664 inhabitants. The ...
-based company Kaex printed the meme on promotional material for an anti-
hangover A hangover is the experience of various unpleasant physiological and psychological effects usually following the consumption of alcohol (beverage), alcohol, such as wine, beer, and liquor. Hangovers can last for several hours or for more than ...
product. Computer programmer, businessman, and presidential candidate
John McAfee John David McAfee ( ; 18 September 1945 – 23 June 2021) was a British and American computer programmer, businessman, and two-time presidential candidate who unsuccessfully sought the Libertarian Party (United States), Libertarian Party nominat ...
announced the release of an
Ethereum Ethereum is a decentralized blockchain with smart contract functionality. Ether (abbreviation: ETH) is the native cryptocurrency of the platform. Among cryptocurrencies, ether is second only to bitcoin in market capitalization. It is open-s ...
-based
token Token may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Token, a game piece or counter, used in some games * The Tokens, a vocal music group * Tolkien Black, a recurring character on the animated television series ''South Park,'' formerly known as ...
named after the meme. He had previously expressed doubts about Epstein's death. 700 million tokens of the cryptocurrency were released to 8,000 users following its
airdrop An airdrop is a type of airlift in which items including weapons, equipment, humanitarian aid or leaflets are delivered by military or civilian aircraft without their landing. Developed during World War II to resupply otherwise inaccessible tr ...
. After McAfee died, many, particularly followers of
QAnon QAnon ( ) is a far-right conspiracy theories in United States politics, American political conspiracy theory and political movement that originated in 2017. QAnon centers on fabricated claims made by an anonymous individual or individuals kno ...
, started using "McAfee didn't kill himself" in reference to the meme, the similarities of the reporting, and the fact that McAfee was an outspoken supporter of the phrase. Holiday-themed merchandise, such as Christmas sweaters, which prominently feature the phrase also became available for sale through several online retailers. In an interview with ''
Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous, metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade, regional metamorphism. It is the finest-grained foliated metamorphic ro ...
'', independent merchandisers indicated that the Christmas/Epstein product lines were selling comparatively well and cited the mashup's dark humor for its internet popularity. According to ''
Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'', the Christmas-themed paraphernalia was reportedly outselling ''
Game of Thrones ''Game of Thrones'' is an American Fantasy television, fantasy Drama (film and television), drama television series created by David Benioff and for HBO. It is an adaptation of ''A Song of Ice and Fire'', a series of high fantasy novels by ...
'' merchandise.


Vandalism

The phrase has been connected to several incidents of vandalism including its appearance "on road signs and overpasses around the country". One specific incident saw the meme painted on a 7-foot-high
boulder In geology, a boulder (or rarely bowlder) is a rock fragment with size greater than in diameter. Smaller pieces are called cobbles and pebbles. While a boulder may be small enough to move or roll manually, others are extremely massive. In ...
and visible to travelers on
Washington State Route 9 State Route 9 (SR 9) is a long state highway traversing three counties, Snohomish, Skagit, and Whatcom, in the U.S. state of Washington. The highway extends north from an interchange with in the vicinity of Woodinville north th ...
in Snohomish, causing some controversy in the local community. The site of a popular art piece at the
Art Basel Art Basel is a for-profit, privately owned and managed, international art fair staged annually in Basel (Switzerland), Miami Beach (US), Hong Kong and Paris. Art Basel provides a platform for galleries to show and sell their work to buyers, an ...
in Miami, ''
Comedian A comedian (feminine comedienne) or comic is a person who seeks to entertainment, entertain an audience by making them laughter, laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolishly (as in slapstick), or employing prop c ...
'', a banana that had been duct-taped to a wall, was vandalized when Roderick Webber of Massachusetts wrote " didn't kill himself" in red lipstick on the wall ''Comedian'' had previously occupied. Webber was arrested for criminal mischief and reportedly spent a night in jail.


Reactions

NPR National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...
's
Scott Simon Scott Simon (born March 16, 1952) is an American journalist and the host of '' Weekend Edition Saturday'' on NPR. Early life Simon was born in Chicago, Illinois, the son of comedian Ernie Simon and actress Patricia Lyons.
compared the meme's bait-and-switch aspect to
rickrolling The Rickroll is an Internet meme involving the unexpected appearance of the music video to the 1987 hit song "Never Gonna Give You Up", performed by English singer Rick Astley. The aforementioned video has over 1.6 billion views on YouTube. Th ...
. He also worried that doing a news story about it could spread misinformation. Federal prosecutors have tried to discourage the spread of the theory, but the
Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...
reported, " e phrase 'Jeffrey Epstein didn't kill himself' has taken on a life of its own—sometimes more as a pop culture catchphrase than an actual belief." Writer James Poulos cited the advancement of social media and growing populist sentiments for the meme. Commentators have also suggested that growing distrust of government and the
elite In political and sociological theory, the elite (, from , to select or to sort out) are a small group of powerful or wealthy people who hold a disproportionate amount of wealth, privilege, political power, or skill in a group. Defined by the ...
played a large factor in its popularity as well.
Jeet Heer Jeet Heer is a Canadian author, comics critic, literary critic and journalist. He is a national affairs correspondent for ''The Nation'' magazine and a former staff writer at ''The New Republic''. The publications he has written for include '' The ...
of ''
The Nation ''The Nation'' is a progressive American monthly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper ...
'' has expressed worry that this could lead to the meme becoming a useful tool for recruitment for the
far right Far-right politics, often termed right-wing extremism, encompasses a range of ideologies that are marked by ultraconservatism, authoritarianism, ultranationalism, and Nativism (politics), nativism. This political spectrum situates itself on ...
; but Adam Bulger, in a featured article for BTRtoday, dismissed Heer's concerns and encouraged the Democratic Party to embrace the meme. In an article for ''
Mel Magazine ''MEL'' was a men's magazine headquartered in Marina del Rey, California. Originally funded by Dollar Shave Club, ''Mel'' has been described by ''New York Times'' journalist Amanda Hess as "the rare men's magazine that has taken upon itself to i ...
'' published shortly before the Fox News interview, Miles Klee wrote that there were numerous reasons for the meme's rise online, including a "simmering resentment" and a lack of justice for Epstein's victims. He added that a major attraction of sharing the meme was that it served to keep the Epstein story in the
news cycle The 24-hour news cycle (or 24/7 news cycle) is the 24-hour investigation and reporting of news, concomitant with fast-paced lifestyles. The vast news resources available in recent decades have increased competition for audience and advertiser at ...
. Author Anna Merlan has instead argued that the meme tends to trivialize the concerns of Epstein's victims. But she mentioned that Jane Doe 15, who on November 19, 2019, publicly alleged that Epstein had raped her, wore a bracelet featuring the phrase "Epstein didn't kill himself" at a public press conference.


Notes


References


Further reading

* * * * * * * * * * {{authority control 2019 controversies in the United States American political catchphrases Conspiracy theories in the United States Death conspiracy theories Hashtags Internet memes introduced in 2019 Didn't kill himself Political Internet memes introduced from the United States Political quotes Slogans 2019 quotations