NEW YORK —

Nearly four years after Jeffrey Epstein's death, thousands of pages of records obtained by The Associated Press are shedding new light on the financier’s time behind bars and a frantic response by federal corrections officials to his death.

The documents, including emails between jail officials and psychological evaluations, offer a fuller picture of Epstein as he awaited trial on sex trafficking charges at the now-shuttered Metropolitan Correctionalnassar Center.

Epstein killed himself at the federal jail in 2019. In the days and weeks that followed, corrections officials struggled to explain how such a high-profile detainee had managed to take his own life.

The records show how he was moved from the jail’s general population to specialized housing and how he was briefly on suicide watch before being downgraded to psychiatric observation — his status when he killed himself.

Here are takeaways from the more than 4,000 pages of documents:

AN AGITATED INMATE

Epstein was anxious and despondent during much of his time in jail, prompting concern from jail guards and psychological experts about his mental state. He complained often about jail life, including poor sleep, constipation, the color of his uniform and his treatment by other detainees. The noise from a broken toilet in his cell left him sitting in the corner with his hands over his ears, according to one psychologist.

But despite his litany of complaints, Epstein insisted that he wouldn't take his own life. Even after he was discovered on his cell's floor with a strip of bedsheet around his neck and placed on suicide watch for 31 hours, he denied that he was contemplating suicide, which he said was against his Jewish religion. Plus, he added, he was a “coward” who didn’t like pain.

“He described having a ‘wonderful life,’’” a psychological evaluation stated. “He said ‘it would be crazy’ to take his life. He furthered, ‘I would not do that to myself.’”

A LETTER TO ANOTHER SEX OFFENDER

Among the new revelations was an attempt by Epstein to reach out to another notorious pedophile: Larry Nassar, the USA Gymnastics team doctor convicted of sexually abusing scores of young athletes.

A letter sent by Epstein to Nassar was found returned to sender in the jail’s mail room weeks after Epstein’s death. “It appeared he mailed it out and it was returned back to him,” the investigator who found the letter told a corrections official by email. “I am not sure if I should open it or should we hand it over to anyone?”

The letter itself wasn't included among the documents turned over to the AP, which also don't indicate what became of the letter.

FINAL PHONE CALL

Epstein was found dead on the morning of Aug. 10, 2019. He had hanged himself with a bedsheet, according to the medical examiner. Hours earlier, he appears to have successfully deceived jail guards one last time by telling them he wanted to talk on the phone to his mother, who had been dead for 15 years.

A correctional officer escorted Epstein to a shower area at around 7 p.m., where he was permitted to make a 15 minute “social call.” Reports later indicated that he had phoned his 30-year-old girlfriend.

Weeks after his death, a jail warden questioned why an employee had failed to follow policy by allowing Epstein to make an unmonitored call.

MUDDLED RESPONSE

The documents shed light on the lurching response by the Bureau of Prisons in the critical hours of Epstein’s death.

In one email, a prosecutor involved in Epstein’s criminal case complained to an agency lawyer that it was “frankly unbelievable” that the agency was issuing public news releases “before telling us basic information so that we can relay it to his attorneys who can relay it to his family.”

In another email, the prosecutor wrote of getting “increasingly frantic calls” from Epstein’s lawyers.

“We need to know as soon as possible the very basic facts, such as time and cause of death at the absolute minimum,” wrote the prosecutor, whose name was redacted. “It has now been hours since this was reported publicly,” the prosecutor wrote, adding that it was “extraordinary frustrating to have to tell them that we have less information than the press.”

As news outlets began reporting details of the agency’s failings, a high-ranking federal prison official made the apparently baseless suggestion to the agency’s director that reporters must have been paying jail employees for information.

THE AFTERMATH

Epstein’s death touched off a wave of anger toward the Bureau of Prisons and questions about the operation of the Metropolitan Correctional Center. In an internal memo, officials blamed “seriously reduced staffing levels, improper or lack of training, and follow up and oversight” for the death.

Two guards who were supposed to be watching Epstein on the night of his death were found to have falsified records, admitting to napping and browsing the internet instead of monitoring the high-profile inmate.

The documents show other efforts to implement reforms, such as requiring jail captains to review footage, ensuring that guards are completing their rounds every 30 minutes. Jail officials said they would allow psychological experts to play a larger role in determining how housing decisions are made.

In some respects, the officials may have overcorrected. A memo sent to the Bureau of Prisons director shortly after Epstein’s death warned that wardens were “defaulting to leaving inmates on suicide watch longer than the psychologists have advised.”

By 2021, the Metropolitan Correctional Center had closed down. An investigation by the Justice Department’s inspector general is still ongoing.

"The situation right now is very dire," Patricia Gossman, associate Asia director for the Human Rights Watch, said.

As the Taliban take control of Afghanistan, women and girls are beginning to live under the return of a very dark reality. 

"The Taliban ruled over Afghanistan for five years until 2001, and they harbored al-Qaeda. Their rule was ghastly, and it was harsh, and there are many concerns that the rights of women over the past 20 years could be rolled back in an instant," Aya Batrawy, Gulf correspondent for the Associated Press, said.

Across the country, observers report the Taliban has already become violent against women and girls for not obeying Islamic extremism rules that reject western influence.  

Nilofar is a displaced teacher from the Takhar province. She says the Taliban recently lashed girls from her school for their choice of footwear, sandals, that were too revealing. 

"They are already also seeking out people that were associated with the current government. We are aware of a number of executions of people have been taken into Taliban custody," Gossman said.

As reports surface of girls being told not to attend school, the Taliban says education will be allowed, so long as "Islamic Sharia laws are not neglected."

"When we consider women and girls, all those who've had their lives advanced, this is searing. It is hard stuff," Secretary of State Antony Blinken told ABC News.

Some women are even being told to stay home and give their jobs to male relatives. 

"I am worried about the women who are vocal, but more importantly, I’m more worried about the girls who cannot talk, who don't have a platform, who cannot represent themselves," Pashtana Dorani, executive director of LEARN, said.

And this may be the beginning.

Meg Hilling at Newsy first reported this story.

A Louisville man has been charged with murder after his 7-week-old daughter died last week from severe injuries, police said.

The child's mother, Cortney Jones, told WLWT sister station, WLKY, "It makes me disgusted, it makes me sick."

Del'Shawn Banks, 23, was arrested Monday night on an arrest warrant for murder-domestic violence. Jones, who was still dealing from complications from the delivery, was back in the hospital Thursday when she says Banks called her.

"I'm sitting in the wheelchair waiting to get rolled back to the room and I get the call my baby wasn't breathing and he's crying, the dad's crying," Jones said.

Little Del'Luna died Saturday at Norton Children's Hospital. According to court documents, she had severe head injuries, including a fractured skull.

Police said the girl's father, Banks, admitted to shaking her and throwing her on the ground. The autopsy confirmed that the injuries were related to the actions described by Banks, and the medical examiner determined the manner of death for the child was homicide.

Jones said her year-and-a-half-long relationship with Banks had been troubled and believes she should have left sooner.

"How can you hurt your own child? How do you hurt someone that looks just like you? A part of you, your blood, your sweat your tears, your everything. How do you do that?" she wondered Tuesday.

Banks faced a judge Tuesday and his bond was set at $250,000. He is due back in court June 30.

Meanwhile, Jones is preparing to organize a funeral for baby Del'Luna. Those wishing to help can click here.

From airplanes to NBA games to grocery stores and beaches, it seems like many Americans have forgotten how to behave.

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, customers everywhere have lashed out at employees over social distancing and mask policies.

David Vaughn, the beach safety director of the South Walton Fire District in the panhandle of Florida, says public service workers have been treated poorly by tourists.

"Last year with COVID, we saw a lot of anger, and we kind of we wrote it off to being a unique historical context. We kind of said, 'OK, we can account for this,'" Vaugh said. "Unfortunately, we've seen some of that carry over this year, where people have been really angry and, for lack of a better way to sugarcoat it, abusive."

The nonprofit group Hollaback is leading a new campaign against harassment.

"When we see harassment happening — things like fear, stress, slightly different communication styles and also grieving and loss tend to be at the heart of why folks sometimes lash out or could harass someone," said Jorge Arteaga, Hollaback's deputy director.

The goal is to teach people how to intervene in such altercations by teaching the "Five Ds" of bystander intervention. The focus is on the victim experiencing the harm, not on the one causing it.

"What we really hope is the Five Ds will become the 'stop drop and roll' this generation, where everyone feels equipped to do at least one thing to show up and support folks," Arteaga said.

Over the years, the group has seen increased requests for training because of movements like #MeToo and Stop AAPI Hate.

"The only good thing that ever came from someone being harassed was when someone supported them or showed up to help them in a situation," Arteaga said.

Hollaback offers free bystander intervention online for anyone interested, including training for conflict de-escalation, resilience building and implicit bias. Learn more by clicking here.