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George Church, Robert Winthrop Professor of Genetics of Harvard University, apologized for repeatedly meeting with the late Jeffrey Epstein, even following Epstein’s 2008 conviction for soliciting a minor for prostitution, according to STAT. (Epstein was accused of additional sex trafficking crimes prior to his apparent suicide in federal custody on Saturday.) Church is just one public intellectual to have socialized with Epstein, a financier who was interested in academic science and donated millions to Harvard. Last month, Harvard psychologist Steven Pinker said he regretted once helping interpret the wording of a law for Epstein's legal defense. Church told STAT, “I certainly apologize for my poor awareness and judgment.” He added, “There should have been more conversations about, should we be doing this, should we be helping this guy? There was just a lot of nerd tunnel vision.”
Church also confirmed to STAT NBC’s report that he had six phone calls and meetings with Epstein in 2014 and said that he’d met with Epstein “several times” each year since. But Church said he knew nothing about Epstein’s wish, reported by The New York Times, to supposedly benefit the human race by inseminating many women at his New Mexico ranch. The Times reported that Epstein confided in several scientists about his plan over the years, but the paper found no evidence that he ever acted on it.
