Newly released Epstein files reveal connections to Chapman faculty
Collage by Easton Clark, Photo Editor
A newly released batch of records relating to Jeffrey Epstein places John “Jack” Horner, a lecturer and presidential fellow at Chapman University, among those who corresponded with Epstein and suggests the two met on multiple occasions.
Horner currently instructs two honors courses at Chapman and founded Chapman’s dinosaur lab in 2022.
The records do not allege that the paleontologist engaged in any criminal activity, nor has he been accused of any wrongdoing.
The documents show that Horner discussed visits to Epstein’s New Mexico property, commonly known as Zorro Ranch, in correspondence sent between 2012 and 2016.
In a June 2012 email, Horner outlined possible travel dates and asked logistical questions, including where he would need to fly and whether airfare would be covered.
A Montana State University (MSU) spokesperson confirmed that Horner visited Epstein’s ranch in the summer of 2012 for what was described as a paleontological tour through the university, where he had been a professor for 33 years before retiring in 2016.
A few months later, in a September email, Horner wrote: “I had a great time, especially spending time with you and the girls.” He closed his message to Epstein with “Please give all the girls my very best wishes, and to you, whom I envy.”
On Feb. 5, Horner made a personal statement on Instagram saying, “I was aware that he had previously been charged with soliciting a prostitute and had served a sentence, but I was not aware of any additional allegations or misconduct.”
“Those present besides the ranch manager and his wife included Epstein, a chef, Epstein’s secretary and four women who were introduced to me as college students, two of whom claimed to be adept in genetics,” he said. “Once back in Bozeman I sent a brief email thanking Jeffrey and the students (‘the girls’) for allowing me to present my project and to explore the ranch…I regret my use of the term ‘girls’ in emails referring to the students, rather than using more appropriate language.”
The Panther reached out to Horner for comment, but received no response.
While at MSU, Horner worked at the university’s affiliated non-profit museum, the Museum of the Rockies. Horner was let go from the museum at the same time as the university, citing his 2012 marriage to a 19-year-old MSU undergraduate as his believed reason for forced retirement. Horner was 70 at the time of their marriage.
In another email from September 2016, Horner referenced passing through Santa Fe with a student and asked whether Epstein would be at the ranch at that time. Although Epstein was not at the ranch at the time, Horner received directions to the site.
Chapman’s name appears only briefly in the documents as an institutional affiliation to Horner. The records do not suggest that Chapman University, as an institution, has any relationship with Epstein or any involvement in the activities described in the files.
There is also a brief mention of former president Daniele Struppa in a string of 2018 emails between Epstein and former Rutgers professor Robert Trivers.
Trivers, who was known to have been associated with Epstein as early as 2015, sent then-president Struppa a threatening email, blaming Struppa for not getting hired at Chapman.
The Panther reached out to Struppa for comment, but received a response that he is on sabbatical. Chapman’s director of strategic communications and public relations, Robert Hitchcock, made a statement on the university’s behalf.
“We are aware of the email correspondence,” said Hitchcock. “President Emeritus Daniele Struppa is the object of angry emails by a person who was upset that Struppa had taken swift and decisive action as president in response to a report of improper conduct.”
Regarding Horner, Hitchcock said the university is seriously looking into the nature of the emails.