Americans aren’t buying that disgraced financier and convicted sex criminal Jeffrey Epstein killed himself in jail last weekend.

The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds that only 29% of American Adults believe Epstein actually committed suicide while in jail. Forty-two percent (42%) think Epstein was murdered to prevent him from testifying against powerful people with whom he associated. A sizable 29% are undecided. (To see survey question wording, click here.)

Sixty-seven percent (67%) say they have closely followed news reports about Epstein, with 25% who have followed Very Closely.

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Among Americans who have been following the story Very Closely, 56% say Epstein was murdered.

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The survey of 1,000 American Adults was conducted on August 12-13, 2019 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

Former President Bill Clinton is perhaps the most prominent person linked to Epstein. Fifty-three percent (53%) of voters said in June of last year that Clinton is a sexual predator.

Men are more likely than women to think Epstein was murdered. Whites are less suspicious than blacks and other minority adults.

Middle-aged voters are the most likely to suspect foul play.

Most Americans think the rich and famous get preferential treatment when they break the law.

Additional information from this survey and a full demographic breakdown are available to Platinum Members only.

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