🔗 Share this article Why the Bolton Legal Situation Stands Apart Significantly from Additional Former President Opponents Former security advisor John Bolton arrives at court on recently. Ex-President Donald Trump has repeatedly expressed his wish to see critics investigated, exerting influence on the Justice Department to prosecute former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James. "We cannot postpone further, it's damaging our reputation and credibility," the leader stated last month in a Truth Social post. "They impeached me, and indicted me (5 times!)" he declared, referencing the four criminal cases he faced after departing the White House in 2021 and James's civil case. Both have since been indicted, in situations that numerous experts have stated appear to be driven by politics and challenging to win in legal proceedings. But the latest charges against a Trump critic, former national security adviser John Bolton, stand apart, legal specialists and former prosecutors say. "I would say, contrasting Bolton's charges to Comey's is like comparing two different things," said Mark Lesko, a former acting US attorney for the Eastern District of New York. This Specifics of Bolton's Legal Situation Bolton has been formally charged on federal charges related to the alleged improper handling of sensitive materials. After leaving the White House in 2019, he has become a outspoken presidential opponent, going so far as to describe him "stunningly uninformed" and unfit for the presidency in his book. Experts say that while there may be political reasons to go after Bolton, the procedures used to secure an charge and the proof gathered against him suggest a possibly more substantial case than the DOJ brought against James. "This misconduct that's being claimed is both more severe and seems to have occurred over a considerable period of time," said Carissa Byrne Hessick, a professor at the University of North Carolina School of Law. Throughout his tenure as Trump's national security adviser, and after his 2019 White House exit, authorities alleged that Bolton placed the country at risk by improperly keeping and sending classified information to family members using insecure means, including AOL. Several of the materials were labeled top secret. The indictment states that at one point a unauthorized user gained access to Bolton's account where documents were kept and transmitted an apparent warning to cause "the largest scandal since Hillary [Clinton]'s emails were leaked". Bolton pleaded not guilty during a court appearance on recently to 18 separate charges of improperly handling classified information. Retribution or a Substantial Legal Argument? The schedule of his indictment - arriving on the tails of allegations against James - has revived questions about political pressure on the justice system. Trump previously suggested Bolton belonged in jail, and described him a "sleazebag". Bolton, for his part, authored a publication about his time in the Trump government that was highly critical of the leader. "Undoubtedly that the schedule of this indictment, when paired with additional cases, has prompted questions about the strength of these allegations, and the reason these counts are being brought at this time," said Jamil Jaffer, founder and director of the National Security Institute. However, he continued, "should the Justice Department is able to demonstrate the facts stated and demonstrate the material is properly classified, his conduct may very well have broken the law". Prosecuting such a high-ranking official for mishandling classified documents is "rare" but not unprecedented, noted Carrie Cordero, a senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security. "Situations that concern classified information pose difficulties to prosecute, but they can and are filed against both low-level and senior officials, from time to time," she explained. Parallels to Investigations into Former President and President Trump likewise encountered allegations of wrongfully keeping classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago property in Florida and hindering their return, but that case was ultimately thrown out by a federal judge and negated by his return as president. A special counsel additionally found that ex-President Joe Biden wrongfully maintained sensitive materials from his time as vice president, but failed to prosecute him. Bolton's case shares characteristics to Trump's classified documents matters, said Mr Lesko, who also held a senior national security role at the Justice Department. Rigorous procedures regulate the handling of sensitive materials. To secure a conviction, the government must demonstrate that Bolton knew the information he was sending was restricted, and he had to intentionally transmit it to someone not entitled to receive it. "Because of the classified character of the information at question in this matter, we lack a great deal of details about the reasons the prosecution believes elements like the diary entries and the other material he communicated by electronic message, and why there were classified," explained Mr Jaffer. A Increasingly Traditional Legal Action The procedure by which the DOJ initiated this case will be under scrutiny, after Trump publicly expressed his desire to see his critics charged and several of those charges came to fruition. But Mr Lesko indicated in Bolton's case, authorities appear to have followed standard procedure. "The Bolton prosecution and ultimately the indictment seemed to have observed the standard process including the rules and standards within the Department of Justice," he said. Unlike Comey's short, concise charge, Bolton's was a increasingly "traditional" filing that "explicitly sets forth the details involving the facts and circumstances in this instance," Mr Lesko commented. "It seems reasonably consistent with a long line of precedents... where public servants mishandled and transmitted sensitive information."