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Former President Donald Trump has repeatedly shown his wish to see opponents probed, applying pressure on the DOJ to charge ex FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James.

"We can't delay any longer, it's damaging our reputation and credibility," the president stated last month in a Truth Social message.

"I was impeached me, and charged me (5 times!)" he declared, mentioning the multiple legal proceedings he faced after departing the White House in 2021 and James's civil case.

Each have subsequently been charged, in situations that many experts have stated appear to be driven by politics and challenging to succeed in court.

But the most recent allegations against a presidential opponent, former national security adviser John Bolton, stand apart, legal experts and ex-prosecutors assert.

"I would say, comparing Bolton's case to James' is like equating apples to oranges," stated Mark Lesko, a former federal prosecutor for the Eastern District of New York.

The Specifics of Bolton's Legal Situation

Bolton has been criminally indicted on federal charges related to the alleged mishandling of sensitive materials. Since departing the White House in 2019, he has emerged as a outspoken presidential opponent, going so far as to call him "stunningly uninformed" and unfit for office in his book.

Specialists contend that while there may be political motivations to go after Bolton, the procedures used to obtain an charge and the proof gathered against him indicate a possibly stronger case than the DOJ presented against James.

"This misconduct that's being alleged is both more severe and appears to have taken place over a considerable duration," 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, prosecutors alleged that Bolton placed the country at risk by wrongfully keeping and sending classified information to relatives using unprotected methods, including AOL. Some of the materials were marked highly classified.

The charge states that at a certain time a unauthorized user gained access to Bolton's account where documents were kept and sent an apparent warning to cause "the biggest scandal since Hillary [Clinton]'s emails were released".

Bolton pleaded not guilty during a court appearance on Friday to eighteen separate charges of mishandling classified information.

Political Motivation or a Strong Case?

The schedule of his indictment - arriving on the tails of allegations against James - has revived concerns about external influence on the legal system.

Trump once suggested Bolton belonged in jail, and described him a "disreputable person". Bolton, for his role, authored a publication about his time in the Trump administration that was highly critical of the president.

"Undoubtedly that the schedule of this indictment, when paired with others, has raised questions about the validity of these charges, and why these counts are being brought now," stated Jamil Jaffer, founder and executive director of the National Security Institute.

Nevertheless, he added, "if the Justice Department is capable to demonstrate the allegations stated and demonstrate the material is correctly designated, his conduct may certainly have broken the law".

Charging such a senior figure for improperly handling classified documents is "uncommon" but not unprecedented, said Carrie Cordero, a expert at the Center for a New American Security.

"Situations that involve classified information present challenges to prosecute, but they may and are brought against both junior and high-level personnel, from time to time," she said.

Similarities to Examinations into Trump and President

Trump similarly encountered allegations of improperly storing sensitive materials at his Mar-a-Lago property in Florida and obstructing their recovery, but that case was ultimately thrown out by a federal judge and negated by his return as leader.

A independent investigator additionally determined that former President Joe Biden improperly stored classified documents from his time as vice president, but failed to criminally charge him.

Bolton's situation shares characteristics to Biden's sensitive materials issues, said Mr Lesko, who previously held a top national security role at the DOJ.

Strict protocols govern the handling of sensitive materials. To secure a guilty verdict, the government must prove that Bolton knew the information he was transmitting was restricted, and he had to knowingly transmit it to someone without authorization to obtain it.

"Due to the sensitive character of the material at issue in this matter, we lack a great deal of particulars about why the government believes elements like the diary entries and the additional material he shared by electronic message, and why there were classified," explained Mr Jaffer.

A More Conventional Prosecution

The process by which the Justice Department brought this legal action will be closely examined, following Trump publicly expressed his desire to see his critics prosecuted and some of those charges materialized.

But Mr Lesko indicated in Bolton's case, authorities seem to have followed standard procedure.

"This Bolton prosecution and eventually the indictment appeared to have observed the standard procedure including the rules and standards within the Department of Justice," he stated.

In contrast to Comey's brief, concise charge, Bolton's was a more "traditional" filing that "explicitly outlines the details involving the circumstances and circumstances here," Mr Lesko commented.

"It appears reasonably consistent with a series of cases... where government officials mishandled and shared sensitive information."