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Former President Donald Trump has consistently expressed his wish to see opponents probed, applying pressure on the Justice Department 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 leader wrote recently in a Truth Social post.

"They impeached me, and indicted me (5 times!)" he declared, mentioning the four criminal cases he encountered after departing the White House in 2021 and James's lawsuit.

Each have subsequently been charged, in situations that numerous specialists have said seem to be driven by politics and challenging to succeed in legal proceedings.

But the most recent allegations against a presidential opponent, former security advisor John Bolton, differ significantly, legal specialists and ex-prosecutors say.

"I would say, comparing Bolton's case to James' is like equating two different things," stated 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 national allegations related to the supposed mishandling of classified information. After departing the White House in 2019, he has become a outspoken presidential opponent, going so far as to describe him "remarkably ignorant" and unsuitable for the presidency in his memoir.

Experts contend that while there may be political reasons to go after Bolton, the methods used to obtain an indictment and the proof gathered against him indicate a potentially stronger legal argument than the DOJ brought against James.

"These actions that's being alleged is both more serious and seems to have occurred over a significant duration," commented Carissa Byrne Hessick, a academic at the University of North Carolina School of Law.

Throughout his tenure as Trump's national security adviser, and after his 2019 White House departure, prosecutors claimed that Bolton placed the nation at danger by improperly retaining and sending classified information to relatives using unprotected methods, including AOL. Some of the materials were labeled top secret.

The indictment alleges that at one point a unauthorized user gained access to Bolton's account where documents were stored and sent an seeming warning to cause "the largest scandal since Hillary [Clinton]'s emails were released".

Bolton pleaded not guilty during a hearing on recently to 18 distinct charges of mishandling classified information.

Political Motivation or a Strong Legal Argument?

The timing of his charge - arriving on the heels of allegations against Comey - has renewed questions about political pressure on the justice system.

Trump previously implied Bolton should be in jail, and described him a "disreputable person". Bolton, for his part, wrote a publication about his experience in the Trump government that was sharply negative of the president.

"There's no question that the timing of this indictment, when paired with additional cases, has raised questions about the strength of these allegations, and why these charges are being brought at this time," stated Jamil Jaffer, creator and executive director of the National Security Institute.

However, he added, "should the Justice Department is able to demonstrate the facts alleged and demonstrate the information is properly classified, his conduct may certainly have violated the statute".

Charging such a senior official for improperly handling classified documents is "uncommon" but not without precedent, noted Carrie Cordero, a expert at the Center for a New American Security.

"Situations that concern sensitive materials present challenges to try, but they can and are filed against equally low-level and senior personnel, from occasionally," she said.

Parallels to Examinations into Former President and President

Trump similarly faced charges of wrongfully storing classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago property in Florida and obstructing their recovery, but that matter was ultimately dismissed by a federal judge and voided by his re-election as president.

A independent investigator additionally found that former President Joe Biden wrongfully stored classified documents from his period as second-in-command, but failed to criminally charge him.

Bolton's situation shares characteristics to Trump's classified documents issues, noted Mr Lesko, who previously held a senior national security role at the DOJ.

Rigorous protocols govern the management of classified documents. To win a conviction, the government must demonstrate that Bolton knew the material he was transmitting was restricted, and he had to knowingly transmit it to someone without authorization to receive it.

"Due to the sensitive nature of the information at issue in this matter, we don't have a great deal of particulars about the reasons the government believes elements like the personal notes and the other material he shared by electronic message, and why there were classified," explained Mr Jaffer.

A Increasingly Conventional Prosecution

The process by which the DOJ brought this case will be closely examined, following Trump openly posted his wish to see his critics charged and several of those charges materialized.

But Mr Lesko said in Bolton's case, authorities seem to have followed protocol.

"This Bolton prosecution and eventually the indictment appeared to have observed the standard procedure including the regulations and norms within the Department of Justice," he said.

Unlike Comey's brief, concise charge, Bolton's was a increasingly "conventional" filing that "explicitly outlines the details involving the circumstances and circumstances here," Mr Lesko said.

"It seems fairly aligned with a series of cases... where government officials improperly handled and shared sensitive information."