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

"We cannot postpone any longer, it's damaging our standing and trustworthiness," the leader stated last month in a Truth Social post.

"They impeached me, and indicted me (five times!)" he declared, mentioning the four criminal cases he faced after leaving the White House in 2021 and James's civil case.

Each have subsequently been charged, in cases that numerous specialists have stated appear to be politically motivated and challenging to win in court.

But the latest allegations against a presidential opponent, ex national security adviser John Bolton, differ significantly, legal specialists and ex-prosecutors assert.

"I would say, contrasting Bolton's case to Comey's is like equating two different things," stated Mark Lesko, a former federal prosecutor for the Eastern District of New York.

This Details of Bolton's Case

Bolton has been formally charged on national allegations related to the supposed mishandling of sensitive materials. Since departing the White House in 2019, he has become a outspoken presidential opponent, going so far as to call him "remarkably ignorant" and unfit for the presidency in his book.

Specialists say that while there may be political motivations to go after Bolton, the methods used to obtain an indictment and the evidence gathered against him suggest a possibly more substantial legal argument than the Justice Department brought against James.

"These actions that's being alleged is simultaneously more severe and appears to have taken place over a significant duration," said Carissa Byrne Hessick, a professor at the University of North Carolina School of Law.

Throughout his time as Trump's security advisor, and after his 2019 White House exit, authorities alleged that Bolton placed the country at danger by wrongfully keeping and transmitting sensitive documents to relatives using unprotected methods, including AOL. Several of the documents were marked highly classified.

The indictment states that at one point a hacker accessed to Bolton's system where documents were kept and sent an seeming threat to cause "the largest scandal since Hillary [Clinton]'s emails were leaked".

Bolton entered a not guilty plea during a hearing on Friday to 18 distinct counts of improperly handling sensitive materials.

Retribution or a Substantial Legal Argument?

The timing of his indictment - coming on the heels of allegations against James - has renewed questions about external influence on the legal system.

Trump previously suggested Bolton belonged in jail, and described him a "disreputable person". Bolton, for his part, wrote a publication about his experience in the Trump administration that was highly critical of the president.

"There's no question that the schedule of this charge, when combined with others, has prompted questions about the validity of these allegations, and the reason these charges are being filed now," said Jamil Jaffer, founder and director of the National Security Institute.

However, he added, "should the Justice Department is capable to demonstrate the allegations stated and demonstrate the material is correctly designated, his behavior may very well have broken the statute".

Prosecuting such a senior official for improperly handling sensitive materials is "uncommon" but not unprecedented, said Carrie Cordero, a senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security.

"Situations that involve classified information present difficulties to try, but they may and are filed against equally low-level and senior officials, from time to time," she said.

Similarities to Investigations into Former President and President

Trump likewise faced allegations of improperly keeping classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida and obstructing their return, but that case was eventually dismissed by a court official and voided by his re-election as leader.

A special counsel additionally found that former President Joe Biden wrongfully stored sensitive materials from his period as vice president, but failed to prosecute him.

Bolton's situation bears similarities to Biden's classified documents issues, noted Mr Lesko, who previously held a senior security position at the DOJ.

Strict protocols regulate the handling of classified documents. To win a guilty verdict, the prosecution must prove that Bolton was aware the information he was sending was classified, and he had to knowingly transfer it to someone not entitled to obtain it.

"Because of the sensitive character of the information at issue in this case, we don't have a great deal of particulars about the reasons the prosecution contends elements like the personal notes and the other material he communicated by email, and why there were restricted," explained Mr Jaffer.

A Increasingly Traditional Legal Action

The procedure by which the Justice Department brought this case will be closely examined, after Trump openly expressed his wish to see his critics charged and some of those indictments materialized.

But Mr Lesko said in Bolton's situation, prosecutors appear to have followed standard procedure.

"This Bolton case and ultimately the indictment seemed to have followed the standard procedure including the rules and norms within the Department of Justice," he stated.

Unlike Comey's short, concise indictment, Bolton's was a more "conventional" filing that "clearly outlines the details concerning the circumstances and situation here," Mr Lesko commented.

"It appears fairly aligned with a long line of cases... where government officials improperly handled and transmitted classified material."