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

"We can't delay further, it's killing our reputation and trustworthiness," the leader stated last month in a Truth Social message.

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

Both have subsequently been indicted, in situations that many experts have stated appear to be driven by politics and challenging to win in court.

But the most recent charges against a Trump critic, ex security advisor John Bolton, differ significantly, legal specialists and ex-prosecutors say.

"I would say, comparing Bolton's charges to Comey's is like equating two different things," stated Mark Lesko, a former acting US attorney for the Eastern District of New York.

The Details of Bolton's Case

Bolton has been formally charged on federal charges pertaining to the supposed mishandling of sensitive materials. Since leaving the White House in 2019, he has become a vocal Trump critic, even to describe him "remarkably ignorant" and unsuitable for office in his book.

Specialists contend that while there may be political reasons to target Bolton, the procedures used to secure an charge and the proof gathered against him indicate a potentially more substantial case than the DOJ brought against James.

"This misconduct that's being claimed is both more serious and appears to have occurred over a considerable period of time," said Carissa Byrne Hessick, a professor at the University of North Carolina School of Law.

During his tenure as Trump's national security adviser, and following his 2019 White House departure, prosecutors alleged that Bolton put the country at danger by wrongfully keeping and sending classified information to relatives using insecure means, including AOL. Some of the documents were marked top secret.

The charge states that at a certain time a unauthorized user accessed to Bolton's account where files were kept and sent an seeming threat to cause "the biggest controversy since Hillary [Clinton]'s emails were released".

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

Political Motivation or a Strong Case?

The timing of his indictment - arriving on the heels of allegations against Comey - has renewed concerns about political pressure on the legal system.

Trump once suggested Bolton belonged in jail, and described him a "disreputable person". Bolton, for his part, authored a book about his experience in the Trump administration that was highly critical of the leader.

"Undoubtedly that the timing of this charge, when combined with others, has raised questions about the strength of these charges, and the reason these counts are being filed at this time," said Jamil Jaffer, founder and executive director of the National Security Institute.

However, he added, "should the Justice Department is capable to demonstrate the facts stated and show the material is properly classified, his conduct may certainly have broken the law".

Prosecuting such a senior official for mishandling sensitive materials is "uncommon" but not without precedent, noted Carrie Cordero, a expert at the Center for a New American Security.

"Situations that involve classified information pose difficulties to prosecute, but they may and are filed against equally low-level and high-level officials, from time to time," she explained.

Similarities to Examinations into Former President and President

Trump likewise encountered charges of improperly keeping sensitive materials at his Mar-a-Lago property in Florida and obstructing their return, but that case was eventually thrown out by a federal judge and negated by his re-election as president.

A independent investigator also found that ex-President Joe Biden improperly maintained classified documents from his period as vice president, but did not criminally charge him.

Bolton's case bears similarities to Biden's classified documents matters, said Mr Lesko, who also held a senior national security position at the Justice Department.

Rigorous procedures govern the management of sensitive materials. To secure a conviction, the government must prove that Bolton knew the information he was transmitting was restricted, and he had to intentionally transfer it to someone not entitled to obtain it.

"Due to the classified character of the material at issue in this matter, we lack a lot of particulars about why the government believes things like the diary entries and the additional material he shared by email, and the reason there were restricted," explained Mr Jaffer.

A Increasingly Traditional Prosecution

The process by which the DOJ initiated this legal action will be closely examined, following Trump publicly expressed his wish to see his critics charged and some of those indictments materialized.

But Mr Lesko indicated in Bolton's situation, prosecutors appear to have followed protocol.

"The Bolton case and eventually the charge appeared to have observed the standard procedure including the regulations and standards within the DOJ," he stated.

Unlike Comey's short, two-page indictment, Bolton's was a increasingly "conventional" document that "clearly outlines the details concerning the facts and situation in this instance," Mr Lesko said.

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