Ex-Trump adviser Bolton pleads not guilty to charges of mishandling classified information

GREENBELT, Maryland - John Bolton, the national security hawk and former adviser to Donald Trump who has become one of the US president’s biggest critics pleaded not guilty on Oct 17 to charges of mishandling classified information.

Bolton, who was indicted on Oct 16, is the

third of Mr Trump’s prominent critics to face prosecution

in recent weeks, as the US president dispenses with decades-long norms designed to insulate federal law enforcement from political pressures.

Bolton, wearing a dark blue suit and maroon tie, did not speak with reporters as he arrived at the courthouse in Greenbelt, Maryland, to surrender.

“Not guilty, your honor,” Bolton, 76, said in court. He was released on his own recognizance and a hearing in the case is scheduled for Nov 21.

The indictment alleges that Bolton shared sensitive information with two of his relatives for possible use in a book he was writing, including notes on intelligence briefings and meetings with senior government officials and foreign leaders.

Bolton’s lawyer, Abbe Lowell, said Bolton did not unlawfully share or store any information.

Charges against perceived adversaries

Mr Trump, a Republican who campaigned for the presidency on a vow of retribution after facing a slew of legal woes once his first term in the White House ended in 2021, has actively pursued his attorney-general, Pam Bondi, to bring charges against his perceived adversaries.

That included pushing Ms Bondi’s Justice Department to bring charges against

former FBI Director James Comey

and

New York Attorney-General Letitia James

, even driving out a prosecutor he deemed to be moving too slowly in doing so.

Bolton served as White House national security adviser during Mr Trump’s first term, before emerging as one of the president’s most vocal critics. Bolton, also a former US ambassador to the United Nations, described Mr Trump as unfit to be president in a memoir he released in 2024.

The investigation of Bolton was opened in 2022, predating the Trump administration. Inside the Justice Department, the case is viewed as stronger than the prosecutions of Comey and James, according to a person familiar with the matter.

The indictment of Bolton, filed in federal court in Maryland, charges him with eight counts of transmission of national defense information and 10 counts of retention of national defence information, all in violation of the Espionage Act. Each count is punishable by up to 10 years in prison, but any sentence would be determined by a judge based on a range of factors.

In some of the chats described in the indictment, Bolton and his relatives - who are not identified - discussed using some of the material for a book. Bolton referred to the two people with whom he shared his daily notes as his “editors,” the indictment said.

“Talking with (book publisher) because they have a right of first refusal!” Bolton wrote in one message, according to the indictment.

The two relatives referred to in the indictment are Bolton’s wife and daughter, two people familiar with the matter said.

Asked by reporters at the White House about the Bolton indictment on Oct 16, Mr Trump said: “He’s a bad guy.” REUTERS