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

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

"I was impeached twice, and charged me (five times!)" he said, referencing the multiple legal proceedings he encountered after leaving the White House in 2021 and James's civil case.

Each have since been charged, in situations that numerous specialists have said seem to be politically motivated and difficult to win in legal proceedings.

But the most recent allegations against a Trump critic, ex national security adviser John Bolton, stand apart, legal specialists and ex-prosecutors say.

"In my opinion, comparing Bolton's charges to James' is like comparing apples to oranges," said Mark Lesko, a former acting US attorney 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 classified information. Since departing the White House in 2019, he has become a vocal Trump critic, going so far as to call him "stunningly uninformed" and unfit for the presidency in his book.

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

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

Throughout his tenure as Trump's national security adviser, and following his 2019 White House departure, authorities alleged that Bolton put the nation at danger by wrongfully retaining and transmitting sensitive documents to relatives using unprotected methods, including AOL. Some of the documents were marked highly classified.

The indictment alleges that at one point a unauthorized user accessed to Bolton's account where files were kept and transmitted an seeming threat to cause "the largest controversy since Hillary [Clinton]'s emails were leaked".

Bolton pleaded not guilty during a court appearance on recently to 18 separate charges of mishandling sensitive materials.

Retribution or a Substantial Case?

The schedule of his indictment - coming on the heels of charges against James - has revived concerns about political pressure on the legal system.

Trump previously implied Bolton belonged in prison, and described him a "sleazebag". Bolton, for his role, wrote a book about his time in the Trump administration that was sharply negative of the leader.

"Undoubtedly that the timing of this charge, when paired with additional cases, has raised doubts about the validity of these charges, and why these counts are being filed at this time," said Jamil Jaffer, founder and executive director of the National Security Institute.

However, he continued, "should the DOJ is able to prove the facts stated and show the material is properly classified, his conduct may certainly have violated the statute".

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

"Situations that concern sensitive materials present difficulties to prosecute, but they may and are filed against both junior and senior personnel, from time to time," she explained.

Similarities to Examinations into Trump and President

Trump likewise encountered allegations of improperly keeping sensitive materials at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida and obstructing their recovery, but that matter was eventually thrown out by a federal judge and voided by his re-election as president.

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

Bolton's situation shares characteristics to Trump's classified documents matters, noted Mr Lesko, who also held a senior security position at the DOJ.

Strict procedures govern the handling of sensitive materials. To secure a conviction, the government must prove that Bolton was aware the material he was transmitting was restricted, and he had to intentionally transmit it to someone not entitled to obtain it.

"Because of the classified nature of the information at question in this case, we lack a lot of details about why the prosecution contends things like the personal notes and the other material he communicated by email, and the reason there were classified," said Mr Jaffer.

A More Conventional Prosecution

The process by which the Justice Department initiated this legal action will be under scrutiny, after Trump publicly expressed his wish to see his political opponents charged and some of those indictments came to fruition.

But Mr Lesko indicated in Bolton's situation, authorities seem to have followed protocol.

"The Bolton prosecution and eventually the charge appeared to have followed the standard process including the regulations and norms within the Department of Justice," he stated.

Unlike Comey's short, concise indictment, Bolton's was a more "traditional" document that "explicitly outlines the details concerning the facts and circumstances in this instance," Mr Lesko commented.

"It appears fairly consistent with a long line of cases... where government officials improperly handled and shared sensitive information."