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Ex-President Donald Trump has consistently shown his desire to see opponents probed, applying influence 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 reputation and credibility," the president stated last month in a social media message.

"I was impeached twice, and charged me (five times!)" he said, referencing the four criminal cases he faced after departing the White House in 2021 and James's lawsuit.

Both have since been indicted, in situations that numerous specialists have stated seem to be politically motivated and difficult to succeed in court.

But the latest charges against a presidential opponent, ex security advisor John Bolton, stand apart, legal experts and former prosecutors assert.

"In my opinion, contrasting Bolton's case to James' is like comparing two different things," stated Mark Lesko, a ex acting US attorney for the Eastern District of New York.

This Specifics of Bolton's Legal Situation

Bolton has been criminally indicted on national allegations related to the supposed mishandling of sensitive materials. After leaving the White House in 2019, he has emerged as a vocal presidential opponent, going so far as to describe him "stunningly uninformed" and unfit for office in his memoir.

Specialists say that while there may be political reasons to target Bolton, the methods used to obtain an indictment and the proof compiled against him suggest a potentially more substantial case than the DOJ brought against James.

"These actions that's being alleged is both more serious and appears to have taken place over a considerable period of time," said Carissa Byrne Hessick, a professor at the University of North Carolina School of Law.

During his time as Trump's national security adviser, and following his 2019 White House departure, prosecutors alleged that Bolton put the country at risk by improperly keeping and transmitting classified information to family members using insecure means, including AOL. Several of the documents were marked highly classified.

The indictment states that at one point a hacker gained access to Bolton's system where files were kept and transmitted an apparent warning to cause "the biggest scandal since Hillary [Clinton]'s emails were released".

Bolton entered a not guilty plea during a court appearance on Friday to eighteen separate counts of improperly handling sensitive materials.

Political Motivation or a Strong Case?

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

Trump previously implied Bolton belonged in jail, and called him a "disreputable person". Bolton, for his part, wrote a book about his experience in the Trump administration that was highly critical of the leader.

"There's no question that the schedule of this indictment, when combined with additional cases, has raised doubts about the strength of these charges, and the reason these charges are being brought now," stated Jamil Jaffer, founder and director of the National Security Institute.

However, he continued, "should the DOJ is able to demonstrate the allegations stated and show the information is correctly designated, his behavior may certainly have violated the statute".

Prosecuting such a high-ranking official for improperly handling sensitive materials is "rare" but not unprecedented, noted Carrie Cordero, a expert at the Center for a New American Security.

"Cases that concern sensitive materials pose difficulties to try, but they can and are filed against both junior and high-level personnel, from time to time," she explained.

Parallels to Investigations into Trump and Biden

Trump likewise encountered allegations of wrongfully keeping sensitive materials at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida and hindering their recovery, but that matter was ultimately dismissed by a court official and voided by his re-election as president.

A independent investigator also determined that ex-President Joe Biden improperly maintained classified documents from his period as vice president, but failed to criminally charge him.

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

Rigorous protocols regulate the handling of sensitive materials. To secure a guilty verdict, the prosecution must demonstrate that Bolton knew the material he was transmitting was restricted, and he had to knowingly transmit it to someone not entitled to receive it.

"Due to the classified nature of the information at question in this matter, we lack a great deal of details about why the government contends things like the diary entries and the other material he communicated by email, and the reason there were restricted," explained Mr Jaffer.

A More Traditional Legal Action

The process by which the Justice Department brought this case will be closely examined, following Trump publicly expressed his wish to see his political opponents prosecuted and some of those indictments materialized.

But Mr Lesko indicated in Bolton's case, authorities appear to have adhered to protocol.

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

In contrast to Comey's short, concise indictment, Bolton's was a more "traditional" filing that "explicitly outlines the particulars involving the circumstances and situation in this instance," Mr Lesko commented.

"It appears fairly aligned with a series of precedents... where public servants mishandled and shared classified material."