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Ex-President Donald Trump has consistently shown his wish to see opponents investigated, exerting influence on the Justice Department to charge former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James.

"We can't delay any longer, it's damaging our reputation and credibility," the leader stated recently in a Truth Social post.

"I was impeached me, and indicted me (5 times!)" he declared, referencing the four criminal cases he faced after leaving the White House in 2021 and James's civil case.

Both have subsequently been charged, in situations that numerous experts have stated seem to be driven by politics and challenging to succeed in court.

But the most recent charges against a Trump critic, ex security advisor John Bolton, differ significantly, legal experts and former prosecutors assert.

"I would say, comparing Bolton's charges to Comey's is like equating apples to oranges," said Mark Lesko, a ex federal prosecutor for the Eastern District of New York.

The Specifics of Bolton's Legal Situation

Bolton has been formally charged on federal charges related to the alleged mishandling of sensitive materials. After leaving the White House in 2019, he has emerged as a vocal Trump critic, going so far as to describe him "stunningly uninformed" and unfit for the presidency in his memoir.

Specialists say that while there may be political reasons to target Bolton, the procedures used to secure an charge and the proof compiled against him suggest a potentially stronger case than the Justice Department presented against Comey.

"This misconduct that's being claimed is simultaneously more severe and seems to have taken place over a considerable period of time," commented Carissa Byrne Hessick, a professor at the University of North Carolina School of Law.

Throughout his tenure as Trump's national security adviser, and following his 2019 White House exit, authorities claimed that Bolton placed the nation at danger by improperly retaining and transmitting sensitive documents to family members using insecure means, including AOL. Several of the documents were marked top secret.

The charge alleges that at one point a hacker accessed to Bolton's system where files were stored and sent an apparent threat to cause "the largest controversy since Hillary [Clinton]'s emails were leaked".

Bolton entered a not guilty plea during a hearing on recently to eighteen separate counts of mishandling sensitive materials.

Political Motivation or a Strong Case?

The schedule of his charge - coming on the heels of charges against James - has revived concerns about external influence on the legal system.

Trump previously suggested Bolton should be in jail, and described him a "sleazebag". Bolton, for his part, wrote a publication about his time in the Trump administration that was highly critical of the leader.

"Undoubtedly that the schedule of this charge, when combined with additional cases, has prompted questions about the validity of these allegations, and why these charges are being filed now," stated Jamil Jaffer, creator and director of the National Security Institute.

Nevertheless, he continued, "if the DOJ is capable to demonstrate the allegations alleged and demonstrate the material is correctly classified, his behavior may certainly have violated the law".

Prosecuting such a high-ranking figure for mishandling sensitive materials is "uncommon" but not without precedent, said Carrie Cordero, a senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security.

"Cases that concern sensitive materials present difficulties to try, but they may and are brought against equally low-level and high-level personnel, from occasionally," she explained.

Similarities to Examinations into Former President and Biden

Trump similarly encountered charges of wrongfully keeping classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida and obstructing their recovery, but that matter was ultimately thrown out by a federal judge and voided by his re-election as leader.

A independent investigator additionally found that ex-President Joe Biden improperly maintained classified documents from his period as second-in-command, but failed to criminally charge him.

Bolton's case shares characteristics to Biden's sensitive materials matters, noted Mr Lesko, who previously held a top security position at the Justice Department.

Rigorous protocols govern the management of classified documents. To secure a conviction, the prosecution must prove that Bolton knew the information he was transmitting was classified, and he had to knowingly transmit it to someone not entitled to receive it.

"Because of the sensitive character of the information at question in this matter, we don't have a great deal of particulars about the reasons the prosecution believes things like the diary entries and the other material he shared by email, and why there were classified," said Mr Jaffer.

A Increasingly Conventional Legal Action

The procedure by which the DOJ brought this legal action will be under scrutiny, following Trump publicly posted his desire to see his critics prosecuted and some of those charges materialized.

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

"The Bolton case and ultimately the charge seemed to have observed the regular procedure including the regulations and standards within the DOJ," he said.

Unlike Comey's short, concise charge, Bolton's was a more "traditional" document that "clearly outlines the particulars concerning the facts and situation here," Mr Lesko said.

"It seems fairly consistent with a series of precedents... where government officials improperly handled and transmitted sensitive information."