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Former President Donald Trump has repeatedly shown his wish to see opponents probed, applying pressure on the DOJ to charge former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James.

"We cannot postpone further, it's damaging our standing and credibility," the leader wrote recently in a social media message.

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

Each have since been indicted, in cases that numerous experts have said seem to be driven by politics and challenging to succeed in legal proceedings.

But the most recent allegations against a Trump critic, ex national security adviser John Bolton, differ significantly, legal specialists and ex-prosecutors assert.

"In my opinion, comparing Bolton's charges to Comey's is like comparing apples to oranges," stated Mark Lesko, a ex acting US attorney for the Eastern District of New York.

This Details of the Legal Situation

Bolton has been criminally indicted on federal charges related to the supposed mishandling of sensitive materials. After leaving the White House in 2019, he has emerged as a outspoken presidential opponent, even to describe him "stunningly uninformed" and unsuitable for the presidency in his book.

Specialists contend that while there may be political motivations to go after Bolton, the methods used to secure an indictment and the proof gathered against him indicate a possibly more substantial case than the Justice Department brought against Comey.

"These actions that's being alleged is simultaneously more severe 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 security advisor, and after his 2019 White House departure, prosecutors alleged that Bolton put the nation at risk by improperly keeping and sending sensitive documents to family members using insecure means, including AOL. Some of the materials were labeled top secret.

The indictment states that at a certain time a hacker accessed to Bolton's account where files were kept and transmitted an seeming warning to cause "the biggest controversy since Hillary [Clinton]'s emails were leaked".

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

Retribution or a Strong Legal Argument?

The schedule of his indictment - coming on the heels of allegations against Comey - has renewed concerns about external influence on the justice system.

Trump previously suggested Bolton should be in prison, and called him a "sleazebag". Bolton, for his role, authored a book about his experience in the Trump government that was highly critical of the president.

"Undoubtedly that the schedule of this indictment, when paired with others, has prompted doubts about the strength of these allegations, and the reason these charges are being brought now," stated Jamil Jaffer, founder and executive director of the National Security Institute.

However, he added, "should the Justice Department is capable to prove the allegations stated and demonstrate the material is properly designated, his conduct may certainly have broken the statute".

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

"Situations that involve sensitive materials present challenges to try, but they can and are filed against equally junior and high-level personnel, from occasionally," she said.

Similarities to Investigations into Former President and President

Trump likewise faced charges of improperly keeping sensitive materials at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida and hindering their recovery, but that case was eventually thrown out by a court official and negated by his re-election as president.

A special counsel also determined that former President Joe Biden improperly maintained classified documents from his period as vice president, but did not criminally charge him.

Bolton's case shares characteristics to Trump's classified documents matters, noted Mr Lesko, who previously held a senior security role at the Justice Department.

Rigorous procedures regulate the handling of sensitive materials. To win a conviction, the government must demonstrate that Bolton was aware the information he was sending was restricted, and he had to knowingly transmit it to someone without authorization to receive it.

"Because of the sensitive character of the material at question in this matter, we don't have a great deal of particulars about why the prosecution contends things like the personal notes and the other information he shared by electronic message, and why there were restricted," said Mr Jaffer.

A More Conventional Legal Action

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

But Mr Lesko said in Bolton's situation, prosecutors seem to have followed protocol.

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

In contrast to Comey's brief, concise indictment, Bolton's was a more "conventional" filing that "clearly sets forth the particulars involving the facts and circumstances in this instance," Mr Lesko said.

"It seems fairly aligned with a series of precedents... where public servants improperly handled and transmitted sensitive information."