| United States v. Bolton | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Court | United States District Court for the District of Maryland |
| Full case name | United States of America v. John R. Bolton |
| Charge |
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| Court membership | |
| Judge sitting | Theodore D. Chuang |
On October 16, 2025,John Bolton, a formerUnited States national security advisor, was indicted by afederal grand jury in Maryland on 18 charges related to the mishandling of classified documents. The indictment includes eight counts of unlawful transmission of national defense information and ten counts of unlawful retention of national defense information. The charges allege that Bolton used a personal email account and messaging application to transmit sensitive documents and retained classified materials at his Maryland residence and Washington, D.C., office. FBI agents executed search warrants in August 2025, seizing documents marked as classified. Through his attorney, Bolton has denied any wrongdoing.
In June 2020, John Bolton publishedThe Room Where It Happened, atell-all memoir describing his time asnational security advisor in thefirst Trump administration from 2018 to 2019. Before publication, theNational Security Council (NSC) conducted a prepublication review to check forclassified information. While an NSC official informed Bolton that revisions had been completed, final approval was not issued before the book went to print.[1]
The Justice Department filed a civil lawsuit seeking to prevent the book’s release, arguing it contained classified information. Federal JudgeRoyce Lamberth denied granting an injunction to block publication, citing the distribution of advance copies, but noted that Bolton had proceeded without final authorization and may have "gambled with the national security of the United States".[1]
On September 15, 2020, multiple sources reported that the Justice Department had opened a criminal investigation into whether John Bolton unlawfully disclosed classified information in his memoirThe Room Where It Happened.[1][2] A federal grand jury was convened to examine potential violations related to the disclosure of national defense information.[2]
According toThe New York Times, subpoenas were issued for communications records from Bolton’s publisher,Simon & Schuster, and his literary agency, the Javelin Agency. The inquiry was initiated after theOffice of the Director of National Intelligence referred the matter to the Justice Department, andJohn Demers, then head of the department’s National Security Division, authorized the investigation.[1]
Bolton denied any wrongdoing. His attorney,Charles J. Cooper, stated that Bolton “emphatically rejects any claim that he acted improperly, let alone criminally,” and that he would cooperate with investigators.[1][2]
In the summer of 2021, federal authorities reportedly began an investigation into the hacking of Bolton's personal email account by foreign individuals or a foreign entity, alleged to be linked to Iran.[3] According to the indictment, a representative for Bolton reported to the FBI in July 2021 that the hack occurred between 2019 and 2021 and that the hackers had threatened to leak the contents of Bolton's emails.[4] However, Bolton did not at that time inform authorities "that the hackers now held this [classified] information".[5]
On August 22, 2025,FBI agents executed court-authorized search warrants at John Bolton’s residence inBethesda, Maryland, and hisWashington, D.C., office as part of a federal investigation into the handling of classified materials. The searches were approved byfederal magistrate judges in Maryland and Washington, D.C., following intelligence provided by CIA DirectorJohn Ratcliffe to FBI DirectorKash Patel.[6][7]
According to court documents released the following month, agents seized multiple electronic devices, folders labeled "Trump I–IV," and a binder titled "Statements and Reflections to Allied Strikes". The warrant authorized the seizure of any physical or digital records that appeared to contain classified information or related to Bolton’s former duties as national security advisor.[8]
The investigation reportedly examined whether Bolton retained or mishandled classified documents and whether any of the materials were used in media leaks.[6][7] A source familiar with the search toldNBC News that it stemmed from a criminal inquiry initially opened duringthe Biden administration but not pursued at the time.[6]
Officials including FBI Director Kash Patel and Attorney GeneralPam Bondi stated publicly that "no one is above the law" and that the operation was conducted for national security reasons, while some commentators and Bolton associates suggested the search was politically motivated.[6][7][8] Bolton did not publicly comment immediately after the raid, and his attorney maintained that he had complied with all classification and security requirements.[6]
In mid-October 2025, multiple media outlets reported that theUnited States Department of Justice was expected to ask afederal grand jury in Maryland to indict former national security adviserJohn Bolton.[9][10][11][12]
According toCNN, the lead prosecutor overseeing the case arrived at the federal courthouse inGreenbelt, Maryland, on October 16 to meet with the grand jury, which had been in session throughout the morning.[10] The investigation centered on whether Bolton unlawfully retained or mishandled classified information, including notes he wrote to himself in anAOL email account resembling diary entries during his time in thefirst Trump administration.[9][10]
Court documents and reporting fromReuters indicated thatFBI agents executed search warrants at Bolton's Maryland home andWashington, D.C., office in August 2025, seizing documents labeledsecret,confidential, andclassified - including some referencingweapons of mass destruction. Agents also seized cell phones, folders labeled "Trump I–IV," and a binder titled "Statements and Reflections to Allied Strikes". According to the same filing, Bolton's email account had previously been hacked by a foreign entity, though details were redacted.[11]
Bolton's attorney,Abbe Lowell, stated that his client had done nothing improper with classified materials.[9][11] Some internal Justice Department officials reportedly expressed concern that the case was being expedited under political pressure from the administration, though prosecutors later indicated they were prepared to proceed after reviewing the evidence.[11]
The possible indictment came amid a wider pattern of cases brought against Trump critics, including former FBI directorJames Comey and New York attorney generalLetitia James, which were initiated by Trump appointed prosecutors such asLindsey Halligan, the U.S. attorney in Virginia.[9][11] The New York Times has noted however that there was no "handpicked prosecutor" in the Bolton case, and that "the prosecution followed normal department channels, without firings, strong-arm orders from the White House, or forced transfers."[13]
On October 16, 2025, Bolton was indicted by a federal grand jury in theDistrict of Maryland on charges related to the mishandling of classified documents. The indictment, signed by United States attorneyKelly O. Hayes, includes eight counts of unlawful transmission of national defense information and ten counts of unlawful retention of national defense information, all illegal under theEspionage Act of 1917. Prosecutors allege that Bolton used a personal email account and messaging application to transmit sensitive documents and retained classified materials at his Maryland residence and Washington, D.C., office. FBI agents executed search warrants at these locations in August 2025, seizing documents marked as classified. Bolton has denied any wrongdoing through his attorney.[14][15][16][17][18] The case will be heard by JudgeTheodore D. Chuang.[19] Bolton is the third Trump critic after Comey and James to be indicted since September 2025.[20]
On October 17, 2025, Bolton surrendered to authorities at a courthouse inGreenbelt, Maryland.[20][21] While appearing before US magistrate judge Timothy Sullivan, Bolton pled not guilty to an 18-count indictment.[21][20] Bolton is the third Trump critic after Comey and James to be indicted since September 2025[20], however unlike with the other two, the DOJ's criminal investigation into Bolton "gained momentum in the Biden administration" according to the New York Times.[22]
It's an Iran hack investigation started in 2021 under Biden that brought things to the current point. For prosecutors and FBI investigators, part of their effort has focused on keeping the case out of the roiling politics looming over the Justice Department as Trump has publicly pushed for the prosecution of his political enemies, which includes Bolton.
The indictment issued this week accused Bolton of sharing "diary-like entries" with two unnamed individuals, and using his personal email account to transmit messages with sensitive materials. The indictment also states that between 2019 and 2021, Bolton was allegedly the target of a hacking attack from a "cyber actor believed to be associated with the Islamic Republic of Iran" gained access to his account, exposing the classified materials.
