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Former President Donald Trump has repeatedly expressed his desire to see critics probed, applying influence on the Justice Department to charge ex FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James.

"We can't delay any longer, it's killing our reputation and trustworthiness," the leader wrote recently in a social media post.

"They impeached twice, and charged me (five times!)" he said, mentioning the four criminal cases he encountered after leaving the White House in 2021 and James's lawsuit.

Both have subsequently been indicted, in situations that numerous specialists have stated appear to be driven by politics and difficult to succeed in legal proceedings.

But the most recent charges against a presidential opponent, ex security advisor John Bolton, differ significantly, legal specialists and former prosecutors say.

"In my opinion, contrasting Bolton's case to Comey's is like equating apples to oranges," said Mark Lesko, a ex federal prosecutor for the Eastern District of New York.

This Specifics of Bolton's Case

Bolton has been criminally indicted on federal charges related to the supposed improper handling of sensitive materials. After departing the White House in 2019, he has become a outspoken Trump critic, going so far as to describe him "stunningly uninformed" and unsuitable for office in his memoir.

Experts contend that while there may be political reasons to go after Bolton, the methods used to secure an indictment and the proof gathered against him suggest a possibly stronger case than the Justice Department brought against Comey.

"These actions that's being claimed is simultaneously more severe 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 time as Trump's national security adviser, and following his 2019 White House exit, authorities claimed that Bolton put the nation at risk by wrongfully keeping and transmitting classified information to relatives using unprotected methods, including AOL. Some of the documents were marked top secret.

The charge states that at one point a unauthorized user gained access to Bolton's system where files were stored and sent an apparent threat to cause "the biggest scandal since Hillary [Clinton]'s emails were released".

Bolton pleaded not guilty during a court appearance on recently to eighteen separate counts of improperly handling classified information.

Political Motivation or a Strong Legal Argument?

The timing of his indictment - coming on the tails of charges against James - has renewed concerns about political pressure on the justice system.

Trump previously suggested Bolton belonged in jail, and described him a "sleazebag". Bolton, for his part, authored a publication about his experience in the Trump administration that was highly critical of the leader.

"There's no question that the timing of this indictment, when combined with others, has prompted questions about the validity of these charges, and the reason these charges are being filed at this time," said Jamil Jaffer, founder and director of the National Security Institute.

However, he added, "if the Justice Department is capable to prove the facts alleged and show the information is properly classified, his behavior may certainly have violated the statute".

Charging such a senior figure for mishandling sensitive materials is "rare" 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 try, but they may and are filed against both low-level and senior personnel, from time to time," she said.

Similarities to Examinations into Former President and Biden

Trump similarly faced allegations of improperly storing sensitive materials at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida and hindering their return, but that case was ultimately dismissed by a court official and negated by his return as president.

A independent investigator also found that former President Joe Biden wrongfully maintained classified documents from his period as vice president, but failed to prosecute him.

Bolton's case shares characteristics to Biden's classified documents issues, said Mr Lesko, who previously held a senior security position at the DOJ.

Rigorous procedures regulate the handling of sensitive materials. To win a conviction, the prosecution must demonstrate that Bolton was aware the material he was transmitting was restricted, and he had to knowingly transfer it to someone without authorization to obtain it.

"Because of the sensitive nature of the material at issue in this case, we lack a great deal of details about why the government believes elements like the diary entries and the other information he communicated by electronic message, and the reason there were classified," explained Mr Jaffer.

A More Conventional Prosecution

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

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

"This Bolton case and eventually the indictment appeared to have observed the regular procedure including the rules and norms within the DOJ," he said.

Unlike Comey's brief, concise indictment, Bolton's was a more "conventional" filing that "clearly outlines the details concerning the circumstances and situation here," Mr Lesko commented.

"It seems reasonably aligned with a series of cases... where public servants mishandled and shared sensitive information."