Former US national security adviser John Bolton pleads guilty to mishandling classified data

Former US National Security Adviser John Bolton pleads guilty to mishandling classified data.

John Bolton, the former national security adviser under US President Donald Trump, has pleaded guilty in a federal court to charges of mishandling classified information. The 77-year-old, who evolved into one of Trump’s most vocal political opponents, offered an apology to US District Judge Theodore D. Chuang during Friday’s hearing, stating that he was sorry for his actions.

The plea agreement establishes a sentencing range spanning from zero jail time to a maximum of five years in prison, with the final determination resting solely with the presiding judge. As a core component of the settlement, Bolton must pay a 2.25 million dollar fine, with half the amount due within five days of sentencing and the remainder within 90 days. He has also agreed to perform up to 100 hours of community service, forfeit his government pension, and participate in security debriefings with intelligence and Justice Department officials. Judge Chuang has scheduled the formal sentencing for 28 October.

The criminal investigation focused on allegations that Bolton shared sensitive national security data with two family members to assist in the drafting of his memoir. Prosecutors stated that he transferred over 1,000 pages of personal diary entries, which detailed intelligence briefings alongside meetings with foreign dignitaries and senior government staff. Whilst Bolton initially pleaded not guilty to 18 criminal counts last year, prosecutors clarified on Friday that no actual classified information was ultimately published in his book, “The Room Where It Happened”.

Federal authorities noted that Bolton’s personal email account was subsequently breached by a hacker believed to be associated with Iran. Commenting after the court session, Kelly O. Hayes, the US Attorney for the District of Maryland, emphasised that this security breach demonstrated the acute dangers of storing state secrets on private networks, accusing Bolton of placing national security at grave risk.

Bolton’s defence lawyer, Abbe D. Lowell, released a statement praising his client for demonstrating leadership by taking accountability for what he termed a mistake. Lowell drew a sharp contrast with Donald Trump’s own legal battles regarding classified materials, arguing that whilst Trump took physical documents to his Florida residence and resisted investigators, Bolton merely maintained a personal diary to preserve historical accuracy.

The prosecution marks another instance of a prominent political adversary facing trial under the current administration, a trend that critics argue challenges traditional boundaries between independent law enforcement and partisan politics. However, legal observers noted that the investigation into Bolton’s actions was originally initiated before Trump’s return to office in 2025 and retained the full support of career federal prosecutors.