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John Bolton, who served as Donald Trump’s national security advisor before becoming an outspoken critic of the president, pleaded not guilty on Friday to charges of mishandling classified information, US media reported.
The 76-year-old veteran diplomat entered the not guilty plea to 18 counts of transmitting and retaining classified information at a federal court hearing in Greenbelt, Maryland, CNN and ABC reported.
Bolton, who was indicted on Thursday, is the third of Trump’s prominent critics to face prosecution in recent weeks, as the US president dispenses with decades-long norms designed to insulate federal law enforcement from political pressures.
The indictment alleges that Bolton shared sensitive information with two of his relatives for possible use in a book he was writing, including notes on intelligence briefings and meetings with senior government officials and foreign leaders.
Bolton’s lawyer, Abbe Lowell, said Bolton did not unlawfully share or store any information.
Trump, a Republican who campaigned for the presidency on a vow of retribution after facing a slew of legal woes once his first term in the White House ended in 2021, has actively pressured his attorney general, Pam Bondi, to bring charges against his perceived adversaries.
That included pushing the Justice Department to bring charges against former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James, even driving out a prosecutor he deemed to be moving too slowly in doing so.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP and Reuters)
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