Bolton Pleads Not Guilty

Former national security adviser John Bolton pleaded not guilty Friday to charges that he illegally shared classified information with his family members and stored top secret documents at his Bethesda home years after he left government.

Bolton, who was a top aide to President Donald Trump in his first term before falling out with the president and being fired from the White House, entered the not guilty plea during a brief hearing in federal court.

Bolton was wearing a dark suit and red tie as he entered the courtroom in the custody of U.S. Marshals. He was not restrained, but the clanging of cellblock keys could be heard as he was brought in.

“Not guilty, your honor,” said Bolton when asked by U.S. Magistrate Judge Timothy Sullivan to enter a plea. Prosecutors did not seek to detain Bolton, who was released on his own recognizance.

The session took place one day after a grand jury in the same courthouse returned an 18-count indictment accusing Bolton of regularly sending family members lengthy “diary-like” updates containing national-security secrets by email while he served as a senior White House official from 2018 to 2019. He was also charged with keeping similar documents containing information classified “Secret” and “Top Secret.”

Despite Trump’s calls for the Justice Department to target his political adversaries, prosecutors did not arrest Bolton but allowed him to surrender, avoiding the “perp walk” that sometimes follows an FBI arrest.

Bolton arrived at the courthouse along with his lawyers around 8:30 a.m. and spent more than two hours Friday morning in the U.S. Marshals’ suite at the courthouse prior to his appearance before the judge.

The involvement of a large volume of classified evidence in the case is likely to complicate the proceedings, attorneys said.

The lead prosecutor, Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Sullivan, said the government had begun “in advance” the process of obtaining security clearances for defense lawyers so they can review the classified discovery to be turned over by the government. He said the other evidence related to the case would be disclosed to the defense within a week.

Judge Timothy Sullivan said U.S. District Judge Theodore Chuang, an Obama appointee who will oversee the case, has set a status conference for Nov. 21. No trial date was immediately set.

Prosecutors agreed to let Bolton’s lead defense attorney, Abbe Lowell, keep Bolton’s passports rather than turning them into the court as is customary. The judge also barred Bolton from traveling outside the U.S. without court permission. Lowell said he planned to seek such permission for an international trip Bolton has planned for early November.

Despite the widespread publicity about the case, the judge initially addressed Bolton on Friday by his middle name. “Are you Robert Bolton?” the judge asked.

“I’m John Robert Bolton,” Bolton replied. The judge also asked Bolton standard questions about whether he could speak, read and write in English and whether he understood his right to remain silent. When asked how much education he’d completed, the Yale Law grad said, “Law school.”

The judge also cracked a brief joke after Bolton chimed in that he has two passports, common for frequent international travelers.

“I hope they’re both in Mr. Bolton’s name,” the judge quipped.

“They are,” Bolton said.

During the 12-minute hearing, Lowell offered no hints about the substance of Bolton’s planned defense.

Bolton left the courtroom with the marshals and emerged from their office later in the morning. Bolton ignored questions from reporters as he and the defense team walked out of the courthouse.

In a statement Thursday, Bolton said he sees the case as the product of Trump’s vows to use the Justice Department to target people he views as nettlesome adversaries.

“I have become the latest target in weaponizing the Justice Department to charge those he deems to be his enemies with charges that were declined before or distort the facts,” Bolton said, noting that he advised the Biden administration in 2021 that his emails about his government service had been hacked, apparently by Iran.

In a separate statement, Lowell stressed that Bolton only shared his diaries, at least deliberately, “with his immediate family” and insisted that “Bolton did not unlawfully share or store any information.”