John Bolton: Trump’s ex-national security adviser pleads guilty to mishandling classified documents

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27 June 2026

John Bolton, a prominent critic of Donald Trump, pleaded guilty ‌on Friday to unlawfully retaining ⁠classified information.

Donald Trump’s former national security adviser John Bolton has pleaded guilty to mishandling classified documents.

Bolton, now a prominent critic of the US president, pleaded guilty ‌on Friday to a single count of illegally retaining ⁠classified information during a federal court hearing ⁠in ⁠Maryland.

The 77-year-old told the judge: “I’m sorry for it.”

His plea agreement with the Justice Department may enable him to avoid time in jail, but that will be decided by District Judge Theodore Chuang at sentencing, which is set for 28 October.

The plea agreement recommends limiting any prison sentence to five years, and will also see Bolton pay a $2.25m (£1.7m) fine.

He can withdraw his guilty plea if the judge imposes a longer prison sentence or a larger fine.

Bolton had previously accused Mr Trump of attempting to “intimidate his opponents” after being criminally indicted.

How we got here

Bolton was charged last October with 18 counts of either retaining or disseminating classified information, including diary-like notes that he shared with relatives as he wrote a memoir about his time in government.