Bolton Pleads Guilty

John Bolton, President Donald Trump’s former national security adviser and later a prominent critic, pleaded guilty in federal court in Greenbelt, Maryland, to one count of unlawfully retaining national defense or classified information. The plea resolves a case that began with an 18-count indictment accusing Bolton of keeping sensitive government material after leaving office, sharing diary-like entries with relatives and storing top-secret documents at his Maryland home. As part of the agreement, Bolton accepted responsibility for one count and agreed to pay a $2.25 million fine, though several accounts note he could still face prison exposure. Prosecutors said the retained material was connected to Bolton’s work in the Trump administration and, in some accounts, to his preparation of a critical memoir about his time in the White House.