A Justice Department effort to bring criminal charges against former national security adviser John Bolton has accelerated, CBS News reported, with prosecutors preparing to ask a grand jury to consider an indictment. The potential move centers on Bolton's retention and disclosure of classified material after his White House tenure and follows earlier civil litigation between Bolton and the government over his 2020 memoir.

Bolton, who served as President Trump’s national security adviser from April 2018 to September 2019, has long been a polarizing figure in Washington. He published The Room Where It Happened in 2020 after the Trump administration asserted the manuscript contained classified material and sought prepublication review. That dispute was resolved in a settlement that required redactions, but investigators have continued to examine whether Bolton kept or disclosed classified national defense information in ways that violate federal criminal statutes.

Legal analysts say the most likely criminal avenues would be statutes that bar unauthorized retention and disclosure of national defense information, including provisions of the Espionage Act. Those laws require prosecutors to show willful misconduct or a lack of lawful authority to possess or disseminate protected material. Previous cases, such as the 2015 prosecution of former CIA director David Petraeus and more recent prosecutions relating to classified document retention, provide reference points but differ in fact patterns and legal issues.

A spokesman for the Justice Department declined to comment on ongoing investigations to CBS News. Bolton’s legal team has previously rejected allegations of wrongdoing, contending that he cooperated with prepublication review and that his book did not improperly reveal national secrets. In a statement in 2020, Bolton’s publisher characterized the matter as civil and administrative. Bolton remains a public commentator and has argued in the past that disputes over classification should be resolved through process rather than criminal sanction.

Former prosecutors and national-security law specialists said the case poses difficult questions for prosecutorial discretion and institutional norms. “Prosecuting a former adviser for materials connected to a memoir is legally complex and politically sensitive,” a former federal prosecutor told CBS News. The Justice Department will have to demonstrate not only unauthorized possession but also intent or wrongful disclosure, elements that are often contested and fact-specific.

Beyond the courtroom, the potential indictment carries broader policy implications. Enforcement decisions affect incentives for former officials contemplating memoirs, advice about classification review procedures, and perceptions of equal treatment under the law. Critics on both sides of the political aisle have argued historically — in different cases — that selective prosecution risks eroding public trust in nonpartisan law enforcement.

If prosecutors present charges to a grand jury, secrecy rules will limit public information until an indictment is returned. Any indictment would almost certainly trigger immediate appeals and pretrial litigation over classified evidence procedures, including possible use of the Classified Information Procedures Act to manage disclosures at trial. The timetable for charging remains uncertain; CBS News reports that Department officials expect prosecutors to move in the near term.

As the case develops, observers say the central tests will be proof of willfulness and the degree to which Bolton’s actions differed from accepted post-service practices. The outcome could clarify, or complicate, the boundary between protected public commentary and criminal liability for handling national-security information.