Former Prosecutor Faces Charges Over Handling of Classified Report

Indictment Reveals Alleged Misconduct

A former federal prosecutor, Carmen Lineberger, is facing serious charges for allegedly mishandling a classified report related to Donald Trump. This development follows an indictment made public on Wednesday.

Lineberger, who managed the Fort Pierce branch of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, is accused of theft of government property and concealment of government records. She pleaded not guilty during a court appearance in West Palm Beach.

Details of the Allegations

Prosecutors claim that in December, Lineberger sent a special counsel report from her work email to her personal email account. This report consisted of findings from an investigation into Trump’s storage of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate. At that time, a judge had ordered the report to remain sealed, forbidding any distribution or sharing by Justice Department employees.

Additionally, the indictment reveals that Lineberger attempted to conceal her actions by changing the file name of the report to “Bundt_Cake_Recipe.pdf” before saving and emailing it. She had similarly renamed another file, which included parts of Justice Department communications, to “Chocolate_cake_recipe.pdf” and sent it to her personal email.

Unreleased Findings

The report detailing special counsel Jack Smith’s investigation has never been publicly released. A judicial ruling supported Trump’s legal team, who argued against its release, following Smith’s decision to abandon the case after Trump’s 2024 election win.

Smith’s case, filed in the same district where Lineberger worked, accused Trump of illegally retaining classified records from his first presidency and obstructing efforts to reclaim them.

FBI’s Statement

FBI Director Kash Patel stated, “This FBI will not hesitate to bring to account those who violated the trust of the American public in an investigation that should’ve never been brought to begin with.”