Prosecutor Indicted for Emailing Classified Trump Documents

Washington, D.C.—A former federal prosecutor in Florida, Carmen Lineberger, has been indicted for allegedly sending a confidential special counsel report to her personal email. The report was part of an investigation into former President Donald Trump’s retention of classified documents.

Lineberger, who worked in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, faces charges of theft of government property and concealment of government records. During a court appearance in West Palm Beach, she pleaded not guilty. Her attorney has not responded to requests for comment.

Prosecutors state that Lineberger sent the report, prepared by special counsel Jack Smith, to her personal email in December. This action violated a court order prohibiting the distribution of the report among Justice Department employees. The indictment reveals that she altered the file name to disguise the document as a recipe, naming it “Bundt_Cake_Recipe.pdf,” and emailed it with a matching subject line.

Months earlier, Lineberger reportedly emailed another document, titled “Chocolate_cake_recipe.pdf,” from her government computer to her personal email. This document included internal Justice Department messages and official memorandum content.

The indictment does not clarify Lineberger’s motivation for sending these documents to her personal email. The report detailing Smith’s investigation results, which posed potential legal risks to Trump, remains sealed from the public.

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon agreed with Trump’s legal team in keeping the report private, citing potential prejudicial effects since Smith dropped the case after Trump won the 2024 election. Lineberger was affiliated with the same district where Smith’s case against Trump was initiated, which involved allegations of Trump unlawfully harboring classified records at Mar-a-Lago.

FBI Director Kash Patel emphasized accountability in investigations, stating, “This FBI will not hesitate to bring to account those who violated the trust of the American public.” Patel’s comments were shared in a statement on X.