Former Federal Prosecutor Charged with Sending Special Counsel Report to Personal Email Account
A former federal prosecutor from Florida, Carmen Lineberger, is facing charges for allegedly sending a special counsel report on President Donald Trump's handling of classified documents to her personal email account, despite a court order to keep it sealed. Lineberger, who worked in the U.S. attorney's office for the Southern District of Florida, pleaded not guilty to charges of theft of government property and concealment of government records.
Prosecutors claim that Lineberger sent a copy of the report, prepared by special counsel Jack Smith and his team, to her personal email account while she was a Justice Department prosecutor. She allegedly altered the file name to "Bundt_Cake_Recipe.pdf" to conceal her actions before saving it on her government computer and emailing it to herself.
The indictment does not provide a reason for Lineberger's actions or why she sent the report to her personal email account. The report, detailing Smith's investigation into Trump's retention of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate, has not been made public. A judge ruled against releasing the report, citing potential prejudice, after Smith dropped the case following Trump's 2024 election win.
Lineberger's case is connected to the same judicial district where Smith's investigation against Trump was filed. The case accused Trump of unlawfully keeping classified records at Mar-a-Lago and impeding government efforts to recover them.