Bolton pleads not guilty to 18 federal charges at Maryland arraignment

John Bolton appeared at the U.S. District Court in Greenbelt, Maryland, on October 17, 2025, and pleaded not guilty to all 18 counts in his indictment. Bolton was released on his own recognizance but required to surrender his passport and seek court approval before traveling internationally. His attorney denied all wrongdoing and described the prosecution as politically motivated. The arraignment set the stage for what was expected to be a lengthy pretrial process involving extensive classified information review.