A former federal prosecutor from Miami is now facing criminal charges after authorities say she illegally copied a confidential report examining the investigation into President Donald Trump’s handling of classified materials, according to court documents made public Wednesday.
Carmen Lineberger, who previously served at the U.S. attorney’s office for the Southern District of Florida where she oversaw the Fort Pierce office, entered a not guilty plea during her Palm Beach court hearing on theft of government property charges. Her legal representative has not yet responded to requests for comment.
Federal prosecutors allege that Lineberger forwarded the restricted report to her personal Hotmail address, cleverly disguising it with the subject line “chocolate cake recipe.”
Officials claim she unlawfully attempted to transfer the portion of the report focusing on the classified documents case from her official government email after a Trump-appointed judge prohibited its public disclosure.
This section of the report, which details the special counsel’s conclusions regarding a criminal probe that once threatened significant legal consequences for Trump, remains hidden from public view. U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon supported Trump’s legal team’s position that releasing the document would create unfair prejudice, especially after the special counsel dropped the case following Trump’s 2024 electoral success.
Lineberger was employed within the same court jurisdiction where the special counsel’s case against Trump was originally brought. That legal action alleged Trump unlawfully kept numerous classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach from his previous presidency and interfered with federal attempts to retrieve them.
