Topline
The Justice Department indicted a federal prosecutor for attempting to steal the confidential—and controversially banned—final report on President Donald Trump’s criminal case for allegedly mishandling classified documents, alleging prosecutor Caren Mercedes Lineberger tried to send the report to herself and disguise the sealed court documents as cake recipes.
President Donald Trump’s Mar-A-Lago estate on July 14, 2024 in Palm Beach, Florida.
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Key Facts
The DOJ indicted Lineberger on four counts Tuesday in Florida, accusing her of destruction or alteration of records in a federal investigation; concealment, removal or mutilation of public records and two counts of theft of government property.
The charges concern former Special Counsel Jack Smith’s final report detailing his criminal investigation into Trump for allegedly mishandling classified documents, which Trump-appointed Judge Aileen Cannon has ordered should be kept confidential since the case was thrown out after Trump was elected to a second term.
On Sept. 22, 2025, Lineberger allegedly first compiled a document containing internal DOJ communications, naming the document “Chocolate_cake_recipe.pdf” and sending it to her personal email with the subject line, “chocolate cake recipe.”
In December, she then allegedly downloaded a copy of the confidential final report on the classified documents investigation, retitled the file as “Bundt_Cake_Recipe.pdf,” and sent that file to her personal email address as well.
There is no indication in the indictment of what Lineberger, who served as the managing assistant U.S. attorney for the Fort Pierce branch of the Southern District of Florida, intended to do with the final report, and if she intended to leak it to the public.
Lineberger pleaded not guilty Wednesday to the charges against her, according to the court docket in the case.
This story is breaking and will be updated.