Ex-prosecutor accused of emailing Trump files disguised as recipes. What to know

A former federal prosecutor in South Florida has been indicted on charges of emailing herself confidential Justice Department records from special counsel Jack Smith’s investigation of Donald Trump. Carmen Mercedes Lineberger, 62, allegedly renamed the files as dessert recipes before sending them from her DOJ computer to her personal email accounts.

FULL STORY: Prosecutor renamed Trump-case records as dessert recipes and sent to self: feds

Here are key takeaways:

• Lineberger, who managed the Fort Pierce prosecutor’s office, faces two felony charges of altering internal records and two misdemeanor counts of theft of government property. She pleaded not guilty on May 20 and was released without bail.
• The indictment alleges she renamed files containing Volume II of Smith’s report as “Chocolate_cake_receipe.pdf” and “Bundt_Cake_Recipe.pdf” before emailing them to her personal Hotmail and Gmail accounts in September and December 2025.
• Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee, dismissed Smith’s classified-documents case against Trump in July 2024 and issued a Jan. 21, 2025, order blocking release of Volume II of the report.
• Lineberger is the latest South Florida prosecutor terminated since Trump returned to office Jan. 20, 2025. Four colleagues in the Miami U.S. Attorney’s Office were previously fired, several tied to Smith’s Trump investigations.
• Two former federal prosecutors called the indictment retaliatory, noting Lineberger was authorized to have the documents. “How do you steal something that you are legally allowed to have?” one asked, though both questioned why she renamed the files as recipes.

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