Ex-CIA chief reaches plea deal over charge of mishandling classified information

Former CIA director David Petraeus has reached an agreement with the Department of Justice ( DOJ) in which he would plead guilty to mishandling classified information, the DOJ said Tuesday.

"The plea agreement and corresponding statement of facts, both signed by the defendant, indicate that he will plead guilty to the one-count criminal Information," said a DOJ statement.

The agreed plea deal would allow Petraeus to avoid a trial that could make public more details about his extramarital affair with his biographer Paula Broadwell, which was exposed in 2012 by the U. S. Federal Bureau of Investigation and directly led to Petraeus's resignation.

Petraeus had earlier said he did not give Broadwell, who was then writing his biography, access to classified information.

Speaking in a press conference in 2012, U.S. President Barack Obama downplayed the significance of the leaked information, saying the leaked information was not such "that in any way would have had a negative impact" on U.S. national security.

The charge against Petraeus carries a maximum sentence of one year in prison. Enditem