Donald J. Trump has put the Department of Justice, Attorney General Merrick Garland, and the country in a terrible position.

By removing numerous records, including classified materials when he left the White House — and transferring them to his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida — the former president violated the provisions of the Presidential Records Act and other laws. There has also been testimony that Trump destroyed records.

More serious is the growing evidence that Trump violated federal laws by plotting to retain power and subvert the 2020 vote, even after dozens of court rulings upheld the validity of the election and after top aides told him there was no evidence of large-scale fraud.

The 45th president’s reckless conduct has left Attorney General Garland with no good choices. If he authorizes the prosecution of Trump, it will further divide the country. Things could turn ugly, even potentially violent. But if the attorney general turns away, if he decides pursuing criminal charges — even if warranted — would be too disruptive to the nation, it will set a dangerous precedent and make a lie of the ideals of equal justice and that no one is above the law.

The FBI search of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home on Monday suggests Garland has made his choice. He will prosecute Trump if that is where the evidence leads. It is hard to imagine the attorney general would sign off on searching the home of a former president unless he was convinced it would provide the evidence necessary to prosecute.

Garland has made the right choice. And, really, it is the only choice. Failing to prosecute Trump because it is too hard and too controversial to hold him accountable would invite a future president to do whatever is necessary to achieve, exercise, and retain power, confident that political parties do not impeach their own and that presidents will never face prosecution.

Proving violations of the laws that require the retention of records, and which make it a crime to conceal, remove, mutilate or destroy government documents, may be the low-hanging fruit for the Department of Justice. If the president retained records he should not have, and the FBI agents found them Monday, that would be a violation of the law.

In January, after negotiations with the former president’s attorney, the National Archives retrieved 15 boxes that Trump took with him when his term ended.

The raid Monday indicates federal investigators had solid evidence — convincing enough to persuade a judge to issue the search warrant — that more records remained illegally in Trump’s possession and FBI agents knew where to find them. That raises the question of what records and why did the ex-president retain them?

The immediate and angry responses to the search by Trump supporters show what the country is in for if the DOJ pursues criminal charges. Unsurprisingly, Republican leaders criticized the FBI search, with some claiming political motivation. Left unexplained was how firing up the Trump base would benefit Democrats in the run-up to the 2022 election.

More difficult and potentially divisive than the document matter would be prosecuting Trump and his key allies for attempting to stop President Biden from assuming office. Soliciting former Vice President Mike Pence in a scheme to block certification of the election, while recruiting phony electors to steal the electoral college vote, could amount to criminal violations by Trump and those who plotted with him. Charges could include obstructing an official proceeding of Congress, defrauding the United States, and seditious conspiracy.

Trump also faces state investigations for tax misconduct during his pre-presidential tycoon days in New York and for trying to persuade election officials in Georgia to find a means to reverse his election loss there.

It is too soon to say if any of these investigations will provide sufficient evidence to prosecute and convict, though that likelihood grows by the day. But given Monday’s events, the American people should have greater confidence that those in charge of pursuing justice do not consider Donald J. Trump to be above the law.