U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro moved Friday to dismiss the criminal case against former Olympic canoeist David Hearn after newly disclosed information indicated damage to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool stemmed from a flawed installation rather than vandalism.
Hearn had previously pleaded not guilty to a felony charge of destruction of government property after prosecutors accused him of damaging the Reflecting Pool during a visit on June 19.
According to a motion filed Friday and first reported by the New York Post, Pirro’s office said evidence provided after the indictment significantly changed the government’s understanding of what caused the damage.
The filing states that only after the indictment was returned did the Department of the Interior provide additional documents to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. Those records indicated that damage to the Reflecting Pool in June 2026 resulted from a flawed installation performed by contractor Atlantic Industrial Coatings and a rushed effort to complete the project ahead of America 250 celebrations surrounding Independence Day.
The motion says prosecutors were not made aware of that information until after the newly produced documents were received. According to the filing, the records showed the damage was caused by a botched installation rather than vandalism, contradicting how the matter had initially been presented by the Department of the Interior.
The filing also states that the sealant lining the bottom of the Reflecting Pool began peeling almost immediately after renovation work was completed. It further asserts that the Department of the Interior provided “less than fulsome information” during the early stages of the case.
The decision to seek dismissal comes just days after Hearn’s attorneys challenged the government’s case in a separate court filing. Defense attorneys argued that prosecutors’ own evidence failed to support the felony charge brought against their client.
Among the arguments raised by Hearn’s legal team was testimony from a National Park Service official presented to the grand jury. According to the defense filing, that witness acknowledged the Reflecting Pool already had significant preexisting damage and could not determine how much, if any, damage could be attributed to Hearn’s alleged actions.
The developments mark a dramatic shift in a case that initially accused the former Olympic athlete of causing damage to one of the nation’s most recognizable landmarks. With prosecutors now acknowledging newly disclosed evidence pointing to construction problems rather than vandalism, the government is asking the court to dismiss the case.
The controversy surrounding the Reflecting Pool has extended beyond the criminal proceedings. The New York Times reported in June that crews were continuing to battle algae blooms that had turned the pool bright green. During that period, the National Park Service awarded a $1.7 million no-bid contract for a new water-purification system to Greenwater Services, a company tied to longtime Trump donor John J. Cafaro. The newspaper also reported that a separate no-bid contract was awarded to Atlantic Industrial Coatings, the same contractor identified in Friday’s court filing as responsible for the flawed installation.
[READ MORE: Report Claims Trump Frustrated as Iran War Continues, White House Pushes Back]