Reflecting pool vandalism saga finally ends as judge closes door on DOJ

WASHINGTON, DC:  A court verdict has finally put a full stop on the Trump administration’s prosecution of former Olympic canoeist David Hearn over alleged damage to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.

The ruling came after the DOJ itself decided to drop the case against the ex-Olympian after learning that the contractor’s flawed installation caused the widespread damage rather than vandalism. While the judge granted the dismissal, there is also a catch.

Judge bars Trump admin from reviving Reflecting pool vandalism case

A judge dismissed the Trump administration’s prosecution of former Olympic canoeist David Hearn on Thursday, October 1. The ruling came after the DOJ acknowledged that construction shortcomings caused the damage, but the court went further by permanently barring prosecutors from bringing the same charge against Hearn again.

DC Superior Court Judge Todd Edelman dismissed the indictment with prejudice, closing the door on any attempt to refile the same charge against Hearn.

Notably, the Justice Department had sought dismissal without prejudice, which could have allowed prosecutors to bring the charges again.

“The government recognized its prosecution lacked merit because ‘no crime had occurred,’” Edelman wrote in his order, according to an excerpt shared by Hearn’s attorney, Norm Eisen.

DC US Attorney Jeanine Pirro had announced felony property-destruction charges against Hearn. The charge carried a maximum prison sentence of 10 years. Hearn had pleaded not guilty.

Jeanine Pirro said contractor error caused the damage

Weeks earlier, Jeanine Pirro had moved to drop the Reflecting Pool vandalism charge against former Olympian David Hearn, citing evidence that the pool liner had been damaged because of flawed installation rather than intentional vandalism.

Pirro said the Interior Department had misled her prosecutors by wrongly attributing the damage to vandalism, while evidence showed it stemmed from “contractor error” and a “botched installation.”

However, writing a post on Truth Social on August 7, Trump requested Pirro to revisit her decision, arguing that the damage was visible.

"Now that people are able to see it up close, they are reporting pure VANDALISM at The Reflecting Pool," Trump wrote, sharing photos from a freelance photographer that allegedly showed vandalism.