Judge permanently ends case against Olympian accused of Reflecting Pool vandalism
Judge said Trump might target champion canoeist because he was politically active and donated to Democrats.
Judge permanently closes case against Olympian accused of Reflecting Pool vandalism
A judge in Washington DC has thrown out the criminal case against a former Olympian whom the Trump administration accused of vandalising the Reflecting Pool.
Judge Todd Edelman dismissed the case against David Hearn "with prejudice," which means US prosecutors are barred from bringing it again.
The US Justice Department had already abandoned the case after uncovering new evidence, but Hearn's lawyers said they were worried President Donald Trump might pressure prosecutors to reopen it.
The government determined that the problems with the pool were caused by a "rushed and botched" job by contractors, but Trump has repeatedly insisted the damage was the result of vandalism and has urged prosecutors to go after Hearn, pointing to donations to Democrats.
The cases against three other people also accused of vandalising the pool were dropped too, but Hearn's defence team said they feared he would be singled out by Trump because he is politically active and had previously donated to Democrats.
By permanently dismissing the case, Judge Edelman sided with those concerns and cited public remarks Trump made after his chief prosecutor for the District of Columbia, Jeanine Pirro, dropped the case.
"Although the prosecutors assigned to this case have deemed it meritless, the President of the United States has repeatedly disparaged them and pressured them to change course," the judge said in his order released on Thursday.
"Mr Hearn faces the unique possibility that the government will revive this case – one that it has already announced to be meritless – based on political pressure brought by the President of the United States upon his subordinate officers," the judge said.
Hearn, a champion canoeist, had faced a 10-year prison sentence if convicted. He previously told the BBC that he was cycling near the pool when he reached down to touch a piece of lining that was peeling.
The Justice Department said new information from the Department of Interior (DOI) showed "that damage to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in June 2026 was the result of flawed installation by the contractor" and "the rush to complete the project prior to events associated with the America 250 celebration in the weeks surrounding Independence Day 2026".
Soon after the Justice Department said it was dropping the vandalism case, Trump posted on social media that he disagreed "100%" with Pirro's decision to drop the charges, calling it in separate statements "a disgrace" and "stupid".
"There may have been some contractor difficulty, but the major damage was caused by VANDALS!" the president wrote in August. Trump has urged Pirro to bring the case against Hearn back.
"US Attorney Jeanine Pirro should re-visit her hastily made decision, especially since it turned out that the 'gentleman' involved is a big player in ActBlue," he said on 7 August, referring to Hearn and the campaign fundraising platform used by Democrats, Trump's political rivals.
He also criticised Norm Eisen, one of the lawyers representing Hearn, who previously worked for President Barack Obama and on an impeachment case against Trump during his first term.
The Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool was the subject of a multi-million dollar resealing and painting project this spring.
The monument had long suffered from structural failures and leaks, and Trump promoted the project as part of his effort to beautify the capital city.
But even after the makeover, which cost an estimated $16m (£12m), the pool continued to be affected by algae, and pieces of the blue sealant peeled away within days of being applied.