Jeanine Pirro seeks to drop charges against Olympian David Hearn, admits reflecting pool damage was ‘flawed installation’

WASHINGTON — DC US Attorney Jeanine Pirro is moving to dismiss charges against former Olympic canoeist David Hearn for allegedly vandalizing the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, revealing in a Friday court filing that the damage was, in fact, “the result of flawed installation by the contractor.”

Read more Spain claims 25,000 African migrants already sent home as authorities expel 150 people per minute

Pirro’s office submitted the motion to dismiss after Hearn had pleaded not guilty earlier this month to one felony count of destruction of property for the alleged June 19 incident.

But the July 31 court filing reveals that the sealant at the bottom of the Reflecting Pool had “[a]lmost immediately” begun peeling after the work was completed after the Virginia-based company got a no-bid contract for the renovations.

And the Department of Interior (DOI) “provided less than fulsome information at the outset of this case,” Pirro’s motion noted.

Read more Trump is facing a major Iran war hurdle — this time on the homefront

“It was not until after the return of the indictment, that the DOI provided additional documents to the USAO-DC indicating that damage to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in June 2026 was the result of flawed installation by the contractor, Atlantic Industrial Coatings (‘AIC’), and the rush to complete the project prior to events associated with the America 250 celebration in the weeks surrounding Independence Day 2026,” the court filing stated.

“It was not until after these documents were produced that USAO-DC first became aware of information showing that the damage was the result of a botched installation and not vandalism as initially represented by DOI.”

Read more Two Nancy Guthrie ransom notes released in full as disappearance reaches heartbreaking new milestone

Reps for DOI did not immediately respond to a request for comment.