Former Olympian David Hearn appeared at Moultrie Courthouse in Washington, D.C., alongside his attorney Norman Eisen. After his arraignment on July 9, 2026, Hearn addressed reporters and protestors, asserting his innocence regarding the charges of vandalism concerning the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.
Federal prosecutors decided to drop the case against Hearn, concluding that the damage resulted from ‘botched installation’ instead of intentional vandalism. Initially, Hearn, age 67, faced a charge of destruction of property exceeding $1,000 in damage, to which he pleaded not guilty. He maintained that he merely touched the water of the reflecting pool out of curiosity.
The allegations were that Hearn had damaged the pool’s sealant following a $14 million renovation. U.S. Attorney for D.C. Jeanine Pirro had previously characterized Hearn’s actions as deliberate damage, impacting a project that the National Park Service had diligently worked to restore.
Nevertheless, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for D.C. shifted its stance after acquiring new evidence from the Department of the Interior (DOI) and U.S. Park Police (USPP). A filing on Friday highlighted that additional documents from the DOI pointed to a flawed installation by contractor Atlantic Industrial Coatings (AIC). The urgency to complete the project in time for America 250 events around Independence Day may have contributed to the issue.
NPR has reached out to the Department of the Interior for further comments on the incident.
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