Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney for Washington, D.C., and FBI Director Kash Patel conduct a news conference at the Department of Justice on Monday, April 27, 2026.Tom Williams | CQ-Roll Call, Inc. | Getty ImagesU.S. Attorney for Washington Jeanine Pirro on Friday moved to dismiss an indictment charging U.S. Olympic canoeist David Hearn with vandalizing the Reflecting Pool of the Lincoln Memorial, writing in a court filing that damage to the pool's sealant was the result of a "flawed installation."Hearn had been charged with felony destruction of property in early July, with Pirro saying at a press conference that he "violently" ripped up part of the pool's liner with his bare hands.Hearn's attorneys accused the Trump administration of making the 67-year-old ex-Olympian a "scapegoat" for the problematic renovation, which President Donald Trump had frequently boasted about.This is breaking news. Please refresh for updates.

The Justice Department is now admitting that a Donald Trump-prompted $14 million installation of a pool lining on the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in Washington, DC, was…

The Justice Department is admitting that President Donald Trump’s $14 million renovation of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool was “hasty and botched,” and it is dropping the…

The federal prosecutor ruled out vandalism, saying the damage was instead the "result of flawed installation by the contractor."