Reflecting Pool repairs could undermine case against former Olympian, judge says

Repair work at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool done after a former Olympic canoeist was accused of damaging it could jeopardize the government’s case against him, a D.C. Superior Court judge warned Monday.

The government is “operating at its own peril,” said Judge Todd E. Edelman, if the Reflecting Pool is altered or not preserved before the defense’s expert has a chance to sample it.

Earlier this month, a grand jury indicted David Hearn, 67, for allegedly vandalizing the Reflecting Pool. Hearn pleaded not guilty.

On Thursday, defense attorneys for Hearn filed a motion to dismiss the indictment against him, alleging the government failed to preserve the section of Reflecting Pool liner that Hearn is charged with damaging, according to court documents.

“Despite the importance of the pool liner to the case, in the brief period since June 19, 2026, the same government that presented and returned the indictment against Mr. Hearn has fenced off the scene, begun draining the pool yet again, and publicly announced its intention to repair the very liner whose condition is at issue,” attorneys said in the court document.

They sent an attorney to the Reflecting Pool for an inspection and “confirmed that spoliation of evidence has taken place,” according to the motion.

Hearn’s defense attorneys said that Hearn is entitled to use his own experts to test the Reflecting Pool but that “he cannot do so once the government has resurfaced the Reflecting Pool,” according to the motion.

During a status hearing Monday, Edelman denied the defense’s motion but questioned the government as to whether the status quo of the Reflecting Pool has been maintained.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kevin Reddington and Kadian Carter said at the hearing that they were not sure whether the affected area had been touched.

They said that the remediation work was scheduled to accommodate the defense’s expert and that they are “doing the best we can” to keep the site preserved, in collaboration with the Interior Department. The water has been drained from the Reflecting Pool.

Defense attorney Mary Dohrmann said the team hopes to have a defense expert sample the Reflecting Pool as soon as this week.

Edelman told prosecutors that if there are alterations to the Reflecting Pool, the government could face sanctions in the case.

“I understand you personally are not in control,” Edelman said, noting that the executive branch has the ultimate authority. “There may well not be any prejudice.”

While President Donald Trump and U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro have blamed vandals for damage to the Reflecting Pool, a Washington Post analysis found that the peeling was probably caused by application flaws.

Edelman set a trial date for Sept. 28.

Jasmine Golden reports for The Washington Post.