Former Olympian indicted over alleged Reflecting Pool vandalism | AP News
By: LINDSAY WHITEHURST
Who is not outraged by this corruption of our legal system?
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
WASHINGTON (AP) — A former Olympian was indicted Thursday on a felony charge in what President Donald Trump has called vandalism of the Reflecting Pool.
David Hearn, a former Olympic canoe racer, was indicted on a single count of property destruction in Washington, D.C. court.
District of Columbia U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said Hearn ripped up recently installed sealant on pool in "a deliberate act" that caused more than $1,000 in damage. She accused him of "forcefully and violently" pulling up bottom liner "with both hands" and acting belligerent toward an employee who told him to stop.
"This is a case with tremendous evidence," she said, adding that authorities have made about six other misdemeanors arrests.
Hearn didn't immediately return a phone call seeking comment.
He previously told The Associated Press that he reached into the pool June 19 to examine the newly peeled coating. He said he briefly touched a chunk that was still attached to the side of the pool, then let go shortly after a park worker told him to.
Hearn, 67, of Bethesda, Maryland, owned a company that made composite materials used to build watercraft. He said he stopped by the pool during a 64-mile bike ride.
He said he was detained by National Guard troops and Park Police for five hours before being released.
Trump said earlier this month that federal authorities made "multiple arrests" of people he accused vandalizing the Reflecting Pool as he struggled to explain why the $14-million-plus rehabilitation project he launched for the nation's 250th anniversary seemingly backfired.
LINDSAY WHITEHURST Whitehurst covers the Supreme Court and legal affairs for The Associated Press. She's won multiple journalism awards in a career that's spanned two decades. MEG KINNARD Kinnard covers national politics for The Associated Press. She lives in South Carolina.
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This abysmal human being is having people arrested (after the fact) in some bizarre attempt to shore up his vandalism bullshit.
Look at how sick our government has become after being infected by Trump. Look at all the willing accomplices of this criminal PotUS.
Who is not disgusted by this?
ice protestors get life sentences and J6 traitors get pardons ...
welcome to maga america!
It's fascism... Period. This person, (and others) were arrested JUST to justify trump's lies and ego. No other reason. Just floors me that right wing pedo's get away with diddling little kids, but touching the reflecting pool? "Off to jail with ya!"
It's well beyond disgusting.
I want to know who those other people were that got arrested. Or is that all made up bullshit, too?
Last I heard 5 were arrested for touching the water.
If this goes as well as Pirro's other indictments then this guy has nothing to worry about.
I agree. This case has no legs whatsoever. It is outrageous on its face and will likely be tossed out.
The problem is that our government has been corrupted to this level by Trump, and that so many are willing to be accomplices.
It's not like people weren't blaring out warnings this would happen. I should start selling 'I told you so" tee-shirts online.
Truly! The level of corruption is outrageous yet we see people ignoring it and —much worse— trying to defend it.
What is driving this cultish, irrational behavior?
Hmmm... I am not going to say it.
This will go the way of the "federal case" against the guy who threw the Subway sandwich at an ICE officer.
They should show this across all media.
All these accusations seem to confirm that the coating used on the Reflecting Pool is extraordinarily fragile. Following proper procurement procedures would have gone a long way toward avoiding these issues.
Executive shortcuts usually end up costing a lot more than doing the job the right way.
I heard the low-life creep Pirro's announcement. She is charging this guy with a felony that could result in a 10 year sentence. The whole thing is completely unacceptable.