Lawyers for former Olympian David Hearn say the Justice Department knew — or should have known — that its vandalism case against him was fatally flawed long before prosecutors dropped the charges, accusing the government of rushing to indict him despite evidence pointing to botched construction work instead.
In a 28-page motion filed Tuesday in D.C. Superior Court, Hearn's attorneys urged a judge to dismiss the case with prejudice, arguing prosecutors ignored clear evidence that the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool's liner was already failing before Hearn was accused of damaging it.
The filing came a day after U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro moved to dismiss the felony charge, saying newly produced evidence from the Interior Department showed the damage was caused by a faulty contractor installation and a rush to finish work before America 250 celebrations around July 4.
But Hearn's lawyers argued the government should not get credit for correcting a mistake they say never should have happened.
"From the outset, the evidence showed that the pool liner was already failing and that Mr. Hearn did not cause the damage alleged in the indictment," attorneys Mary Dohrmann, Steve Levin and Norman Eisen wrote.
The defense said the deteriorating condition of the Reflecting Pool was visible for weeks before Hearn was indicted and argued prosecutors failed to conduct a meaningful investigation into whether he caused, or even could have caused, the damage. They also pointed to public statements from contractor Atlantic Industrial Coatings acknowledging that parts of the $14.7 million project required repairs before the indictment was returned.
Hearn's attorneys are asking the court to dismiss the case permanently, preventing the government from bringing the charges again. They argued prosecutors indicted Hearn before obtaining the evidence needed to establish "a good-faith basis for the charge."
Hearn has said he was riding his bicycle near the Reflecting Pool on June 19 when he briefly touched a piece of the peeling liner before complying with a National Park Service employee's request to leave the area.
President Donald Trump has continued to insist the damage was caused by vandalism and publicly criticized Pirro for dropping the case, despite prosecutors' conclusion that the contractor's work — not Hearn — caused the damage.
