Justice Department Exposes Trump-Era Mismanagement in Reflecting Pool Renovation, Drops Charges Against Former Olympian
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A federal filing reveals the $14 million Reflecting Pool repair, initiated under the Trump administration, was botched due to corporate negligence and government haste, leading prosecutors to drop the baseless criminal charge against ex-Olympian David Hearn.
The U.S. Justice Department has finally admitted that the $14 million renovation of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool—pushed through during the Trump administration—was plagued by shoddy installation, resulting in the dismissal of the politically motivated criminal case against former Olympian David Hearn. The District of Columbia U.S. Attorney’s Office’s filing exposed that Interior Department documents, only released after Hearn’s indictment, revealed the real culprit: a rushed and careless job by contractor Atlantic Industrial Coatings, desperate to meet deadlines for the America 250 celebrations.
"It was not until after the return of the indictment [of Hearn], that the [Department of Interior] provided additional documents to the [US Attorney’s Office in DC] indicating that damage to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in June 2026 was the result of flawed installation by the contractor, Atlantic Industrial Coatings, and the rush to complete the project prior to events associated with the America 250 celebration," the office wrote.
Hearn’s legal team rightly condemned the prosecution as an abuse of government power, demanding an apology for the reckless targeting of an innocent citizen.
"The Trump administration’s case against David Hearn should never have been brought. Its dismissal today does not erase the abuse of government power in arresting and charging a patriotic American who did nothing wrong. The government’s approach was ready, fire, aim. The administration owes Mr. Hearn an apology," the attorneys said.
Atlantic Industrial Coatings, emblematic of the corporate interests favored by the previous administration, declined to comment on the filing.