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A judge permanently dismisses former Olympian's Reflecting Pool charges

5:04 PM ETConfirmed

Politics Desk

In Short: The case involved allegations that Hearn vandalized the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, a charge that prosecutors had previously stated did not occur.

Former Olympian David Hearn's case was permanently dismissed with prejudice by Superior Court Judge Todd Edelman on Thursday.

Judge Edelman noted in his order that dismissing without prejudice would expose Hearn to potential future charges despite prosecutors admitting the damage was due to a botched installation.

Hearn's legal team had argued that the case should be dismissed with prejudice to prevent political pressure from reviving the charges.

The Reflecting Pool vandalism case had drawn national attention, with President Trump publicly urging prosecutors to pursue charges against Hearn.

Work continues on the Reflecting Pool, with contractors addressing issues from the rushed installation.

The dismissal with prejudice prevents the case from being revived, protecting Hearn from potential political pressure to re-file charges.

The judge's decision to dismiss the case with prejudice was influenced by public statements made by President Trump.

The case highlights the disconnect between political rhetoric and judicial proceedings.

The Reflecting Pool damage was attributed to a rushed and botched installation by contractors.

Background

What's confirmed

• Superior Court Judge Todd Edelman wrote in an order filed in D.C.
• Judge Edelman, who in August dismissed the vandalism case against Hearn and said he would wait to determine whether to grant the dismissal with prejudice, touched on “pressure” from Trump in the order.
• In the order out Thursday, Judge Edelman said dismissing without prejudice would expose Hearn to be charged with a crime that prosecutors have already stated did not occur.
• “Today’s dismissal with prejudice ensures that the DOJ cannot bring this case against him again. This decision is a victory for the rule of law and for an innocent American seeking justice,” Judge Edelman said in the order.
• (WASHINGTON) — A judge on Thursday dismissed the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool vandalism case against former Olympian David Hearn with prejudice, closing the door to re-charge him in the future.
• Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro’s move to drop the case, saying she “choked” and “folded like an umbrella,” and continued to push allegations that vandals were responsible for cutting and tearing the pool lining.
• A judge in Washington has agreed to permanently dismiss a criminal case charging a former Olympian with vandalizing the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.
• The judge ruled nearly a month after hearing attorneys’ arguments.
• In a court filing in July, Pirro said new evidence produced by the Interior Department showed Hearn wasn’t responsible for damage to the pool’s lining.
• Hearn has said he was on a bike ride on June 19 when he reached in to examine the pool’s newly peeled coating and briefly touched a chunk attached to the side of the pool.
• Superior Court Judge Todd Edelman on Thursday ordered the dismissal of Hearn’s case with “prejudice,” which would block U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro’s office from refiling it.
• Hearn’s lawyers say Trump administration officials have continued to falsely accuse the Maryland resident of vandalizing the reflecting pool despite Pirro’s decision to drop the case on July 31.

What's still developing

• People pass by an empty Reflecting Pool at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, Monday, Sept.
• Work continues on the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool as seen from the Washington Monument, Tuesday, Sept.
• “There is nothing that can save the case they dismissed,” Levin said.
• “The government did act in good faith in this case,” Spence argued.
• Attorney Jeanine Pirro’s office from bringing charges against a former Olympic canoeist over damage to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.
• Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia sparred in court last month over whether Hearn’s Reflecting Pool case should be dismissed with prejudice, meaning prosecutors would be barred from bringing another case against him.
• At an unrelated press conference last month, Pirro declined to answer several questions from reporters about her handling of the Reflecting Pool case.
• Pirro’s office wanted to maintain its ability to bring a theoretical case, even though its own evidence — that the section of the Reflecting Pool that Hearn allegedly touched was already damaged, and they can’t prove more than $1,000 in damage — would make bringing another felony case impossible.
• Edelman said the case presents "exceptional circumstances" that warrant dismissing the case permanently.
• "While the government wishes to hold open the possibility of the development of evidence that would support a future prosecution, its own representations make plain that such a possibility is theoretical at best, and more likely, is simply fanciful," the judge wrote.
• The cases against three other people also accused of vandalising the pool were dropped as well, but Hearn's defence attorneys said they were worried he would be specifically targeted by Trump because he is a politically active person who previously made campaign donations to Democrats.
• "Although the prosecutors assigned to this case have deemed it meritless, the president of the United States has repeatedly disparaged them and pressured them to change course," the judge said in his order, published on Thursday.

Sources

• ABC News - Breaking News, Latest News and Videoslink
• FOX 5 DClink
• NBC Newslink
• PBSlink
• Mediaitelink
• Washingtonexaminerlink
• Bozemandailychroniclelink
• Nbcwashingtonlink
• Wslslink
• Espnlink
• Ktenlink
• Kocolink
• 1430Wcmylink
• BBClink
• WarpBeat — background on Judge Dismisses Reflecting Pool Vandalism Case Against Ex-Olympian link
• The Washington Examiner — video link