Park Service Warned of Pool Peeling Before Vandalism Charge

A National Park Service engineer warned the Trump administration in early June that the floor of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool was peeling because of problems with the renovation process and materials used, according to court filings unsealed Wednesday.

Despite that warning, President Donald Trump accused visitors of "destroying" the pool after it reopened, and the U.S. Attorney's Office in Washington, D.C., charged former Olympic canoeist David Hearn with destruction of property over a June 19 visit.

The engineer's warning came in a June 11 email, included in Wednesday's filing, sent to Interior Department and Park Service personnel. The engineer wrote that the "top layer of liner has peeled" but said the peeling was "very thin and will not impact the strength of the liner." A contractor had described the peeled area as "overspray" from applying polyurea to a perimeter joint, the email said, warning the problem could lead to a one- to two-foot strip vulnerable to further peeling.

Prosecutors said they were "not aware of or in possession of" documentation of the installation problems when they charged Hearn. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Spence wrote in Wednesday's filing that the engineer's warning cast "significant doubt" on whether Hearn caused damage to the lining, and that the information was not given to prosecutors until weeks after a grand jury had already indicted him.

The U.S. Attorney's Office, led by Jeanine Pirro, dropped the case against Hearn on July 31, citing Interior Department documents indicating the June damage stemmed from flawed installation by contractor Atlantic Industrial Coatings rather than vandalism.

Trump publicly criticized Pirro afterward, calling the decision to drop the charges a "mistake" and maintaining that the pool had been vandalized.

Hearn's attorneys are now seeking to permanently block the Justice Department from reviving what they call a "politically motivated prosecution." In Wednesday's filing, the U.S. Attorney's Office asked a Superior Court judge to dismiss the case without prejudice, a move that would preserve prosecutors' ability to refile charges against Hearn later.