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Prosecutors Drop Charges After Faulty Installation Damages Lincoln Pool

8/13/2026

46 5 Full Breakdown

Summary

Story summary

U.S. President Donald Trump launched a $16 million repair of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool that soon showed peeling sealant and green algae.
Trump blamed vandalism, posting on Aug. 9 that a National Park Service employee saw former Olympic canoeist David Hearn damage the pool.
Prosecutors dropped the charges on July 31 after finding faulty installation caused the damage, despite U.S. Park Police having arrested Hearn, who denied wrongdoing.

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Story summary

U.S. President Donald Trump launched a $16 million repair of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool that soon showed peeling sealant and green algae.
Trump blamed vandalism, posting on Aug. 9 that a National Park Service employee saw former Olympic canoeist David Hearn damage the pool.
Prosecutors dropped the charges on July 31 after finding faulty installation caused the damage, despite U.S. Park Police having arrested Hearn, who denied wrongdoing.