Former President Donald Trump publicly rebuked Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, on Saturday, expressing strong disagreement with her office's decision to withdraw charges against Olympic canoeist David Hearn. Hearn had been accused of vandalizing the Lincoln Memorial's reflecting pool.
"I disagree 100% with Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, on the Reflecting Pool," Trump stated on his social media platform, Truth Social. He added that he did not understand the decision, describing the incident as "pure VANDALISM."
Pirro's office filed a court document indicating that the U.S. Department of Interior had misled them before bringing charges against Hearn. The filing stated that her office has a responsibility not to pursue charges unlikely to prevail at trial and asserted that the Interior Department's "failure to fully and accurately provide information... undermined the government's ability to abide by these responsibilities."
Trump contested this, arguing that the "major damage was caused by VANDALS!" and shared a video he claimed showed individuals damaging the pool's sealant with knives. "Look for yourselves at the VANDALISM that took place at The Reflecting Pool. The material is being cut with a knife or a box cutter, for all to see!" he wrote.
The U.S. Attorney's office also attributed the issues to a Virginia-based contractor who received a no-bid contract for sealant application, calling it "a result of flawed installation."
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