Former Olympic Canoeist Denies Damaging Washington Reflecting Pool After Arrest
Three-time Olympian David “Davey” Hearn denied damaging the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool after US Park Police arrested him on Friday near its edge as he finished a 52-mile bike ride, insisting to BBC News that he simply touched a strip of already delaminated rubbery material without altering the site’s condition in any way. The 67-year-old faces a misdemeanor charge of destruction of government property for the incident at the landmark stretching between the Lincoln Memorial and Washington Monument. President Donald Trump had posted on Truth Social about arrests for vandalizing the national monument as part of its ongoing multi-million dollar refurbishment.
The arrest occurred after Hearn noticed the peeling paint on the refurbished pool according to accounts provided to the Washington Post. A video posted to social media captured Hearn standing near a water-pumping hose and speaking to a woman before he walked away to retrieve his bicycle and was then approached by National Guard troops. He was placed in handcuffs with US Park Police present and detained for about five hours without being permitted a phone call, Hearn told BBC News. The Washington Post reported that Hearn denied grabbing the hose from workers and suggested his bike tire may have moved it instead.
Hearn, who competed in canoe slalom at the 1992 Barcelona, 1996 Atlanta and 2000 Sydney Olympics with a best finish of ninth place according to Team USA records, said his background as a designer of boats, paddles and waterproof products sparked his curiosity about the pool’s renovation materials. He told BBC News on Saturday that he “didn’t destroy, rip, tear, peel, or remove any part” of the paint. “The condition of any part of the reflecting pool didn’t change,” he insisted. “It wasn’t affected. It was the same before I got there as when I walked away from it.” He called his arrest an “arbitrary, capricious prosecution.”
President Trump stated in a Truth Social post on Saturday that US Park Police had “arrested multiple individuals for vandalizing our Nations magnificent Reflecting Pool.” “Who would do such a thing? These are very serious crimes having to do with the destruction of National Monuments,” he continued, adding that “work will begin immediately on its repair.” In later posts Trump claimed without evidence that vandals had “poured corrosive and destructive chemicals into the Pool” and used “some form of knife or blade” on the lawn, the BBC reported. US Park Police did not reply to a request for comment.
The Reflecting Pool measuring 2,030 feet has long been beset by leaks, structural deterioration, faulty pipes, algae growth and bird droppings according to National Park Service history. The recent resealing and painting project in “American Flag Blue” – a color Trump selected himself – was initially estimated near $2 million but has ballooned beyond $14 million with added no-bid contracts for filtration and algae treatment systems, ABC News reported. Trump had said on Friday that the “algae is 75% gone, and the condition will soon be completely remedied.” Contractors inspected the site on Saturday and may need to drain much of the water for repairs, according to his subsequent posts.
Hearn said he had seen a national news presenter touch similar material in a prior report on the pool’s problems and added “I don’t really feel like I did anything wrong.” He noted that one of the park service workers cleaning algae from the pool told him to stop after his brief contact with the liner. The pool’s reflective surface remains its most important quality especially when the water is still, Hearn told BBC News, describing the site as “really pretty” despite its maintenance challenges.
