David Hearn of the United States competes in the men’s C1 whitewater canoe final at the 2000 Summer Olympics at Penrith Whitewater Stadium on September 18, 2000 in Penrith, Australia.
David Madison | Getty Images
U.S. Olympic canoeist David Hahn has been indicted by a grand jury in Washington, D.C., on charges of criminal damage to property for allegedly removing sealant from the Lincoln Memorial’s reflecting pool, U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro announced Thursday.
Pirro said Hahn intentionally and “violently” damaged two square feet of sealant in the pool on June 19. Renovating the pool has been a top priority for President Donald Trump this year.
Hahn, 67, could be sentenced to up to 10 years in prison if convicted of the felony charges filed in the District of Columbia. He was arrested on June 19th on a misdemeanor charge.
The three-time Olympian told The Washington Post after his arrest that he was riding his bike when he stopped to see the reflecting pool. While there, he said he put his hand in the water to feel the partially peeled blue liner and was subsequently arrested.
“I didn’t destroy anything,” Hahn told the Post. “I didn’t break anything, break anything, or strip anything. By the time I realized what was happening, I was handcuffed.”
But Pirro said at a press conference that “this was an intentional act to damage the National Mall’s reflecting pool, which National Park Service employees have been instrumental in and have witnessed repairing.”
“Park personnel observed Hahn actually forcefully and violently pulling up and removing the bottom liner with both hands,” Pirro said.
“According to witnesses, Hahn damaged approximately two square feet of sealant from the bottom of the pool,” prosecutors said.
Pirro said when a Park Service employee told Hahn to stop, Hahn told her that she should have scolded her and that she cared too much about the reflecting pool.
Pirro said the reflecting pool is one of the nation’s landmarks and monuments and “belongs to all of us.”
“And they must be protected for generations to come,” she said.
The prosecutor said her office is handling about six other cases related to the alleged vandalism at the reflecting pool.
“Some of them will be misdemeanors, some of them may be more like violations, but we review every case based on the evidence, we review every report, and we have about half a dozen more misdemeanors at this point,” Pirro said.
This is breaking news. Please refresh to check for updates.
