Washington, DC — Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) today welcomed the Justice Department’s decision to drop felony charges against former U.S. Olympic canoeist David Hearn in connection with alleged vandalism to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool and called on the Department of the Interior to be held fully accountable for the chain of failures that led to the Pool’s ongoing deterioration, waste of taxpayer dollars, lying to the public about it, and the wrongful prosecution of an innocent American.

Hearn was arrested, detained for five hours, and indicted on a felony destruction of property charge after stopping to examine a piece of coating he observed was already peeling from the pool’s surface during a bike ride. The Justice Department, in moving to dismiss the case, acknowledged that the damage was the result of a rushed and flawed installation process by the contractor, not vandalism.

This outcome is a direct consequence of a project plagued from the start by political pressure, insider contracting, and the sidelining of career experts. The administration issued a no-bid contract to a contractor connected to the Trump administration, with costs soaring from $1.8 million to $13.1 million, to paint the pool blue on President Trump’s orders ahead of a UFC fight staged at the White House.

“This project has become a poster child for corruption and why competitive bidding and transparency in federal contracting matter,” said Tim Whitehouse, Executive Director of PEER. “Transparency in contracting prevents waste, self-dealing, and exactly the kind of expensive, embarrassing failure this project has become. Decisions about the best way to repair public infrastructure should rest with engineers and career experts following open, competitive bidding, not with political officials chasing a photo-op deadline ordered by the President while steering money to favored contractors.”

The system worked in David Hearn’s case — barely. Dogged investigative reporting by multiple news organizations and an alert public recognized the Reflecting Pool as a symbol of something far larger: the insider dealing and lack of accountability that takes root when transparency rules are abandoned.

“The use of false charges and criminal prosecutions to deflect blame away from politically powerful leaders and their allies is an abuse of the justice system that cannot be tolerated,” added Whitehouse. “The Interior Department officials responsible for this failure — the no-bid contract, the botched renovation, lying to the public, and the rush to blame an innocent man — owe the public a full accounting. PEER calls on Congress to investigate and demands that those responsible face real consequences.”

PEER protects public employees who protect our environment, natural resources, and public health. We support current and former environmental and public health professionals, land managers, scientists, enforcement officers, and other civil servants dedicated to upholding environmental laws and values across federal, state, local, and tribal governments.