White House officials have asked the Department of Justice (DOJ) to explore whether it would be possible to pursue a new prosecution against the man accused of vandalizing the newly renovated Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, weeks after federal prosecutors moved to dismiss felony charges against him, Fox News has learned.The previous case, which U.S.Attorney Jeanine Pirro's office moved to dismiss on July 31, accused Olympic canoeist David Hearn of damaging the costly $14 million project after cracks, algae growth and peeling sealant were discovered.Pirro's office cited findings from the Department of the Interior that concluded the damage was linked to flaws in the installation process rather than vandalism.White House officials have since reached out to the DOJ to determine whether Hearn could instead face a misdemeanor charge, as first reported by The Wall Street Journal.
No final decision has been made, Fox News has learned.TRUMP URGES JEANINE PIRRO TO REVISIT DROPPED LINCOLN MEMORIAL REFLECTING POOL VANDALISM CASEPresident Donald Trump has urged U.S.Attorney Jeanine Pirro to revisit the recently dropped charges over vandalism at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.
(Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)In response to the move, Hearn's attorneys said pursuing a new case would only undermine the DOJ's credibility after prosecutors already acknowledged they lacked sufficient evidence to support the original charges."If true, it would mark a shocking first: a case that the DOJ lost by its own admission because it lacked the evidence to convict, returning from the dead.This would add another bizarre turn to a sad chapter in the DOJ's history and further harass an innocent man," the attorneys said in a joint statement.The statement was issued by Norm Eisen of Democracy Defenders Fund, Mary Dohrmann of Washington Litigation Group, and Steve Levin of Steptoe LLP.TRUMP SAYS HE 'DISAGREES 100%' WITH U.S.
ATTORNEY JEANINE PIRRO OVER REFLECTING POOL CASEMembers of the National ...