David Hearn Reflecting Pool case permanently dismissed: What actually caused damage?

Former US Olympian David Hearn will not be prosecuted again over damage to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool after a judge permanently threw out the case against him.

The court’s decision brings an end to a strange case that began with Hearn facing a felony carrying as much as 10 years in prison. The 67-year-old former Olympic canoeist was accused of damaging the pool's newly installed coating after stopping there during a bike ride in June.

Hearn's account of what happened was considerably less dramatic. He said he noticed the coating peeling, reached into the water and briefly touched a loose piece that was still attached to the pool.

When a park employee told him to let go, he did. He was later charged with destruction of government property. But the case began to unravel after Hearn had already been indicted.

Federal prosecutors received information from the Interior Department indicating that the damage wasn't caused by Hearn at all. The problem was linked instead to a botched installation of the pool's new lining and the rush to finish the project ahead of America's 250th anniversary celebrations.

Prosecutors moved to drop the charge. That still left one important question hanging over Hearn: could the government charge him again? On Thursday, D.C. Superior Court Judge Todd Edelman answered: No.

Edelman dismissed the case “with prejudice,” shutting the door on prosecutors refiling the felony charge. The judge noted that the government itself had concluded within weeks that its prosecution lacked merit because no crime had occurred. There was another unusual element hanging over the case.

President Donald Trump had publicly criticised US Attorney Jeanine Pirro after her office decided to abandon the prosecution. Trump continued to blame vandals for the problems at the Reflecting Pool.

Hearn's lawyers argued that those comments left their client at risk of being prosecuted again despite the evidence that had emerged.

Judge Edelman agreed that the circumstances were exceptional and said prosecutors should not be allowed to keep the possibility of another case hanging over Hearn. For Hearn, that distinction matters. The charge wasn't merely dropped. The case is now closed in a way that prevents prosecutors from bringing it back.