Dozens of his supporters gathered outside the court, some of the carrying placards and banners bearing slogans that included \u201cFree Davey\u201d and \u201cThen they came for David Hearn\u201d.<\/p>\n
They chanted \u201cDavey, Davey\u201d as Hearn and his legal defense team, led by the attorney Norm Eisen, emerged from the court after the hearing.<\/p>\n
The conflict revolves around the 2,000ft-long (600-meter) pool, a centerpiece of Washington\u2019s National Mall, which had been refurbished with an \u201cAmerican flag blue\u201d liner at Donald Trump\u2019s request as part of the 250th anniversary celebration of US independence. The multimillion-dollar renovation has been plagued with problems, including a bloom of algae that tinted the water green and pieces of the blue lining peeling off.<\/p>\n
The former Olympian, 67, \u200cis accused of \u201cmaliciously\u201d breaking or destroying lining material on the bottom of the reflecting pool on 19 June.<\/p>\n
Addressing Hearn\u2019s supporters, Eisen said the case \u201cshould never have been brought\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf Mr Hearn could be charged with a felony for touching the reflecting pool, every American is at risk and every American should be alarmed about this prosecution,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Jeanine Pirro, the US attorney for Washington DC, claimed last Thursday that prosecutors had \u201ctremendous evidence\u201d that the Olympian had \u201cforcefully and violently\u201d pulled up and removed the bottom liner in the reflecting pool, totaling more than $1,000 in damage.<\/p>\n
But answering questions from journalists, Eisen \u2013 executive chair of the Democracy Defenders Fund, a group campaigning on rule-of-law issues \u2013 said: \u201cThis indictment reflects the administration\u2019s efforts to scapegoat Davey and to shift blame for their own failures \u2026 The evidence will establish, as we\u2019ve stated today, Mr Hearn is innocent. It is not a crime to touch the reflecting pool, to touch water in the United States of America.\u201d<\/p>\n
The 67-year-old cyclist denied removing anything from the pool, though he acknowledged that his bike tire may have touched the hose that National Park Service workers were using to clear the algae. Hearn\u2019s attorneys have said the charges against him are based on a \u201cconcocted narrative\u201d and \u201cshould be alarming to every American\u201d.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1782483732_529_2998.jpg\")
<\/p>\n