A former Olympic canoeist has been indicted by a grand jury in Washington, DC, Superior Court, for allegedly damaging the Reflecting Pool in front of the Lincoln Memorial.

David Hearn was charged Thursday with one count of destruction of property with a value of more than $1,000, according to the indictment. The felony charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, if convicted.

The indictment said a DC grand jury found that Hearn “maliciously did injure, break and destroy certain property, that is, the lining material of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.”

The indictment on Thursday marks a significant escalation of the Trump administration’s recasting of a peeling bottom layer and algae growth in the Reflecting Pool shortly after the president renovated it as serious vandalism.

US Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro’s office has so far singled out Hearn, who previously said he was curious of the debacle, with the felony charge after Trump had called for maximum penalties for alleged vandals. During a news conference, Pirro described Hearn as “violently” ripping up about two square feet of the massive pool, and being belligerent and rude toward federal officers guarding it.

When asked if Pirro was choosing to charge Hearn with a felony because of the president’s direction, Pirro said, “This is a case with tremendous evidence and the evidence dictates where we land.”

She declined to describe any additional evidence beyond witnesses on the scene, “who have no agenda … just working there,” and who saw “damage to a national monument.”

Hearn’s attorney Norm Eisen blasted the indictment.

“Davey Hearn is innocent. These charges are outrageous and should be alarming to every American. This indictment reflects the Administration’s effort to shift blame for their own failures,” Eisen said in a statement. “On the eve of our nation’s Independence Day, Americans should be deeply concerned by the misuse of government power against an ordinary citizen based on a concocted narrative.”

Hearn previously told CNN that police arrested him after he touched a flap of blue material that partially detached from the bottom of the pool, which reopened last month following President Donald Trump’s multimillion-dollar renovation.

Hearn said a National Park Service worker warned him not to reach into the water before he was handcuffed by Park Police. He denied vandalizing the pool and said he was simply curious.

Trump warned late last month that those who he said “vandalized” the pool could face lengthy prison sentences.

Pirro said Thursday that there are “about a half dozen” other cases the US Attorney’s office is investigating.

“We have about a half a dozen other cases. Some of them will be misdemeanors, and some of then could be less, like a violation,” she said.

The renovation of the pool, which was meant to be completed ahead of this weekend’s Independence Day festivities, was beset with issues involving algae and peeling paint or sealant shortly after it reopened to the public last month.

The president also said someone had carved a lengthy gash into the pool with some sort of sharp instrument. The federal government has not provided proof of those claims, and Trump’s estimate of the length of damage to the pool fluctuated wildly. (CNN)

Update news