Former Olympian pleads not guilty in reflecting pool case

David Hearn, who competed in three Summer Olympics as a canoe racer, pleaded not guilty Thursday, days after Trump officials charged him with damaging the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.

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National News

July 9, 2026 - 2:03 PM

Workers maintain the bubbling water system at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool on the National Mall on June 24, 2026 in Washington, DC. Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images/TNS

WASHINGTON (AP) — A former Olympic canoe racer pleaded not guilty on Thursday to deliberately damaging the recently renovated Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, a politically charged case that his defense attorneys and other Trump administration critics have derided as an abuse of prosecutorial power.

David Hearn, who competed in three Summer Olympics, entered the plea through one of his attorneys during his initial appearance in D.C. Superior Court. Hearn, 67, of Bethesda, Maryland, was indicted last Thursday on a single felony count of property destruction.

Before the…

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