Justice Department admits contractor error, not vandals, caused Reflecting Pool damage

In a Friday filing, the Washington, D.C., U.S. Attorney’s Office acknowledged that the discoloration of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool stemmed from a flawed paint installation by the renovation contractor, not from vandalism as President Donald Trump had claimed. The filing aims to dismiss charges against 67-year-old Olympic canoeist David Hearn, who was accused of causing over $1,000 in damage after allegedly touching a floating paint sheet.

Prosecutors also criticized the Department of the Interior for withholding the contractor’s error report, which revealed the issue was overspray rather than a cut. A National Park Service engineer’s June report corroborated the contractor-error conclusion. Despite the admission, Trump has not retracted his earlier accusations describing the damage as a 300-yard slit made by “sick” thugs, and the White House has not commented on the filing.