Attorney for former Olympian accused of Reflecting Pool vandalism: Not a crime to ‘touch water’

Administration Attorney for former Olympian accused of Reflecting Pool vandalism: Not a crime to ‘touch water’ Comments: by Finya Swai - 06/23/26 10:44 AM ET Comments: Link copied by Finya Swai - 06/23/26 10:44 AM ET Comments: Link copied

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The former U.S. Olympian arrested on misdemeanor charges for allegedly vandalizing the newly revamped Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool said he was “never read” his Miranda rights after his arrest and plans to fight the charges against him.

David Hearn, 67, on Monday denied allegations that he damaged government property by reaching into the waters of the Reflecting Pool to see what it felt like. His attorney also argued that federal authorities have no legal basis for the two misdemeanor citations issued after his arrest.

“There’s no basis for this. We’re going to contest it vigorously,” said Hearn’s attorney Norm Eisen, who sat alongside him in an interview on MS Now. “It’s not a federal crime to touch water.”

President Trump on Saturday announced that “multiple individuals” were arrested for allegedly vandalizing the Reflecting Pool, which has come under scrutiny after an algae bloom and peeling paint were discovered shortly after the completion of its multimillion-dollar renovation earlier this month.

The president has pointed to vandalism as a means to deflect blame from the Reflecting Pool’s ongoing water quality and maintenance issues.

Hearn, a resident of Bethesda, Md., who competed in canoe slalom racing, was detained for nearly five hours, according to The Washington Post.

He said he was unable to communicate with anyone after being arrested by National Park Police.

“I didn’t know how long I was going to be held,” Hearn said during the interview. “I had not been allowed to make a phone call. Nobody really knew I was there. I was held incommunicado the whole time.”

The former Olympian also reportedly stopped by at the Reflecting Pool during a 52-mile bicycle ride to see the refurbished project. He noticed a piece of the pool’s new “American flag blue” liner that was partially detached from the pool floor and reached into the water to feel it before he was detained by the Park Police.

“I didn’t vandalize anything,” he told the Post. “I didn’t destroy or break or peel anything. By the time I realized what was going on, I was being put in handcuffs.”

Hearn is scheduled to appear in D.C. Superior Court on July 9.