Prosecutors Say Reflecting Pool Damage Was Caused by a Contractor, Not Vandals

Federal prosecutors in Washington, D.C. have dropped the last of the criminal cases tied to alleged vandalism at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. The U.S. Attorney’s Office had charged four people, David Hearn, Justin Carreno, Sophie Dennison-Gibby and Cameron Thiers, after the pool’s lining began peeling and its water turned green during a renovation tied to America’s 250th anniversary celebrations earlier this summer.

U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro’s office concluded that contractors, not the four accused individuals, were responsible for the pool’s deteriorated condition. Court records obtained by USA TODAY show prosecutors filed paperwork on July 31 to dismiss all of the remaining cases, closing out a monthslong legal dispute over who was actually responsible for the pool’s damage weeks after the America 250 celebration concluded.

President Donald Trump had spent weeks insisting the four were guilty, at one point describing them publicly as “SICK, DERANGED PEOPLE.” The dismissals came even as the president continued to reject the contractor explanation outright, putting him at odds with Pirro, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, whom Trump himself had appointed to the role just last year.

Investigators Point to a Rushed Renovation, Not Vandalism

According to Pirro’s office, a rushed renovation carried out by a contractor hand-picked by the Trump administration is to blame for the pool’s damage. The office pointed to a “flawed installation by the contractor,” combined with pressure to finish the project before events tied to the America 250 celebration surrounding Independence Day 2026, as the true cause of the pool’s ongoing deterioration.

According to the Guardian, Atlantic Industrial Coatings, the contractor hired to reline the pool, and subcontractor Mid-America Industrial Coatings used two specific products, Pipeliner 5000 and a Rhino 406 primer, for the resurfacing work blamed for the peeling. Federal contracting records show a separate contract on the project, for a water-purification system, went to a firm ultimately owned by Trump donor and Mar-a-Lago neighbor John J. Cafaro.

The renovation traces back to April, when Trump said a visiting friend from Germany complained the water looked dark and filthy. The Guardian reported that the administration launched a no-bid project, originally estimated at $1.5 million to $2 million, to reseal the basin in what Trump called “American flag blue.” Costs eventually climbed to between $14 million and $16 million, according to the Guardian.

Trump Publicly Breaks With His Own Prosecutor

Trump has continued to reject the contractor explanation even after the dismissals became public knowledge. On Aug. 1, he wrote on social media that he disagreed “100%” with Pirro, adding that “there may have been some contractor difficulty, but the major damage was caused by VANDALS!” The post came a day after the July 31 court filing was first reported.

Two days later, Trump escalated his criticism of Pirro, a longtime ally. “I was disappointed with Jeanine Pirro. Really disappointed with Jeanine Pirro,” he told reporters in the Oval Office on Aug. 3. “She folded like an umbrella.” He also said he thought Pirro “choked” while handling the dismissal of the felony case against Hearn, a former Olympian among the four accused.

When reporters asked whether Pirro, a former Fox News host, would be replaced as U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, Trump did not give a direct answer. He kept pressing his own version of events instead, telling reporters that the pool damage was still, in his view, the result of vandalism rather than construction work, despite his own prosecutor’s findings.

Accused Say the Ordeal Left Lasting Damage

Attorneys for the four accused celebrated the dismissals but described the ordeal as harrowing for their clients. Dennison-Gibby’s attorney, Jamison Koehler, said her arrest occurred while she was walking by the pool and stopped to remove a piece of plastic lining from the water. Dennison-Gibby, a Washington-area veterinarian, regularly picked up trash hazardous to animals during her walks, Koehler said.

Carreno’s attorney, Mark S. Zaid, said in a social media post that his client lost two jobs because of what he described as a “frivolous arrest,” and argued that Carreno is “at minimum” entitled to a public apology. Thiers’ attorney, Allen Dale, called the experience a “nightmare” for his client, who is now relieved that it is finally behind him.

Koehler, Dennison-Gibby’s attorney, said his client was “terrified” to learn that the president of the United States, “the most powerful person in the world,” had described those charged as sick people facing jail time. “Can you imagine being singled out by the president?” he asked. With the criminal cases now closed, the pool’s broader renovation troubles, including its peeling lining and algae blooms, remain unresolved.