A former Olympic canoeist charged with felony destruction of federal property walked out of a D.C. courthouse Thursday on a personal recognizance bond, no supervision required, while January 6 protesters who walked through a public building have spent years behind bars. That's two-tiered justice in plain sight.
David Hearn, 67, a three-time Olympian, pleaded not guilty to a single felony count of property destruction for allegedly ripping up sealant from the newly renovated Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool on June 19. The charge carries a maximum of 10 years in prison. But Hearn walked free with no court supervision — the government didn't even request it — and a status hearing set for August 5. Dozens of supporters cheered him outside, and Hearn pumped his fist for the cameras.
Contrast that with the treatment of January 6 defendants, many of whom were held in pretrial detention for months or years on misdemeanor charges, denied bail, and subjected to solitary confinement — for walking through the Capitol building their taxes fund.
U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro claimed prosecutors have "tremendous evidence" that Hearn "forcefully and violently" pulled up the pool's bottom liner, causing more than $1,000 in damage. Hearn tells a different story: he says he reached in to examine peeling sealant during a bike ride, let go when a park worker told him to, and was detained for five hours by National Guard troops and U.S. Park Police. "I didn't vandalize anything," Hearn told The Washington Post. "By the time I realized what was going on, I was being put in handcuffs."
Hearn's defense team includes Norm Eisen — the Democratic operative who served as special counsel to House Democrats during Trump's first impeachment. Eisen called the prosecution something that "should be alarming to every American," adding: "It is not a crime to touch the Reflecting Pool." Defense attorney Mary Dohrmann called Hearn an "upstanding citizen" and said the government's evidence is "weak."
Three additional people — Cameron Thiers, Sophie Dennison-Gibby, and Justin Carreno — face misdemeanor charges after officers witnessed them peeling blue paint from the pool liner, according to court documents. One was caught with a piece of the liner in her purse; another admitted to removing sealant and still had it in his hand. They face a maximum of 180 days and a $1,000 fine.
The real story the press won't tell: the $14.7 million renovation, ordered by Trump with an "American flag blue" liner for the 250th anniversary, has been a disaster. Algae blooms turned the water green. The liner started peeling on its own. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum ordered the pool drained again for repairs — the second time in three months. Trump claimed without evidence that vandals slashed the lining with box cutters and dumped fertilizer. AP and CNN both noted Trump provided no substantiation, and officers charging the three misdemeanor defendants didn't accuse them of gashing the lining.
The pool was already falling apart. But that hasn't stopped prosecutors from throwing a felony charge at a 67-year-old man who says he touched peeling sealant — while giving him the velvet-glove treatment on release that J6 defendants could only dream of. The press plays along, framing Hearn as a victim of political persecution. AP called it a "politically charged case" derided as an "abuse of prosecutorial power." When J6 protesters made the same argument, the same outlets called it an insurrection.
The question isn't whether Hearn is guilty. It's why one set of defendants gets recognizance bonds and fawning coverage, and another gets solitary confinement and smears.
