A key witness in the criminal case against a former Olympian accused of damaging the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool testified that the landmark had sustained significant damage prior to the alleged incident, according to a court filing submitted this week.
“The testimony failed to establish that he caused any damage at all,” the attorneys wrote in a Monday filing, arguing that the charges against former Olympic canoeist David Hearn, 67, should be dropped.
Hearn’s attorneys argued that the government’s own witness could not establish that Hearn caused any compensable damage, a critical issue because the felony charge requires at least $1,000 in loss. Hearn pleaded not guilty to the charge last month.