Lawyers for a former Olympian charged with damaging the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool say that the Justice Department knew or should have known for weeks that its case was flawed.

The Justice Department knew or should have known for weeks that its case against a former Olympian charged with intentionally damaging the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool was flawed, and that he bore no responsibility for longstanding problems at the landmark, defense lawyers said Tuesday.

U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro on Friday moved to dismiss the indictment against David Hearn, saying in a 20-page filing that newly produced evidence from the Interior Department showed the former Olympic canoeist was not responsible for damage to the pool’s lining.

Pirro’s office attributed the damage instead to a botched installation by a contractor as well as “the rush to complete the project prior to events associated with the America 250 celebration” in the weeks surrounding July 4, as directed by President Donald Trump.

  • givesomefucks@lemmy.worldEnglish
    16·
    2 days ago

    You can beat the case, but you can’t beat the ride

    Has been an open secret for generations by now, I’m sure it was happening before the 1960s, but the phrase was around back then.

    It’s not just going to fix itself, we have to fucking do it.

    Biden wasted all the momentum for justice reform last time, we literally can’t afford to do that again.

    We need to make sure progressives get thru primaries and to the general.

    • radiofreebc@lemmy.world
      35·
      2 days ago

      If you’re counting on Americans to take part in democracy, and do the right thing, you’re gonna have a bad time.