WASHINGTON (AP) — A judge in the nation's capital has set a trial date in September for a former Olympic canoe racer charged with deliberately damaging the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, the site of a troubled multimillion-dollar renovation project championed by President Donald Trump.
D.C. Superior Court Judge Todd Edelman scheduled the Sept. 28 trial date for David Hearn during a hearing on Monday. It was Hearn's second court appearance since a grand jury indicted him on a felony count of property destruction.
Hearn, who pleaded not guilty to the charge on July 9, has asked the court to dismiss the case. In a court filing, his attorneys argued the government has failed to properly preserve important physical evidence from the Reflecting Pool.
At least three other people have been charged in the same court with misdemeanors for allegedly removing pieces of paint from the Reflecting Pool. The felony charge against Hearn, which accuses him of causing at least $1,000 in damage to the pool, carries a maximum prison sentence of 10 years upon conviction.
Trump ordered the pool's renovation work ahead of the country's 250th independence celebrations, but the project has been plagued by problems. Trump initially suggested that pool renovations would cost $1.5 million, but the cost of the project has exceeded $16 million.
D.C. Superior Court Judge Todd Edelman scheduled the Sept. 28 trial date for David Hearn during a hearing on Monday. It was Hearn's second court appearance since a grand jury indicted him on a felony count of property destruction.
Hearn, who pleaded not guilty to the charge on July 9, has asked the court to dismiss the case. In a court filing, his attorneys argued the government has failed to properly preserve important physical evidence from the Reflecting Pool.
At least three other people have been charged in the same court with misdemeanors for allegedly removing pieces of paint from the Reflecting Pool. The felony charge against Hearn, which accuses him of causing at least $1,000 in damage to the pool, carries a maximum prison sentence of 10 years upon conviction.
Trump ordered the pool's renovation work ahead of the country's 250th independence celebrations, but the project has been plagued by problems. Trump initially suggested that pool renovations would cost $1.5 million, but the cost of the project has exceeded $16 million.
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