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An Olympic canoeist has been accused of vandalizing nan iconic Reflecting Pool successful Washington, D.C.
David Hearn, 67, who represented nan United States successful 3 Summer Olympics, denied nan accusations that he vandalized nan recently refurbished Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, aft being arrested by nan U.S. Park Police connected Saturday.
Hearn told The Associated Press that he only reached into nan excavation because he wanted to analyse nan peeling caller coating, and he only concisely touched a chunk that was still attached to nan broadside of nan pool, past fto spell soon aft a parkland worker told him to.
"I'm a funny citizen," Hearn told nan outlet. "I reached down to spot what it felt like. It was very rubbery."
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Now, he has a day to look successful tribunal adjacent month.
Hearn was antecedently arrested by nan U.S. Park Police astir 30 years ago, and ended up beating nan charges.
How did he get to this point?
He comes from a family of US canoeing royalty
Former U.S. Olympian David Hearn was arrested aft allegedly vandalizing nan Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool successful Washington, D.C. (David Madison/Getty Images, File)
His father, Carter Hearn, was a geologist and master canoeist who continued to paddle treacherous whitewater good into his precocious 60s, per his website Davey Hearn.
His older sister Cathy is simply a two-time Olympian successful women's kayak and successful 1979 won an unprecedented 3 golden medals astatine nan World Championships, and she is simply a personnel of nan 2001 World Championship Team.
His brother, Bill, was besides a United States Canoe and Kayak National Team (USACK) member.
Meanwhile, his woman Jennifer was besides a personnel of nan USACK Women's National Slalom Team and served arsenic David's paddling coach from 1996 to 2001. She started retired arsenic adjunct slalom squad head astatine nan 1992 Olympics successful Barcelona while she was still competing, past successful 1996 she decided to attraction chiefly connected helping David's paddling profession and became his full-time coach.
He says he carried nan Olympic torch done Washington, DC
Hearn's website claims he was an Olympic torch bearer for nan past Summer Olympics that was based successful nan U.S. — nan 1996 Atlanta Games.
Hearn was among 23 canoe/kayak athletes who participated successful nan nationwide Olympic Torch Relay, and Hearn was chosen to transportation nan torch into Washington, D.C.
"It was an unthinkable grant to beryllium a torch bearer for nan Olympics successful my ain state," sounds a quote from him connected nan website.
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A storybook career
Hearn many times had to settee for metallic down his ain training partner, Jon Lugbill, successful nan World Championships. Hearn took 2nd to Lugbill astatine nan arena successful 1979, 1981 and 1983 earlier yet breaking done to seizure his first individual World Championship golden successful 1985.
But aft that, nan fierce rivalry continued, pinch Hearn taking metallic down Lugbill doubly much successful 1987 and 1989. But Hearn refused to slice away.
A afloat decade aft his first individual title, successful 1995, a 36-year-old Hearn defied nan likelihood and reclaimed nan C-1 World Championship gold. His teammates past famously hoisted him into nan air, carrying him connected their shoulders, each while he was still sitting wrong his canoe.
Following his 1995 triumph, Hearn was named nan USA Canoe/Kayak Male Athlete of nan Year. He represented nan United States successful 3 consecutive Summer Olympics: 1992, 1996 and 2000.
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A history pinch nan Park Police
Hearn's apprehension this week was not his first, arsenic his history pinch nan U.S. Park Police goes backmost astir 3 decades, according to a 1996 Washington Post article.
That year, the Potomac River turned violent, arsenic intense, dense rains pushed nan h2o to a terrifying, near-record flood level of 60,000 cubic feet per second.
Authorities instantly issued an emergency stream closure. Where nan authorities saw a deadly hazard, nan Olympian saw an irresistible, surging playground.
Hearn took his whitewater canoe consecutive into nan raging rapids.
U.S. Park Police officers quickly spotted him from nan shore. They shouted complete nan roaring water, ordering nan Olympian to paddle complete to nan riverbank.
The infinitesimal Hearn's vessel touched nan federally-controlled shore, officers swooped successful and arrested him.
He was charged pinch failing to obey a lawful order. But Hearn fought nan lawsuit successful tribunal — and won connected a stunning technicality.
A national judge wholly tossed nan charges out. The judge ruled that nan Potomac River itself is controlled by nan authorities of Maryland, meaning nan national Park Police had zero jurisdiction complete nan water.
Furthermore, because nan constabulary had ordered Hearn to paddle complete to nan national riverbank, they couldn't legally penalize him for being there.
But now almost 30 years later, Hearn's curiosity and his aged rivals astatine nan Park Police would collide erstwhile again.
His latest viral arrest
Hearn was finishing up a grueling 52-mile motorcycle thrust erstwhile he swung by nan Reflecting Pool this week.
Paint peels from nan bottommost of nan Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. (REUTERS/Annabelle Gordon)
Hearn reached down into nan water. He insists he didn't propulsion aliases tear anything. But it didn't matter.
Moments later, nan 67-year-old was surrounded by National Guard troops and U.S. Park Police officers.
Journalist Emily Miller happened to beryllium there. She filmed a two-minute video of Hearn being detained, which quickly went viral connected X.
Miller accused Hearn of grabbing a hose that female National Park Service workers were utilizing to clear nan algae. Hearn denied nan accusation, though he admitted his motorcycle tyre mightiness person bumped it.
"I didn't vandalize anything," Hearn told The Washington Post. "By nan clip I realized what was going on, I was being put successful handcuffs."
Hearn was slapped pinch a misdemeanor complaint for demolition of authorities property.
In a connection connected Truth Social Saturday night, Trump announced "many further people" person been arrested aft suspects "took immoderate shape of weapon aliases blade, and put a 250-foot-long gash into nan beautiful destruction of what took truthful overmuch work, competence, and money to build and complete."
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The president besides alleged suspects "poured corrosive and destructive chemicals" into nan basin.
"It hasn’t looked aliases worked for illustration this since 1922, erstwhile it was primitively built, but moreover then, it leaked badly, and didn’t work," Trump wrote successful nan post. "Ours worked perfectly, including nan reflector for illustration finish, perfectly reflecting nan 2 Great Monuments, which it ne'er had before! What these terrible Vandals person done is simply a existent affront to some Presidents George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, and should beryllium dealt pinch accordingly."
Fox News Digital has reached retired to an email reside connected Hearn's website for comment.
Jackson Thompson is simply a sports newsman for Fox News Digital covering captious governmental and taste issues successful sports, pinch an investigative lens. Jackson's reporting has been cited successful national authorities actions related to nan enforcement of Title IX, and successful bequest media outlets including The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Associated Press and ESPN.com.
