U.S. Attorney Janine Pirro admitted the damaged pool liner was due to a botched installation.
Posted by Deadline: White House, Checked
- Sources
- 6 support1 context
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 90%
Deadline: White HouseSep 7, 2026
Multiple tier1 and tier2 sources (AP, PolitiFact, PBS/AP) report that U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro's July 31 court filing attributed the damaged Reflecting Pool liner to a botched installation by a contractor, and that she moved to dismiss the case against David Hearn. The extracted claim matches the passage's referent (Pirro, the pool liner damage) and no source contradicts it.
What was said
… A judge today not yet ruling on whether the DOJ's trumped up vandalism charges against Hearn can be tossed out without prejudice, which means they could never be brought again. A judge previously dismissed the case, and U.S. Attorney Janine Pirro admitted the damaged pool liner was due to a botched installation, but she sought to dismiss the case without prejudice, leaving the door open for future litigation. You remember Donald Trump repeatedly blamed the reflecting pool damage on so-called vandals and publicly criticized Jeanine Pirro for her decision to dismiss …
Deadline: White House · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Supports. AP reports Pirro's office attributed the damage to a botched installation by a contractor, along with the rush to complete the project before America 250 events.[1][3]
Supports. PolitiFact reports the Justice Department motion said the damage to the pool's bottom was the result of a 'botched installation.'[2]
Supports. The Independent and Yahoo/Fortune report Pirro's court filing admitted the damage was 'the result of flawed installation by the contractor' and was not vandalism.[4][5][6]
Context. Trump publicly disagreed with Pirro's assessment and continued to blame vandals; the case was later dismissed with prejudice by a judge, per later coverage.[5][6][7]
Sources
7 sources: 2 fact-checkers, 1 tier 2, 4 not rated
- 1David Hearn's lawyers say DOJ knew Reflecting Pool case ...apnews.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 2Trump falsely blames vandals in Reflecting Pool casepolitifact.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 3Lawyers in Reflecting Pool case say Justice Department ...pbs.org · tier 2 · cited for: supports
- 4Jeanine Pirro under fire after case against Trump's alleged Reflecting Pool ‘vandal' collapsesthe-independent.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 5Trump lashes out at Jeanine Pirro after she drops Reflecting ...yahoo.com · not rated · cited for: supports, context
- 6Trump blasts Pirro after she admitted Reflecting Pool damage was caused by botched installation and blamed Interior Dept. for not sharing information | Fortunefortune.com · not rated · cited for: supports, context
- 7Lawyers Want A Watchdog To Look At Jeanine Pirro's Reflecting Pool Case. Good Luck Finding One.abovethelaw.com · not rated · cited for: context
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
Related claims
- Jeanine Pirro, the US Attorney for DC, and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum claimed that vandals were responsible for the problems with the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.Mixed
- The Department of Justice filing states that damage to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool was caused by faulty installation by a contractor hired on a no-bid basis.True
- Donald Trump publicly criticized Janine Pirro for her decision to dismiss the case against David Hearn.True
- Interior Secretary Doug Burgum stated that contractors had nothing to do with the problems at the reflecting pool and that it was vandalism.True
- Joe diGenova told the New York Post that he resigned because he lacked evidence to bring indictments.Mixed