The US Justice Department dropped felony vandalism charges against 67-year-old David Hearn on July 31 after new documents indicated damage to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool liner resulted from installation failure rather than deliberate acts. Hearn had faced charges carrying up to 10 years in prison following witness observations of him interacting with the liner on June 19. The underlying renovation project, originally budgeted under $2 million, reached an estimated $16 million with a non-competitive contract and featured a custom blue liner added under presidential direction.