A legal analyst sharply criticized the Trump administration after the Department of Justice quietly withdrew criminal charges against Olympic canoeist David Hearn, whom federal prosecutors had accused of damaging the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool liner with his bare hands.

The charges were dropped on Friday, bringing a swift end to a case that had been trumpeted by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro at a high-profile press conference announcing Hearn's indictment. The abrupt reversal drew attention to the gap between the department's public-facing posture and the strength of its underlying evidence.

During an appearance on CNN, former federal prosecutor Elie Honig reflected on the rapid collapse of the prosecution.

"I think you could see the problems with this case right away," Honig said. "I did not expect it to unravel so quickly. It's a real embarrassment, first of all, for the United States Justice Department."

The Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, a iconic landmark on the National Mall managed by the National Park Service, had experienced well-documented structural issues following costly taxpayer-funded renovations that were completed in June. Algae blooms plagued the pool, and sections of the liner along its bottom began floating to the surface — problems that attracted public scrutiny long before any criminal investigation.

President Donald Trump publicly blamed vandals for the pool's deteriorating condition. Hearn was subsequently arrested near the pool — an encounter captured in a social media video — after he maintained that he had only stopped to reach into the water and touch the floating liner.

Honig walked through the escalation of the charges against Hearn, noting how the case grew more serious over time.

"Let's remember, first, they arrest David Hearn, they charge him initially by complaint with a misdemeanor," Honig said. "Then they upgrade it to a felony. They get a grand jury to indict him for that felony."

Honig then pointed to Pirro's press conference, where she forcefully defended the prosecution.

"Where she's pounding the podium and talking about what a serious crime this is and how justice will be done. And now it turns out they dismissed the case voluntarily," he said.

The episode is notable in part because DOJ policy generally discourages prosecutors from bringing charges they are not prepared to sustain, and voluntary dismissals after high-profile announcements are relatively rare — particularly when a grand jury has already returned an indictment.

"It's a true embarrassment for Jeanine Pirro," Honig concluded. "It's a true embarrassment for DOJ, and they brought it on themselves."