Overview
- On Oct. 21, lawyers for David Hearn disclosed that DOJ Inspector General Don R. Berthiaume declined to open an investigation and referred their allegations to the department’s Office of Professional Responsibility.
- Prosecutors had dropped the case after Interior Department records and contractor admissions showed the Reflecting Pool liner failed from a rushed, flawed installation, and a D.C. judge later dismissed the indictment with prejudice.
- Hearn’s legal team alleges specific misconduct, including a grand‑jury witness who changed testimony after a 21‑minute break, and they say those episodes point to possible witness tampering, perjury and obstruction.
- The Interior Department’s inspector general told Hearn’s lawyers it is considering their request to investigate the agency’s role, while public statements by President Trump, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro intensified scrutiny.
- Hearn’s lawyers warn that OPR is less independent than the OIG, reports inside DOJ leadership and has been reduced in staff and output, so the referral raises questions about whether any meaningful, public accountability will follow and could prompt congressional oversight or civil suits.