U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro announced on Friday that Melissa Farris has been arrested and charged with two felonies following the vandalism of the World War Two memorial in Washington, D.C. The site was discovered on Thursday with bubbles filling the fountain and the phrase "Clean hands Dirty $" painted in red and green on one of the surfaces.
Farris faces charges of depredation against property of the United States and destruction of veterans memorials. The U.S. Attorney’s office posted images on social media appearing to show a woman holding a canister near red paint at the memorial, though the source of the images was not specified and has not been independently verified.
This enforcement action follows a period of public disagreement between Pirro and President Donald Trump regarding federal property maintenance. Pirro recently dropped charges against four individuals accused of vandalizing the Reflecting Pool, citing faulty installation during renovations overseen by the president as the cause for the pool's deteriorating condition. President Trump criticized that decision, stating Pirro had "folded like an umbrella."
The scale of the incident involves one of the most visited veterans' sites in the capital, dedicated to the 16 million people who served in the U.S. armed forces during World War II. While the specific dollar amount of the damage was not reported, federal law classifies the destruction of veterans' memorials as a felony punishable by significant prison time and fines. The incident has also prompted a public response from the President of the United States, who linked the damage to previous incidents at the Reflecting Pool and stated that authorities were "on their trail."
The immediate impact for the public was the temporary alteration of the memorial's appearance and the presence of maintenance crews performing cleanup on Friday. The knock-on effects include a potential shift in how federal prosecutors handle vandalism at high-profile sites following the U.S. Attorney’s previous decision to drop charges related to the Reflecting Pool. What happens next will be the formal court proceedings for Farris; however, specific court dates and the status of her legal representation were not immediately reported. Farris could not be reached for comment.
Pirro's office has not yet responded to requests for further details regarding the evidence or the origin of the images used to identify the suspect. President Trump commented on the incident Friday, describing the vandalism as an insult to those who died in the conflict. Clean-up efforts at the memorial were observed continuing through Friday morning.