Woman arrested and facing felony charges in World War II memorial vandalism case, DOJ says
A woman accused of vandalizing the World War II memorial has been arrested in Washington, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro announced.
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Melissa L. Farris is facing two felony charges in federal court, Pirro said on social media. Charging documents in the case against Farris were not yet available, but Pirro said Farris was in custody.
“Vandalizing our World War II Memorial is a despicable attack on a sacred monument honoring the Americans who fought and died for our freedom. Those Americans include my father and grandfather,” Pirro wrote.
The memorial was vandalized on Thursday with bubbles filling the fountain and graffiti that appeared to read “Clean hands dirty $.”
The arrest comes after Pirro’s office made the call to drop charges against former Olympic canoeist David “Davey” Hearn in connection with an incident at the Reflecting Pool, a decision that drew Trump’s ire.
Pirro’s office said that the damage to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool was “the result of flawed installation.” A judge dismissed the charges against Hearn, but had not yet decided whether to ban Pirro’s office from bringing any charges against Hearn in the future.
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Trump denounced the vandalism in a post on Truth Social, connecting the damage at the World War II memorial with the Reflecting Pool saga.
“Our beautiful World War II Memorial was just hit by Spray Painting Vandals. THERE CAN BE NO GREATER INSULT TO THOSE AMERICAN HEROES WHO DIED IN WORLD WAR II. First the Reflecting Pool, now this,” Trump wrote in a post on Friday. “We are on their trail! Where do these animals come from???”
The Friends of the National World War II Memorial said in a statement that the location is “a sacred place of remembrance—a place where veterans, families, students, and visitors from across our nation and around the world come to reflect on the courage, sacrifice, unity, and service of a generation that helped preserve freedom.”
The Interior Department, which oversees the two monuments and other historic sites, said the vandalism was “an utter disgrace and will not be tolerated.”
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