A Kentucky woman accused of spray-painting the National World War II Memorial while recording herself has now been indicted on two federal felony counts. Melissa Farris, 41, allegedly defaced the memorial’s Atlantic Theatre Pavilion and filled its fountain with foam on August 13th. Prosecutors said she later posted videos discussing the vandalism and asking viewers to circulate the footage. Each charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.
A federal grand jury returned the indictment against Farris on August 27th in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. She was charged with one count of destruction of a veterans’ memorial and one count of destruction of government property. Farris, who is from Elizabethtown, Kentucky, is scheduled to return to court for a hearing on September 3rd.
The alleged vandalism occurred at the Atlantic Theatre Pavilion, located at the eastern end of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. The World War II Memorial honors the 16 million Americans who served during the war, the millions who supported them from the home front, and the 405,399 Americans who gave their lives. More than four million people visit the memorial annually, according to federal officials.
As Trending Politics reported, the Justice Department said U.S. Park Police and Park Rangers were dispatched to the memorial at approximately 2 p.m. after receiving a report about a disorderly person. A witness told officers that a woman had been seen spray-painting portions of the pavilion. When a ranger reached the scene, the ranger reportedly found foam in the fountain and several people watching a woman record herself on the pavilion’s balcony.
The woman fled after noticing the ranger, according to the criminal complaint. Investigators found the words “Clean Hands Dirty $” painted in orange on a wall, with green paint beneath the message and pink paint splattered across the ground. Officers also recovered a white sign from a nearby trash can, and its paint appeared to match the paint used on the memorial.
Watch the video Farris’ alleged vandalism here:
"*" indicates required fields
Melissa L. Farris – a.k.a. – Melissa Lovewell
Full live video while vandalizing WWII memorial in Washington DC.
Watch the full show, she’s nutty! pic.twitter.com/chD4mFVaCJ
— kentuckyoffgrid (@Kentuckyoffgrid) August 14, 2026
A witness photographed the woman allegedly defacing the memorial, giving investigators an image that was distributed among Park Police officers. One officer recognized her as the woman arrested three days earlier for unlawfully camping on federal property several blocks from the memorial. During that August 10 arrest, Farris allegedly livestreamed the encounter through Facebook and Instagram accounts using the name “Melissa Lovewell.”
Investigators reviewed those public accounts and discovered several videos recorded on the day of the vandalism. In one video posted before the incident, Farris allegedly said, “I am cognitively aware and executively (sic) of the choices I am making and I am doing so to push my whistleblower case into the courtroom…” She continued, “Someone has to make choices that are different and I am accountable for my actions. I am going to make these choices today and I will step foot into the courtroom and I will wait to be arrested…”
The complaint said another video showed the memorial’s fountain filled with foam and the pavilion covered in paint. Farris allegedly recorded herself saying, “Nobody cares, why doesn’t anybody care, this is unreal.” In a subsequent post, she asked viewers to edit and distribute the footage before saying, “I was just allowed to deface Federal f***ing property, and nobody batted an eye, and that is very strange.” Cleanup and restoration costs had already exceeded $1,000 when the complaint was filed.
U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said the memorial represents the courage and sacrifice of the Americans who fought in World War II. “Defacing it is an affront to their service and sacrifice,” Pirro said. “We will use every tool available under federal law to ensure this conduct is met with justice.”