The Trump reflecting pool arrest of a Washington DC resident has taken a new turn, with the man at the center of it telling the Guardian he intends to fight the charges. The arrest comes as President Donald Trump continues to blame vandals for the troubled renovation of the National Mall’s iconic reflecting pool.

A Costly Renovation Gone Wrong

The controversy traces back to an expensive makeover. The Trump administration spent $14.2 million renovating the body of water in front of the Lincoln Memorial, aiming to dye it “American flag” blue in time for the nation’s 250th birthday next month.

Things did not go as planned. The pool has since been plagued by:

• Recurring algae blooms
• A peeling polyurethane liner
• A rapidly deteriorating overall appearance

Rather than attribute the problems to the renovation work itself, Trump has claimed, without offering evidence, that someone slashed the pool with a knife. Earlier this week, he announced on social media that six people had been arrested for damaging what he described as the country’s now beautiful reflecting pool.

A Gap Between Claims and Charges

Here lies a notable disconnect. Despite Trump’s assertions about vandalism, the actual charges filed against those arrested at or near the reflecting pool have not included any allegation of causing damage.

One of those individuals is Christian Miles, a DC resident captured on video being led away in handcuffs on Monday. Speaking to the Guardian on Tuesday, Miles explained that his charge had nothing to do with vandalism. Instead, he was accused of violating a federal obscenity law after berating a group of Oklahoma state troopers stationed at the pool.

Who Is Christian Miles?

Miles is a freelance video editor and former U.S. Navy submariner. In recent months, he has taken on a personal mission to document what he calls the “creeping police state” that followed Trump’s federal takeover of policing in Washington DC.

His method involves filming himself as he confronts, and frequently scolds, federal troops and officers stationed around the city. The encounter at the reflecting pool fit a pattern he has repeated many times over the past several months.

The Charge He Plans to Challenge

Miles told the Guardian he intends to contest the administrative charge against him. The accusation falls under a section of the Code of Federal Regulations that bars disorderly conduct, specifically language, gestures, or acts deemed obscene, physically threatening, menacing, or likely to provoke injury or an immediate breach of the peace.

He later posted an edited video of his run-in with the Oklahoma troopers on YouTube. By his account, the footage closely resembles his many earlier confrontations with officers over the previous ten months. The one meaningful difference, he suggested, was timing, his arrest came after the president began publicly blaming vandals rather than faulty contractor work for the pool’s decline.

An Irony Not Lost on Him

In an email to the Guardian, Miles pointed to a moment he found especially striking. Before his arrest, one of the Oklahoma troopers reportedly told him that the United States was clearly a free society, since he could stand there filming as much as he wanted. The trooper contrasted this with China, suggesting that elsewhere he might be run over by a tank in a public square.

According to Miles, just seven minutes after that exchange about American freedom, he was arrested for using obscene language while protesting the security crackdown at the reflecting pool.