Ohio police officials are under scrutiny after they arrested a reporter, Evan Lambert, during a live press conference held by Gov. Mike DeWine to update the public about the safety concerns surrounding a train derailment. Lambert, who is gay, was asked to be quiet while reporting for NewsNation on Wednesday afternoon before he was confronted by four police officers and thrown to the ground. The arrest has caused a backlash, with journalists and NLGJA, the Association of LGBTQ Journalists, condemning the police officers’ actions.
It is not clear why the police targeted Lambert, who was at the back of a gymnasium, but Lambert was charged with criminal trespass and resisting arrest. Lambert has now been released from jail and is preparing to face an arraignment in court next month. Following the incident, NewsNation’s Washington, D.C. bureau chief, Mike Viquiera, said that Lambert was safe and calm and had been doing his job, which was to report on the matter of urgent, critical interest to their audience.
Gov. DeWine’s press secretary, Dan Tierney, confirmed that the governor could not see what happened because a bank of cameras blocked his view. However, Tierney added that the governor had always respected the media’s right to report live before, during, and after his press briefings. NLGJA has condemned the East Palestine police’s actions and affirmed the importance of journalists being free to report on relevant news and events.
