NewsNation reporter Evan Lambert was released late Wednesday night from the Columbiana County Jail. He was detained after being arrested by local authorities while covering a press event held by Gov. Mike DeWine.
Lambert was doing a live hit from East Palestine when authorities ordered him to stop as the governor was about to speak. DeWine was about to provide an update on the disastrous train derailment that spilled toxic chemicals in eastern Ohio last week. Shortly after Lambert went off-air, police arrested him for criminal trespass and disorderly conduct.
Lambert was released from jail in the 10 pm hour, after which he appeared with NewsNation’s Ashleigh Banfield to discuss the ordeal.
“I’m just trying to do my job as I am continuing to do right now,” Lambert said. “And, you know, that’s what it’s all about, protecting the First Amendment and democracy and trying to help people get information. You know, we were talking about this major accident that, you know, impacted hundreds, thousands of people in this town. And that’s just what we were trying to do at the time and what I continue to try to do.”
Banfield pressed her colleague for more details, noting that there “was a piece that was still missing.” Lambert was cautious in what he was eager to share, likely from the advice of legal counsel, but he did say, “No one expects…
“It obviously happens more often, more frequently, in other countries that don’t have the freedoms that we do and the Constitution that protects this job that I’m so lucky to be able to do, and I’m going to continue doing it,” Lambert said. “And nothing like this situation is going to stop me and stop us from reporting on what people need to know.”
Shortly after the arrest, DeWine said Lambert had “every right” to be there, and that police were “wrong” to arrest him.
“It has always been my practice that if I’m doing a press conference, if someone wants to report out there and they wanna be talking to the people back on a channel or whatever, they have every right to do that,” he said. “If someone was stopped from doing that or told they could not do that, that was wrong, and it was nothing I authorized. And certainly, that would be something I would not want to see happen.”
DeWine added, “I’m certainly very, very sorry that happened. I don’t have all the facts, but he or she or whoever was arrested had every right to be there.”
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Disclaimer, the writer of this story is a NewsNation