Evan Lambert of NewsNation arrested | Who is the reporter and why was he arrested in Ohio?

On Wednesday, reporter Evan Lambert of NewsNation was arrested during a press conference hosted by Ohio Govenor Mike DeWine in East Palestine, the site of a disastrous train derailment earlier this week.

Gov. DeWine believes charges against Evan Lambert should be dropped

Lambert had been on the scene throughout the week, bringing viewers coverage of the incident and the response from local and state leaders. Thousands had been told to evacuate, and very little is known about what caused the derailment.

After Gov. DeWine began to make his comments on Wednesday, the NewsNation reporter was accused of disorderly conduct, thrown to the ground, and arrested. The use of force against a member of the press has shocked many, including the governor.

What has Gov. DeWine said about Evan Lambert’s arrest?

In an interview with Lambert’s colleague, Gov. DeWine said that in over five hundred press conferences he has given since taking office, “nothing like this has ever happened.”

Gov. DeWine said that if he had seen officers try to stop Lambert from reporting live, he would have told them to stop. “Reports have every right to report, they have every right to do it live [...], and they can do it during the press conference,” added the governor in an interview with NewsNation.

After reviewing the footage, Gov. DeWine fell short of asking that the charges be dropped but said he has no interest in seeing Lambert prosecuted. The governor may be concerned over the political backlash, given that the officer who initially confronted Lambert and his team defended his actions.

NewsNation’s Washington Bureau Cheif, Mike Viqueira, said that he is spoken with Lambert and reported that he was “calm, cool, collected, and already talking about his next assignment.” Viqueira also emphasized that Lambert was in Ohio “to provide up-to-the-minute reporting about the tragic train accident that has impacted thousands of lives” and that he “handled this unfortunate situation with true professionalism.”

Lambert was charged with criminal trespassing and disorderly conduct and was held in jail overnight. As of Thursday afternoon, the charges have not been dropped, and Lambert has headed home after being released from police custody.

The reporter gave a short interview after his release and was clearly shocked and frightened by what he experienced. Since the charges have not been dropped, Lambert shared very few details about the events that ended in his arrest.