Watch video of Ohio State professor tackles cameraman on campus
An assistant professor at Ohio State University has been placed on administrative leave after attacking a photographer inside a university building.
An Ohio State University professor has been suspended for tackling a photographer who was trying to question former university president E. Gordon Gee.
Luke M. Perez, an assistant professor in Ohio State’s Salmon P. Chase Center for Civics, Culture, and Society, was placed on administrative leave on Feb. 10 “pending OSUPD’s full investigation and thorough review of the facts,” OSU spokesperson Ben Johnson said in a statement obtained by the Columbus Dispatch, part of the USA TODAY Network.
The altercation occurred on February 9th after a class Perez taught called Profile in American Leadership. Mr. Gee served as a guest lecturer during the class and fielded questions in the hallway from DJ Burns, a left-wing independent journalist in the Columbus area and author of the newsletter “The Rooster.”
The interview included questions about his role in the Dr. Richard Strauss sexual abuse case, Jeffrey Epstein, and his decision to privatize university parking lots.
After the interview, an anonymous cameraman (Mr. Burns said in his February 10 newsletter that he did not work for him, but was with him as “two independent creators working together”) attempted to ask Mr. Gee questions.
Mr. Perez stepped in front of the cameraman, blocking his path. The cameraman stepped back and did not touch Perez, according to a video recording of the incident. Within seconds, Perez knocked the cellphone out of the man’s hand, threw his head back, and slammed it to the ground.
Perez stood over the cameraman and said, “I told you not to say that to my face.” When the man stood up, the cameraman put his hand on him and “pushed the camera in my face,” Perez said.
Burns and the cameraman filed a complaint with the Ohio State Police at the request of the Dispatch. He called the incident “brutal and disgusting to witness” in an email to USA TODAY.
“Lucas Perez is an embarrassment to his alma mater,” Burns said. “If not for his decades-long friendship with Leslie Wexner and Jeffrey Epstein, he would go down in history as one of the roughest (employees) in Buckeye history.”
Perez directed media requests from Dispatch to a university spokesperson.
Video of incident sparks outrage
The Ohio chapter of the American Association of University Professors said in a statement that the incident appears to run counter to the Chase Center’s stated mission.
“This assault and the shameful actions that followed make it clear that the actual purpose of these centers is not to encourage civil discussion or intellectual diversity. AAUP-OSU supports free speech for everyone on campus, not just the ideas that politicians want to promote,” the statement reads.
The Chase Center was mandated by the state Legislature in 2023. Senate Bill 117 would create new independent academic centers at five state public universities, including Ohio State University, to promote “intellectual diversity.”
Lee Strang, executive director of the Chase Center, previously said that in addition to offering courses in civic thinking and leadership, the center offers programs across the university related to free speech and civil discourse values.
“Ohio’s Republican and gerrymandered state legislature has mandated a lightweight, conservative mindset for our beautiful public universities,” Burns said in an email. “Essentially, this story was a perfect example of what ‘free speech’ means to Republicans.”
Ohio Sen. Bill DeMola (D-Columbus) called Perez’s actions “a truly despicable act of attacking someone with his hands tied,” and called on individuals to protect journalists’ First Amendment right to free speech.
“Ironically, the Chase Center, where the faculty members who assaulted me, claims to be a ‘civic, cultural, and social center that fosters a free society through open inquiry and academic excellence.’ Their words, not mine,” DeMola said.
