Prof Who Tackled Journalist Should Be Fired, Committee Says

An Ohio State University committee recommended the university fire Luke Perez, the professor who was accused of assaulting an independent journalist on campus in February, WBNS reported. 

Perez, an assistant professor in the Chase Center for Civics, Culture and Society, has been on leave since the incident and pleaded not guilty to a misdemeanor assault charge. A video of the incident showed the journalist attempting to interview former Ohio State president E. Gordon Gee after an event. Perez, after telling the journalist he could not ask any more questions, knocked the journalist’s phone out of his hand and tackled him to the ground. 

The University Sanctioning Committee’s report found that Perez’s actions constituted workplace violence, according to WBNS. Perez did not consider his actions to be violent behavior and said he acted in self-defense in line with the university’s guidance on responding to active aggressors. 

An Ohio State spokesperson told WBNS they could not comment on personnel matters and declined to say whether Perez had been terminated.