Journalists from CityBeat Face Trial After Arrest During Protest Coverage

September 29, 2025 – USA – 

Two journalists from Cincinnati CityBeat, Madeline Fening (investigative reporter) and Lucas Griffith (photo intern), are soon going to trial in Kenton County, Kentucky, after being arrested in July while covering a protest.

The incident occurred on July 17, 2025, when activists marched across the Roebling Suspension Bridge to voice opposition to the detention by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) of Ayman Soliman, an Egyptian cleric and former journalist currently fighting deportation. Fening was filming police dispersal efforts when an officer moved in, handcuffing her despite clearly visible recordings and calls of “She’s press! She’s a reporter!” from nearby journalists.  Griffith was also detained in the same operation.

Originally, both were charged with felony rioting, but those charges have since been dropped. What remains are multiple misdemeanor counts, including failure to disperse, disorderly conduct, obstructing a highway, obstructing emergency responders, and, in Griffith’s case, resisting arrest. Their trials are planned: Fening’s is set for September 30, while Griffith’s begins on October 2.

The case has drawn widespread attention from press freedom advocates, legal scholars, and journalism educators. Over 20 media and civil liberties organizations have called on Kenton County prosecutors to drop the charges, warning that prosecuting journalists for doing their jobs undermines constitutional protections.  The Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) joined a coalition pushing for dismissal, stating that the prosecutions risk setting a chilling precedent against newsgathering.

Supporters of the charges argue that journalists, like any citizens, must comply with lawful police orders and that press status does not grant immunity from laws governing public safety and crowd control. However, critics note that bringing journalists to trial for covering protests is exceedingly rare in the U.S., and these cases are especially troubling given the potential for infringement on the First Amendment and press freedom.

As the proceedings approach, many watch closely: the outcomes here may signal how far legal systems will tolerate the prosecution of journalists covering contentious events — and whether newsgathering on public demonstrations will increasingly be treated as a legal risk rather than a civic duty.

Reference – 

https://www.niemanlab.org/reading/on-trial-for-journalism-in-kentucky/

https://www.cjr.org/news/madeline-fening-lucas-griffith-cincinnati-citybeat-journalists-arrested.php