A police report was filed against a Cincinnati Enquirer reporter this week by State Rep. Candice Keller (R-Middletown) after the reporter tracked her down at her home to solicit comment for a story.
Keller has faced backlash, calls to resign, and numerous death threats ever since a Facebook post of hers blaming mass shootings on the “breakdown of the traditional American family” went viral. The Ohio Star confirmed that two of the threats on her life were substantiated while 15 others were being investigated.
Dan Lay, the sergeant at arms for the Ohio House, said there were “threats” and “very dangerous remarks” directed at Keller.
She was encouraged to keep a low profile for the time being and has security stationed outside of her home, so when she saw a reporter approaching her door she called the police.
“We were advised that if a person approaches my home (coming past security), I should make a police report,” Keller told The Ohio Star.
The reporter in question was Keith BieryGolick with The Cincinnati Enquirer, who related his experience of the encounter in a newsletter Friday.
“I visited Candice Keller’s home this week. I heard she had been receiving threats following her Facebook post and wanted to talk to her about it. She released a statement saying she wouldn’t resign, but hasn’t said much else publicly,” he said. “She called the police on me. When I visited her home in Middletown, there was a sheriff’s vehicle parked outside. No one was in it.”
He went on to state that Keller’s husband opened the door and spoke with him for a few minutes.
“He was nice,” BieryGolick continued. “I gave him a business card with a note written for his wife, shook his hand and left. The next day, I received a call from Middletown Police Department. An officer told me Keller had filed a police report. I wasn’t being criminally charged, the officer said, but reporters weren’t welcome at the Keller home.”
Adam VanHo, a former Democratic assistant attorney general in Ohio, called Keller a “snowflake” for calling the police on a reporter.
“WTH? Why is she so afraid of the media? #Snowflake,” VanHo, a failed State Senate candidate, wrote on Twitter.
WTH?!? Why is she so afraid of the media? #Snowflake
— Adam VanHo 🇺🇸 (@adamvanho) August 9, 2019
The Ohio Star has received numerous comments on the situation from Keller via phone and email. The Star reached out to BieryGolick to ask if he wanted to explain why he went to Keller’s home for a statement, but he replied, “No thanks.”
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Anthony Gockowski is managing editor of Battleground State News, The Ohio Star, and The Minnesota Sun. Follow Anthony on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Keith BieryGolick” by Cincinnatti.com. Background Photo “Cincinnati Enquirer Building” by Derek Jensen. CC BY 2.0.
