Ever hear of Ryan Grim? Yeh, I hadn't either until today. Grim apparently writes for the Huffington Post (although I don't know if he's one of those people who do it for free.) Whatever Grim's gig is, he got in to the MSNBC after party following last night's Washington Correspondents' Dinner in DC. (I wonder how hard it was to gain entrance to that party. I can't believe anyone tried to gain entrance in order to meet Chris Hayes in person. That sounds more like a reason NOT to go.) Anyway, at the party, Grim got into a fight with Jesse Watters of Fox News. Watters appears on The O'Reilly Factor once or twice per week (I'm not sure), and he has had his own show on occasion on Fox News. According to reports, Grim snuck up behind Watters and tried to use his phone to record Watters' conversation without Watters' knowledge. When Watters noticed, he grabbed the phone and turned it off. A few punches were then thrown.
It's sad that a silly fight like this was more interesting than the entire correspondents' dinner. But let's consider what happened. First of all, I believe that it is illegal to tape someone without their knowledge in the District of Columbia, but, to be fair, I did not check the statute. That would make Grim's move a criminal act. Second, grabbing the phone from Grim was not a cool move by Watters, but Grim's throwing a punch in an attempt to get the phone back would again constitute battery, another criminal act. It may be a defense that Grim was trying to regain his phone, but I'll let the criminal attorneys sort that one out. Still, with Watters the victim of an assault by Grim, one has to wonder if his case will get the notoriety that came when Trump's campaign manager grabbed the hand of a Breitbart reporter, a move that ended with a show arrest in Florida followed by the inevitable decision not to prosecute. Is it conceivable that the DC equivalent of the district attorney will prosecute a Huff Po guy for an attack on a Fox News guy? Don't hold your breath waiting for it to happen.
It's sad that a silly fight like this was more interesting than the entire correspondents' dinner. But let's consider what happened. First of all, I believe that it is illegal to tape someone without their knowledge in the District of Columbia, but, to be fair, I did not check the statute. That would make Grim's move a criminal act. Second, grabbing the phone from Grim was not a cool move by Watters, but Grim's throwing a punch in an attempt to get the phone back would again constitute battery, another criminal act. It may be a defense that Grim was trying to regain his phone, but I'll let the criminal attorneys sort that one out. Still, with Watters the victim of an assault by Grim, one has to wonder if his case will get the notoriety that came when Trump's campaign manager grabbed the hand of a Breitbart reporter, a move that ended with a show arrest in Florida followed by the inevitable decision not to prosecute. Is it conceivable that the DC equivalent of the district attorney will prosecute a Huff Po guy for an attack on a Fox News guy? Don't hold your breath waiting for it to happen.
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