If Fox News contributor Steven Crowder wants justice after being assaulted during right-to-work protests in Michigan this week, he sure has a weird way of showing it. That’s the word from Michigan State Police, who are ready to investigate and prosecute the man who punched Crowder multiple times on camera Tuesday — if only Crowder would let them.
The video of Crowder taking those punches has gone viral, even as Crowder’s story about the circumstances has started to unravel. Regardless of exactly what happened leading up top the punches, however, there’s a potential crime caught on film and according to Michigan State Police, Crowder has so far shown no interest in having it investigated.
“There is video footage of him being assaulted. We don’t know who the suspect is, but we could do a several month investigation and find the suspect,” Inspector Gene Adamczyk, spokesperson for the state police, told TPM on Thursday. “But if Mr. Crowder is not going to prosecute, we have not gained anything, we’ve wasted resources.”
So far Crowder has not sought out police help after he was hit. Adamczyk pointed out he’s instead turned the video into a national conservative media tour.
“I saw Mr. Crowder’s interview on Sean Hannity and he wants to have an MMA-sanctioned fight with this individual,” he said. Crowder told Hannity that if the suspect doesn’t come forward for the MMA fight (which he said would be held for charity), Crowder would “press charges.”
Adamczyk did not sound impressed by the plan.
“You can’t leverage the law for personal gain,” he said. “Either you’re the victim, or you’re not. So if he’s the victim of an assault, and he wants to file a complaint, we will definitely investigate it.”
Meanwhile, media reports have poked holes in the original, edited video Crowder posted online after he was punched. The New York Times reported “a look at the video broadcast on the Sean Hannity show appears to show quite clearly that [Crowder] left out an important section of the footage when he put together his edit.”
The unedited footage shows “the man who punched Mr. Crowder being knocked to the ground seconds before and then getting up and taking a swing at the comedian,” the Times reported.
Adamczyk doesn’t understand why Crowder wouldn’t report the crime to the police and get the perpetrator prosecuted. He stressed that the MSP will not go forward with an investigation unless a crime is reported, and “there are all types of personal reasons” people sometimes don’t report a crime, he said.
“If somebody broke into your house, wouldn’t you immediately report it to the police? If someone assaulted you or your family member wouldn’t you report it immediately to the police?” Adamczyk said. “Well, why wouldn’t you, unless there’s a personal agenda there.”
