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Don Lemon Pleads Not Guilty to Federal Charges Following Church Protest
St. Paul, MN – Former CNN journalist Don Lemon entered a plea of not guilty on Friday to federal civil rights charges stemming from an incident where anti-ICE protesters disrupted a service at a Minnesota church.
Lemon’s appearance in federal court in St. Paul followed his arrest last month in Los Angeles.
Demonstrators gathered outside the courthouse during the hearing, voicing support for press freedom with chants of “Protect the press!”
Lemon faces a two-count indictment, including conspiracy against rights of religious freedom and an attempt to injure while exercising religious freedom. Eight other individuals were also charged in the federal indictment, with several, including prominent local activist Nekima Levy Armstrong, also pleading not guilty on Friday.
Outside the federal courthouse, Lemon declared, “I will not be intimidated, I will not back down, I will fight these baseless charges and I will not be silent.”
The legal proceedings have seen earlier resistance from the judiciary. Magistrate Judge Douglas Micko had previously rejected arrest warrants for Lemon and his producer, finding a lack of probable cause for their arrest, though warrants were issued for three other individuals.
Chief Judge Patrick Schiltz of the federal district court in Minnesota further pushed back against the Department of Justice’s pursuit of arrest warrants. In a January 23rd letter to a federal appeals court, Schiltz stated that Lemon and his producer were “not protesters at all” and that “[t]here is no evidence that those two engaged in any criminal behavior or conspired to do so.”
He suggested the DOJ either refine their affidavit or present their case to a grand jury. Lemon was subsequently charged in an indictment filed on January 29th and arrested the following day.
Lemon is being represented by former Minnesota U.S. attorney Joe Thompson, who resigned from his office last month.
The incident at the heart of the charges occurred on January 18th when protesters entered Cities Church in St. Paul.
Protesters claimed one of the pastors is the acting field director of the St. Paul ICE field office.
Inside the church, demonstrators reportedly chanted “Justice for Renee Good,” referencing a woman fatally shot by a federal agent in Minneapolis earlier in January.
The indictment alleges that the nine defendants “oppressed, threatened, and intimidated the Church’s congregants and pastors” by occupying aisles and rows of chairs and engaging in “menacing and threatening behavior.” It further claims that Lemon “physically obstructed” congregants attempting to leave. The indictment, citing Lemon’s own video of the incident, suggests he told viewers the protest’s aim was to disrupt operations.
Lemon has maintained he was at the protest as an independent journalist, posting video to Instagram on January 18th that included footage of the yelling protesters and interviews with both churchgoers and demonstrators. In his video, Lemon stated, “We’re not part of the activists, but we’re here just reporting on them.”
Lemon’s arrest by federal agents took place while he was covering the Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, according to his attorney, Abbe Lowell. Following a bail hearing in Los Angeles, where he was released on his own recognizance, Lemon asserted he was arrested for “something that I’ve been doing for the last 30 years, and that is covering the news,” vowing to continue his work.
“The First Amendment of the Constitution protects that work for me and for countless of other journalists who do what I do,” Lemon stated. “I stand with all of them, and I will not be silenced. I look forward to my day in court.”
Attorney General Pam Bondi confirmed on social media that Lemon, Minnesota-based journalist Georgia Fort, and two others were arrested on January 30th “at my direction.” Fort, who has not yet entered a formal plea, told ABC News she was at the church protest fulfilling her role as a journalist.
“I’m a journalist. I documented what happened that day,” Fort said. “And the only way that the public is aware of what happened that day is because you had dedicated journalists who filmed it, who documented what happened.”
At least three additional individuals were previously arrested in connection with the protest, with Bondi stating on social media at the time, “WE DO NOT TOLERATE ATTACKS ON PLACES OF WORSHIP.”