Former CNN anchor Don Lemon was arrested late Thursday night by federal agents in Los Angeles, where he was on assignment covering the upcoming Grammy Awards.
The arrest stems from a January 18 protest at Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota, which federal prosecutors characterize as a coordinated attack on religious freedom.
The Department of Justice has charged Lemon and three others—including independent journalist Georgia Fort and activists Trahern Jeen Crews and Jamael Lydell Lundy – with federal civil rights crimes.
The indictment alleges they conspired to interfere with the exercise of religious freedom and violated the FACE Act(Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act), which also protects houses of worship from obstruction.
The controversy centers on whether Lemon was acting as a reporter or a participant. During the Jan. 18 incident, Lemon livestreamed a group of “ICE Out” protesters who interrupted a Sunday service to confront a pastor who also serves as a local ICE official.
Attorney General Pam Bondi and Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon argue that Lemon’s presence was part of a “criminal conspiracy” to intimidate worshippers. Dhillon noted that “committing journalism” is not a shield for embedded participation in a disruption.
Lemon’s attorney, Abbe Lowell, blasted the arrest as a “naked attack on the First Amendment.” He pointed out that federal magistrate judges had previously rejected the DOJ’s initial requests for arrest warrants, finding “no evidence” of criminal behavior in Lemon’s work.
The protest followed the fatal Jan. 7 shooting of Renee Good, a mother of three, by an ICE officer in Minneapolis.
While the Trump administration claims the officer acted in self-defense, the shooting sparked nationwide outrage. Lowell argued that the DOJ is “devoting its time and resources to this arrest” instead of investigating the federal agents involved in the shooting.
Lemon remains in federal custody and is expected to make an initial court appearance in Los Angeles today. The arrest has already drawn condemnation from press freedom advocates and former colleagues, with CNN releasing a statement calling the DOJ’s actions “unacceptable” and “profoundly concerning.”
