Former CNN anchor Don Lemon was arrested by federal agents Thursday night in Los Angeles, where he had been covering the Grammy Awards. The charges stem from a January 18 protest at Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota, where demonstrators disrupted a Sunday service over claims that one of the church’s pastors works for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Lemon, 59, was taken into custody Thursday night. A grand jury was empaneled that same day, according to a source familiar with the matter. The specific charges Lemon faces have not been publicly confirmed.
At my direction, early this morning federal agents arrested Don Lemon, Trahern Jeen Crews, Georgia Fort, and Jamael Lydell Lundy, in connection with the coordinated attack on Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota.
More details soon.
— Attorney General Pamela Bondi (@AGPamBondi) January 30, 2026
‘I’m a Journalist’
His attorney, Abbe Lowell, immediately pushed back on the arrest.
“Don has been a journalist for 30 years, and his constitutionally protected work in Minneapolis was no different than what he has always done,” Lowell said in a statement. “The First Amendment exists to protect journalists whose role it is to shine light on the truth and hold those in power accountable.”
During the protest itself, Lemon made similar statements to churchgoers who questioned his presence.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Journalist Don Lemon is arrested after protest that disrupted a service at a Minnesota church. pic.twitter.com/Y7U0bDwgjG
— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) January 30, 2026
“I’m just here photographing, I’m not part of the group… I’m a journalist,” Lemon said in his livestream when confronted by a parishioner.
“I’m not here as an activist. I’m here as a journalist,” he added at another point.
‘The Whole Point Is to Disrupt’
But other comments from that same livestream have raised questions about how neatly Lemon’s actions fit into traditional journalism.
During his broadcast, Lemon described the demonstration as a “clandestine mission” and appeared to have advance knowledge of what would unfold.
“This is a clandestine mission,” Lemon told viewers. “I think they found out one of, according to them… that one of the pastors here is a member of ICE, so here we go.”
DON LEMON & Protesters stormed a Minneapolis church chanting anti-ICE slogans, wrongly believing the pastor was ICE-affiliated.
Church is no longer safe for peaceful worship. Disgraced ex-CNN host Don Lemon harassed pastors & parishioners on live, refused to leave when asked… https://t.co/eoVo00CfZZ pic.twitter.com/wX0OKDgnwR
— Culture War Report (@CultureWar2020) January 18, 2026
He also offered commentary that some argue went beyond neutral observation.
“You have to be willing to go into places and disrupt and make people uncomfortable. That’s what this country is about,” Lemon said during the broadcast.
“The whole point of it is to disrupt and make people uncomfortable,” he added, defending the protesters’ tactics.
DOJ’s Case Against Him
When life gives you lemons… ⛓️ pic.twitter.com/wxry0fudOj
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) January 30, 2026
The Justice Department has seized on these statements. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon, who leads the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, argued that journalism doesn’t provide immunity from criminal liability.
“Don Lemon himself has come out and said he knew exactly what was going to happen inside that facility,” Dhillon said in an interview. “He went into the facility, and then he began ‘committing journalism,’ as if that’s sort of a shield from being a part, an embedded part, of a criminal conspiracy. It isn’t.”
Attorney General Pam Bondi announced the arrest Friday morning on social media, stating that federal agents arrested Lemon and three others “in connection with the coordinated attack on Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota.”
A Legal Battle Already in Motion
The arrest came despite two previous court setbacks for prosecutors. A federal magistrate judge initially refused to approve charges against Lemon, and a three-judge appeals panel rejected the government’s request to override that decision. However, one of the appellate judges indicated he believed probable cause existed.
A grand jury was empaneled Thursday, and Lemon was taken into custody that night. He is scheduled to appear before a magistrate judge in California on Friday.
Lemon had remained defiant in the days before his arrest.
“Keep trying. That’s not going to stop me from being a journalist. That’s not going to diminish my voice,” Lemon said on his YouTube show last week after the initial charges were rejected. “Go ahead, make me into the new Jimmy Kimmel, if you want. Just do it. Because I’m not going anywhere.”
What Sparked the Protest
Lowell condemned the arrest as “an unprecedented attack on the First Amendment” and a “transparent attempt to distract attention” from the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens by federal agents during immigration enforcement operations in Minneapolis earlier this month.
The church protest occurred eleven days after ICE agent Jonathan Ross fatally shot Renee Good, a 37-year-old mother, in Minneapolis on January 7. The incident sparked widespread protests and remains a flashpoint in the ongoing debate over the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement tactics.
Lemon is due in court Friday.
