Longtime journalist and former CNN anchor Don Lemon was arrested by federal agents in Los Angeles on Thursday night while covering the Grammy Awards and charged with federal civil rights crimes.
Lemon's arrest stems from his coverage of a protest that disrupted a church service in Minnesota. Federal prosecutors previously tried to charge Lemon, but the chief federal judge saw no probable cause for an arrest.
In an exclusive Scripps News interview last week, Lemon predicted that the administration would try to find a way to charge him again.
Another independent journalist, Georgia Fort, as well as two participants, Trahern Jeen Crews and Jamael Lydell Lundy, were also indicted.
Lemon said he was covering the protest as an independent journalist when demonstrators confronted a pastor at Cities Church in St. Paul, whom they accused of being an immigration enforcement agent. The coverage drew backlash from conservatives, who accused him of participating in the protest.
"Don has been a journalist for 30 years, and his constitutionally protected work in Minneapolis was no different than what he has always done,” his attorney said. “The First Amendment exists to protect journalists whose role it is to shine light on the truth and hold those in power accountable."
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Prosecutors previously sought charges against Lemon in connection with the incident, but a magistrate judge rejected the case. Lemon said he believed the ruling would not be the end of the matter.
"I think it's not over because it doesn't matter if there's no law to fit," Lemon told Scripps News' Alisyn Camerota. "They will try to fit or retrofit something or go around a judge and just do it themselves."
Lemon said his reporting of the protest was no different from work he has done throughout his decades-long career with major news organizations.
"I was not a protester. It's very clear about that," Lemon said to Scripps News. "If you look at all the evidence, I'm not a protester."
In his video from inside the church, he repeatedly said, "We're not part of the activists, but we're here just reporting on them." He interviewed the pastor, some of the protesters and churchgoers in the video.
Attorney General Pam Bondi confirmed the arrests on social media.
Fort, a Minnesota-based journalist, was livestreaming on Facebook moments before her arrest and stating, "agents are at my door right now."
“I don’t feel like I have my First Amendment right as a member of the press because now federal agents are at my door arresting me for filming the church protest a few weeks ago,” Fort said. She added that her attorney is involved, and she knew she was on a sealed list of defendants prior to her arrest.
Meanwhile, Lemon's attorney criticized the Justice Department’s decision to pursue charges against Lemon.
"Instead of investigating federal agents who killed two peaceful Minnesota protesters, the Trump Justice Department is devoting its time, attention and resources to this arrest, and that is the real indictment of wrongdoing in this case," Lowell said. "This unprecedented attack on the First Amendment and transparent attempt to distract attention from the many crises facing this administration will not stand. Don will fight these charges vigorously and thoroughly in court."
Lowell was referring to Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old nurse killed in Minnesota by immigration enforcement officers on Jan. 24, and Renée Good, who was killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent on Jan. 7.
A panel of various journalists and other figures went live on Lemon's YouTube following the news of his arrest. According to them, Lemon is being charged with 18 U.S. Code 241, conspiracy against rights, and 18 U.S. Code 248, obstructing any person lawfully exercising at a place of worship.
The White House responded to the news of Lemon's arrest, posting on X, "When life gives you lemons..."
When life gives you lemons... ⛓️ pic.twitter.com/wxry0fudOj
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) January 30, 2026
Indictment unsealed
Later on Friday, the indictment for Lemon and co-defendants was unsealed, laying out the accusations against them.
The document claims Lemon, Fort, and the co-defendants met at a shopping center for a "pre-op briefing" where they were told the "target of their operation" was Cities Church.
The indictment alleges that the defendants entered the church to "conduct a takeover-style attack" and, as a result, "the pastor and congregation were forced to terminate the Church's worship service, congregants fled the church building out of fear for their safety, other congregants took steps to implement an emergency plan and young children were left to wonder as one child put it if their parents were going to die."
Clips of the protest posted on Lemon's YouTube page at the church show worshipers and protesters inside the sanctuary together.
'Deeply alarmed'
The National Association of Black Journalists condemned the arrest of Lemon, posting a statement that said, "NABJ is outraged and deeply alarmed by the arrest of veteran journalist Don Lemon by federal agents in Los Angeles while he was working, and by the government’s escalating effort and actions to criminalize and threaten press freedom under the guise of law enforcement."
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison also said he was "deeply troubled" by the arrests.
"In Minnesota, we do not treat journalists like criminals for doing their jobs," said Ellison in a statement. "The First Amendment is not a luxury in a democracy. It is a necessity. When the federal government arrests reporters for documenting what is happening in our communities, it violates our rights, undermines our trust, and chills the transparency our democracy needs. It sends the message that the powerful may exercise their power in the dark, without scrutiny or accountability."
The National Association of LGTBQ+ Journalists also condemned the arrests, posting a statement that said, "Their arrests should alarm all Americans who believe in the Constitution and a functioning democracy."
Lemon was fired from CNN in 2023, however, the network issued a statement on Friday after his arrest.
"The FBl's arrest of our former CNN colleague Don Lemon raises profoundly concerning questions about press freedom and the First Amendment. The Department of Justice already failed twice to get an arrest warrant for Don and several other journalists in Minnesota, where a chief judge of the Minnesota Federal District Court found there was 'no evidence' that there was any criminal behavior involved in their work. The First Amendment in the United States protects journalists who bear witness to news and events as they unfold, ensuring they can report freely in the public interest, and the DOJ's attempts to violate those rights is unacceptable. We will be following this case closely," CNN said.
