Ex-CNN Anchor Don Lemon Arrested Over Minnesota Church Protest

Former CNN anchor Don Lemon has been arrested on federal charges linked to a protest that disrupted a church service in Minnesota earlier this month.

Lemon was taken into custody late Thursday night in Los Angeles, where he was reportedly covering the Grammy Awards. His lawyer, Abbe Lowell, confirmed the arrest, describing it as an unprecedented assault on press freedom.

“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. He accused the Trump administration of targeting Lemon instead of investigating federal agents involved in the deaths of two Minnesota protesters.

Lowell added that the arrest represents “an unprecedented attack on the First Amendment” and vowed Lemon would fight the charges vigorously in court.

US Attorney General Pam Bondi confirmed the arrest in a post on X, noting that three other individuals were also detained, including independent journalist Georgia Fort. Fort claimed she was arrested simply for filming the protest as a member of the press.

“It’s hard to understand how we have constitutional rights when you can just be arrested for being a journalist,” she said in a video message.

As of Friday, the exact charges against Lemon remained sealed, and the Department of Justice had yet to provide further details. Lemon is expected to appear in court later in the day.

The arrest has sparked widespread condemnation from journalists, press freedom advocates, and Democratic lawmakers. Former CNN colleague Jim Acosta called it “outrageous,” warning that press freedom is under serious threat.

CNN also issued a strong statement criticizing the FBI’s actions, noting that federal judges in Minnesota had previously found “no evidence” of criminal wrongdoing in the journalists’ coverage of the protest.

Seth Stern of the Freedom of the Press Foundation described the arrest as “a naked attack on freedom of the press,” adding that it sends a warning to other journalists.

Top Democrats, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, condemned the move, calling it an authoritarian attempt to intimidate critics of the administration.

“This is not democracy. That is a police state,” Schumer said on the Senate floor, demanding Lemon’s immediate release.

The protest in question occurred on 18 January, when demonstrators disrupted a church service in what one participant described as a “clandestine operation.” Several protesters have already been arrested on charges related to interfering with the civil rights of others.

Lemon, who left CNN in 2023 after a 17-year career, now hosts an independent streaming program, The Don Lemon Show.

Press advocacy groups, including Pen America, have urged the government to drop the charges, insisting that journalism is not a crime.

The case is expected to intensify national debate over press freedom under the Trump administration.