The federal indictment that charged independent journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort on Friday grouped the two reporters with those the government says orchestrated an anti-ICE protest at a St. Paul, Minnesota, church earlier this month as part of an effort to “injure, oppress, threaten and intimidate” churchgoers.
The indictment, filed in the U.S. District Court in Minnesota and revealed by CNN anchor Jake Tapper, names Lemon and Fort alongside Jamael Lundy, Trahern Crews, Nekima Levy-Armstrong, Chauntyll Allen and William Kelly, who were already charged, as a group of protesters who came into Cities Church on Jan. 18 as part of a “coordinated takeover-style attack” on the building, its pastor and the congregation. The document also features two redacted names.
Attorney General Pam Bondi confirmed the arrests of Lemon, Fort, Crews and Lundy on Friday. All of the defendants were charged under two federal statutes, one that protects against those trying to impede someone from practicing their constitutional rights, and another, under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act, which prevents one from interfering with someone’s First Amendment right of religious freedom.
“As a result of defendants’ conduct, 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,” federal prosecutors wrote in the indictment.
Levy-Armstrong, Allen and Kelly were all released from pretrial custody after their arrests earlier this month.
The arrests of Lemon and Fort have since drawn widespread criticism over the potential infringement of their First Amendment rights as journalists. Fort has since been released from custody.
“Don has been a journalist for 30 years, and his constitutionally protected work in Minneapolis was no different than what he has always done,” Lemon’s attorney Abbe 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. There is no more important time for people like Don to be doing this work.”
The 14-page indictment lists multiple “overt acts” that showcase how Lemon and the other defendants engaged in a “conspiracy” to illegally disrupt the church services. The government claimed Armstrong and Allen gave the other defendants an early briefing of the operation before they traveled to the church to launch the “attack.”
Later, the government claimed, Lemon began to livestream the operation on his YouTube channel but refused to disclose certain details so that he would “not accidentally divulge” elements of the operation. Lemon then repeatedly urged another defendant and an unidentified male not to “give anything away.” But, once inside the church, Lemon and the other defendants “oppressed, threatened and intimidated” churchgoers by occupying the building’s main aisle, per the feds.
The government further claimed that Lemon and the others did not immediately leave the church despite the pastor’s wishes, instead obstructing churchgoers from leaving by asking them about “facts” regarding the U.S.’ immigration policy.
Lowell said in a statement that Lemon “will fight these charges vigorously and thoroughly in court,” and Lemon himself has called his presence at the church “an act of journalism.” Bondi said in a 16-second clip posted on her X account that, for those who violate someone’s right to religious expression, “We are coming after you.”
