What you need to know
Don Lemon was arrested and released in connection with his coverage of anti-ICE protests on Friday, January 30th.
Lemon, 59, blew a kiss to her husband, Tim Malone, as soon as she entered the courtroom Friday. Malone sat in the galley to appear in court.
Lemon was seen leaving the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building and federal courthouse in Los Angeles after his arraignment.
The former CNN anchor walked hand-in-hand with Ms. Malone, 41, as supporters chanted, “Don, we root for you. We’re proud of you, Don.”
The arrest stems from a protest on Jan. 18 at a church in St. Paul, Minnesota, where demonstrators interrupted services to protest immigration enforcement, chanting “ICE out!”
Prosecutors charged Lemon with violating federal laws that protect the rights of people to attend worship services in places of worship. But Lemon’s lawyer, Abby Rowell, argued that Lemon joined the church as a journalist covering the protests.
Lowell said in a statement early Friday that Lemon “was taken into custody by federal agents in Los Angeles last night while covering the Grammy Awards.”
The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security both confirmed the arrest to the public. “HSI (Department of Homeland Security) and the FBI arrested Mr. Lemon last night around midnight in Beverly Hills on a federal warrant issued in another area,” the FBI said in a statement.
According to criminal documents from the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota, Lemon is charged with conspiracy to violate the right to religious freedom in a place of worship and harming, threatening or obstructing the exercise of the right to religious freedom in a place of worship.
Under the terms of Lemon’s personal recognition bond, he is able to keep his passport and travel freely, but requires approval to travel abroad.
You must also avoid contact with victims or witnesses of the incident. His next court date will be Monday, February 9, at 10 a.m. local time in the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota in Minneapolis.
Lemon’s attorney, Marilyn Bednarski, said in court on January 30 that Lemon intends to maintain his innocence and is “committed to fighting this case.”
The government previously sought to charge Lemon with crimes for participating in anti-ICE protests, in a steadily escalating campaign that included a series of highly unusual legal moves to get its demands granted in powerful courts.
Following the church’s outcry, the Justice Department initially sought charges against eight people, including Lemon. Minnesota Chief District Judge Patrick Schultz allowed charges to proceed against just three people, citing insufficient evidence against Lemon and others. But in a 14-page indictment released Friday, prosecutors revealed they had secured grand jury indictments against nine people involved in the incident.
In addition to Lemon and another independent journalist, Georgia Fort, the indictment also added Black Lives Matter leader Traherne Jean Cruz. According to court documents, Lemmon and Fort live-streamed footage of dozens of anti-ICE protesters entering the church and interrupting the church service by shouting and blowing whistles. Prosecutors allege Lemon and Fort participated in a “hijack-type attack” that “traumatized church members.”
On Friday, Lemon appeared outside the downtown federal courthouse minutes after leaving court and said prosecutors would not stop reporting on ICE’s activities.
“I’ve spent my entire career reporting news, and I’m not going to stop now,” he said. “I’ll never stop.”
“Last night, the Department of Justice sent a team of federal agents to arrest me in the middle of the night for what I’ve been doing for the past 30 years, and that’s what’s making the news,” Lemon added. “The First Amendment protects me and countless other journalists doing the same thing I did. I stand with them all and will not be silent. I look forward to my day in court.”
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A week before he was taken into custody, Lemon predicted he would be arrested, despite Shilts’ rejection of previous attempts by the government to arrest him.
“Look, I’m not naive,” Lemon told Scripps News’ Alisyn Camerota on Jan. 23. “Maybe they’ll try to embarrass us over and over again, like they did with James Comey and others.”
“If one thing doesn’t work, they try something else, and if that fails, they try something else, but they still don’t give up because they want to save face,” he said. “I don’t know what will happen next.”
Lemon predicted that if “there is no law that fits,” the Trump administration “will go to judges and decide on its own.”
