Federal Magistrate Rejects DOJ Bid to Charge Don Lemon in Anti-ICE Church Protest CaseA federal magistrate judge in Minnesota has declined to approve criminal charges against independent journalist Don Lemon related to his coverage of an anti-ICE protest that disrupted a church service in St. Paul over the weekend.
The decision, issued Thursday, blocks the Department of Justice's attempt to prosecute Lemon under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act of 1994. Prosecutors had argued that Lemon and others involved may have violated the law, which prohibits using force, threats, or physical obstruction to interfere with access to reproductive health services or the exercise of religious freedom at a place of worship.
Lemon, the former CNN anchor, was present at Cities Church during the Sunday demonstration, where activists interrupted services to protest a pastor's alleged ties to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). He live-streamed parts of the event and has maintained that he was there solely as a journalist to chronicle the protest, not as a participant or organizer.
"I was there chronicling protests," Lemon stated in a social media video following the incident. "We did an act of journalism which was report on it and talk to the people involved, including the pastor, members of the church and members of the organization."
The magistrate's refusal to sign off on the complaint means no charges will be filed against Lemon at this stage, though sources indicate the Justice Department could pursue alternative avenues, such as seeking an indictment through a grand jury or presenting additional evidence to another judge.
The ruling comes amid broader federal action: Attorney General Pam Bondi announced arrests of three other individuals connected to the protest—civil rights attorney Nekima Levy Armstrong, St. Paul School Board member Chauntyll Louisa Allen, and William Kelly—on related charges, including potential FACE Act violations.
The protest itself stemmed from outrage over recent immigration enforcement actions, including the fatal shooting of a 37-year-old mother by an ICE officer in Minneapolis earlier this month.
Demonstrators chanted demands to remove ICE influence from community spaces, highlighting tensions between federal immigration policies and local religious settings under the current administration.
Freedom of the press does not override freedom of religion.
— Steven Crowder (@scrowder) January 19, 2026
Don Lemon doesn’t get to interrupt worship, harass a congregation, and call it journalism just because he brought a camera. pic.twitter.com/u8xpkVQ5pe
Lemon's attorney, Abbe Lowell, issued a statement affirming readiness to "fight any charges vigorously and thoroughly in court" if pursued further, emphasizing press freedom concerns in the case.
This development marks a setback for the Trump administration's push to apply the FACE Act—a statute originally aimed at protecting abortion clinic access and religious worship—to the church disruption incident.