MN - Journalist Don Lemon arrested for church protest, Minneapolis, 18 Jan 2026

[shotgun09]

Regarding the requests for video proof of DL's preventing ( obstructing), we collectively here, have only seen a few snaps of inside the church. One, from DL himself, and another from Kelly ( another arrestee). There is, according to the FBI affidavit , additional footage from the church, (who was live videoing the service ), as well as private church members who had pulled out their phones to record. We do not have access to those, but the court will. The claims may have come from those?

 

[Cryptic]

Can you please show any video where Don Lemon is obstructing or preventing the church parishioners from leaving the church? Do you think asking them questions as a reporter is obstructing?

If Don remained in the Church after being told to leave, he was obstructing them. My bet is that he is going to get squeezed into a cell some where.

 

[Summerliz03]

Regarding the requests for video proof of DL's preventing ( obstructing), we collectively here, have only seen a few snaps of inside the church. One, from DL himself, and another from Kelly ( another arrestee). There is, according to the FBI affidavit , additional footage from the church, (who was live videoing the service ), as well as private church members who had pulled out their phones to record. We do not have access to those, but the court will. The claims may have come from those?

I guess we will have to see what other video evidence there is as more actual information comes out and the indictment moves forward.

 

[Izzylizzy]

Regarding the requests for video proof of DL's preventing ( obstructing), we collectively here, have only seen a few snaps of inside the church. One, from DL himself, and another from Kelly ( another arrestee). There is, according to the FBI affidavit , additional footage from the church, (who was live videoing the service ), as well as private church members who had pulled out their phones to record. We do not have access to those, but the court will. The claims may have come from those?

I think the "obstruction" charge is for obstructing the church service.
imo

 

[LAborn]

Regarding the requests for video proof of DL's preventing ( obstructing), we collectively here, have only seen a few snaps of inside the church. One, from DL himself, and another from Kelly ( another arrestee). There is, according to the FBI affidavit , additional footage from the church, (who was live videoing the service ), as well as private church members who had pulled out their phones to record. We do not have access to those, but the court will. The claims may have come from those?

Until there is video evidence, sworn testimony, etc. we should stick with what facts are known imo.

 

[Ontario Mom]

Regarding the requests for video proof of DL's preventing ( obstructing), we collectively here, have only seen a few snaps of inside the church. One, from DL himself, and another from Kelly ( another arrestee). There is, according to the FBI affidavit , additional footage from the church, (who was live videoing the service ), as well as private church members who had pulled out their phones to record. We do not have access to those, but the court will. The claims may have come from those?

My impression is there was a considerable amount of video as well as first hand testimony. The details of who did what and how, are pretty detailed in the indictment (located here: Read the DOJ indictment of Don Lemon and other journalists, activists)

 

[BayouBelle_LA]

Can you please show any video where Don Lemon is obstructing or preventing the church parishioners from leaving the church? Do you think asking them questions as a reporter is obstructing? Did he cause physical or emotional harm to them by asking questions? Did he prevent them from ending the interviews and walking away or saying no comment? Can you please show video of him doing any of those things?

Don Lemon was trespassing. He was asked to leave and he didn’t, he continued to take up his cause.

The way that he joyfully talked about the “young man” crying was disgusting. That was a child. He wasn’t there as a neutral journalist, he chose a side.

imo

 

[Sundog]

Don Lemon stated today at the Grammy Awards that the first time people will hear from him about this matter (other than on his own show) is on Jimmy Kimmel's show on Monday night.

https://www.tiktok.com/video/7602080902881004831

Guess he's got an "exclusive."

 

[Summerliz03]

Don Lemon was trespassing. He was asked to leave and he didn’t, he continued to take up his cause.

The way that he joyfully talked about the “young man” crying was disgusting. That was a child. He wasn’t there as a neutral journalist, he chose a side.

imo

And trespassing on a private church ground is not part of the federal criminal charges against him, as the federal government cannot charge him with that. The church is welcome to press charges against him for trespassing but the federal government can’t, as it wasn’t their property that he was trespassing on.

 

[Leilei]

However, ethical considerations may encourage them to report such information to prevent harm. He not only didn't report it but went not knowing where this would take the protest, he himself is on video obstruction the church goers from leaving the church. Children were not allowed to get with their parents, were terrified, crying. Don Lemon was charged with federal civil rights crimes related to his involvement in an anti-ICE protest at a church in Minnesota. He faces charges of conspiracy and interfering with the First Amendment rights of worshippers during the protest.

Is there a link to DL preventing churchgoers from leaving the church? I would like to see that clip if you could provide it, please.
TYIA and IMO.

 

[Leilei]

Don Lemon was trespassing. He was asked to leave and he didn’t, he continued to take up his cause.

The way that he joyfully talked about the “young man” crying was disgusting. That was a child. He wasn’t there as a neutral journalist, he chose a side.

imo

BBM - what cause is that?
I saw him reporting and interviewing. Being a journalist.
Which is his job.
IMO.

 

[Leilei]

Guess he's got an "exclusive."

I mean, he was THERE, reporting on it.
He was arrested.
So yes, one could call that an "exclusive".
IMO.

 

[otto]

Can you please show any video where Don Lemon is obstructing or preventing the church parishioners from leaving the church? Do you think asking them questions as a reporter is obstructing? Did he cause physical or emotional harm to them by asking questions? Did he prevent them from ending the interviews and walking away or saying no comment? Can you please show video of him doing any of those things?

Is video required, or is the affidavit sworn by church victims sufficient?

According to legal documents, defendants - including Don Lemon - interfered with families who tried to gather their children, leave the church, and leave the area.

Who is indicted based on victim affidavits:

Don Lemon indictment

www.documentcloud.org

What did they state in the affidavit:

p.17-18

FBI Affidavit in Suport of Arrest Warrant | PDF | U.S. Immigration And Customs Enforcement | American Government

This affidavit, submitted by Special Agent Timothy Gerber, outlines the investigation into a group of agitators who disrupted a religious service at Cities Church in St. Paul, MN on January 18, 2026. The group, led by Nekima Valdez Levy-Armstrong and Chauntyll Louisa Allen, coordinated their...

www.scribd.com

More evidence can be found in the affidavit. The above is a small sample.

 

[LAborn]

I think the "obstruction" charge is for obstructing the church service.
imo

How can they charge obstruction for reporting/recording the protest? Is DOJ saying he was PART of the protest? Cuz, that ain't so. From the stream I saw, he was off to the side, out of the way of the protesters and parishioners, not near them.

 

[Sundog]

Pretty good article outlining 1st amendment protection on public vs. private spaces. Unless DL had prior authorization from the church, this could be an issue for him. My impression is sharing recordings without proper consent could be problematic because it's a private space and people expect a degree of privacy, unlike public spaces. Why First Amendment Protections Are Limited in the Don Lemon Arrest — EEW Magazine

Good article and helpful in breaking down the key legal components.

And from the article:

Trespass:
Entering or remaining on private property without permission. Journalistic purpose does not negate trespass laws.

Why This Matters

Cases involving journalism, protest, and religious liberty often involve overlapping constitutional interests. Understanding where First Amendment protections end and where property rights and federal statutes apply is essential to informed public discussion.

Courts are tasked with weighing facts and law, not public opinion. The outcome in this case will depend on evidence, statutory interpretation, and judicial review.

 

[Cryptic]

You don’t lose your press credentials if you leave a network and work independently.

Edit: his credentials would change when he started working as an independent journalist, but he still has credentials.

There are different kind of credentials and Lemon may, or may not, of retained all his.

Lemon may well of had federal credentials as a CNN national level reporter. Federal press credentials allow a reporter entry at high level news conferences etc.

When CNN left Lemon, the federal credentials may of been revoked as he was no longer with a national news agency. Or.... he could have retained them as employment by one of the major league news services is not a requirement perse to keep federal credentials.

 

[Summerliz03]

Is video required, or is the affidavit sworn by church victims sufficient?

According to legal documents, defendants - including Don Lemon - interfered with families who tried to gather their children, leave the church, and leave the area.

Who is indicted based on victim affidavits:

View attachment 641255

Don Lemon indictment

www.documentcloud.org

What did they state in the affidavit:

View attachment 641251

View attachment 641254
p.17-18

FBI Affidavit in Suport of Arrest Warrant | PDF | U.S. Immigration And Customs Enforcement | American Government

This affidavit, submitted by Special Agent Timothy Gerber, outlines the investigation into a group of agitators who disrupted a religious service at Cities Church in St. Paul, MN on January 18, 2026. The group, led by Nekima Valdez Levy-Armstrong and Chauntyll Louisa Allen, coordinated their...

www.scribd.com

More evidence can be found in the affidavit. The above is a small sample.

The main thing I’ve said over and over in this thread is that Don was working as a journalist. I am separating him from the protestors because he was not one and frankly, I think it’s a mistake for the DOJ to try to lump him in to this indictment with the protestors because they are completely removing his agency as a journalist from the situation. I believe that’s why 4 judges (1 solo magistrate judge and a panel of 3 judges) had rejected to issue an arrest warrant for him. I am not debating whether the protestors should be arrested. I would like to see evidence that Don acted as a co- conspirator to plan or set up the protest and I haven’t seen that at this point. If evidence comes out about this, I’m more than willing to change my stance about this case. All MOO.

 

[Cryptic]

BBM - what cause is that?
I saw him reporting and interviewing. Being a journalist.
Which is his job.

Not even Don Lemon has an automatic right to work on private property. Likewise, Don Lemon can be working and still obstruct a worship service.

 

[Ontario Mom]

Something to consider, of the 2 names that have been redacted on the indictment.

Purely speculative but it's possible they're redacted because they chose to cooperate & give testimony to who was there, who knew what, and when, and how things all went down. If that's the case & part of the allegations against Lemon are coming from the protestors themselves, that seems pretty damning.

Another thought to consider is how finely detailed the "overt acts" are worded in the indictment. To me, they read as if someone watched a video (or videos) and wrote down exactly what they saw taking place. It wouldn't surprise me at all to learn multiple people inside the church were indeed recording from a wide variety of vantage points.

jmo

 

[otto]

The main thing I’ve said over and over in this thread is that Don was working as a journalist. I am separating him from the protestors because he was not one and frankly, I think it’s a mistake for the DOJ to try to lump him in to this indictment with the protestors because they are completely removing his agency as a journalist from the situation. I believe that’s why 4 judges (1 solo magistrate judge and a panel of 3 judges) had rejected to issue an arrest warrant for him. I am not debating whether the protestors should be arrested. I would like to see evidence that Don acted as a co- conspirator to plan or set up the protest and I haven’t seen that at this point. If evidence comes out about this, I’m more than willing to change my stance about this case. All MOO.

I understand that there is a preference for Don Lemon to be considered separate from the protesters, but, according to legal documents, he is charged as a participating protester. Legal documents related to Don Lemon are not separate at this time.

I assume that charges are based on eye-witness testimony, CCTV, video footage from eye-witnesses and victim statements (including children). That is, charges are not based exclusively on youtube videos shared by participants at the protest.

The debate is whether Don Lemon, an independent journalist, participated as a protester, independent journalist, or both. Current evidence is legal documents.