CNNs former media star Don Lemon knew anti-ICE activists were preparing to interrupt a Minnesota church service before he followed them inside with cameras rolling, according to one of his own former colleagues.
According to the Daily Caller, CNN chief media analyst Brian Stelter acknowledged Friday that Lemon had advance notice of the protest that disrupted a Jan. 18 service at Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota. Federal agents arrested Lemon on Thursday night in Los Angeles in connection with the incident, which was orchestrated by anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) demonstrators targeting the churchs pastor over his role as an ICE official.
Stelter, while attempting to defend Lemons conduct as a journalist, conceded that the ex-CNN host was not merely a passive observer who stumbled upon the scene. Don Lemon has said all along that he was there not as an activist but as a journalist, Stelter said.
In fact, he was saying those words and repeating that out loud when he was inside the church. But he clearly knew something was taking place that day with the protesters. He told his viewers on YouTube to stay tuned because there was something about to happen. He was careful not to have his camera crew walk into the church until there was a disruption. And I would urge people to go online, actually watch the YouTube videos, see how it all went down.
Lemon has insisted that entering the sanctuary alongside the protesters amounted to an act of journalism, portraying himself as a reporter documenting a newsworthy event. Yet his foreknowledge of the disruption raises serious questions about whether he crossed the line from observer to participant in a coordinated effort to interfere with a religious service.
Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon, speaking on The Benny Johnson Show on Jan. 19, argued that Lemons prior awareness of the plan could carry legal consequences. Dhillon suggested that such knowledge might implicate him in criminal conduct, particularly under civil rights statutes designed to protect Americans freedom of worship.
Authorities have not limited their focus to Lemon alone as they investigate the organized disruption of the church. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced Friday that three other individuals Trahern Jeen Crews, Georgia Fort and Jamael Lydell Lundy were charged in connection with the incident.
Federal agents also arrested Chauntyll Louisa Allen, Nekima Levy Armstrong and William Kelly on Jan. 22 as part of the widening probe. The Department of Justice has examined whether the activists actions violated the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act and the Ku Klux Klan Act.
Those federal laws prohibit obstructing houses of worship and religious services and criminalize conspiracies to deprive individuals of their civil rights. For conservatives concerned about escalating hostility toward people of faith, the case underscores the need to enforce existing protections against mob-style intimidation in sacred spaces.
A magistrate judge had earlier rejected the DOJs initial attempt to bring charges against Lemon, but federal officials continued searching for alternative avenues to arrest him. Lemon, adopting a defiant posture, challenged the government to persist in its efforts in a video posted to X on Jan. 22.
Look, I stand proud and I stand tall, Lemon said. This is not a victory lap for me because its not over. Theyre going to try again, and theyre going to try again, and guess what? Here I am. Keep trying. As the Biden administrations Justice Department presses forward, the case will test whether high-profile media figures who align themselves with left-wing causes are held to the same legal standards as any other activist when they help facilitate disruptions of religious worship.
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