Attorney General Pam Bondi delivered a stark warning after the arrest of former CNN anchor Don Lemon, saying the Trump administration will pursue anyone who interferes with Americans’ ability to worship “freely and safely.”
“Make no mistake. Under President Trump’s leadership and this administration, you have the right to worship freely and safely,” Bondi said in a video statement. “If I haven’t been clear already, if you violate that sacred right, we are coming after you.”
Her remarks followed Lemon’s arrest late Thursday in Los Angeles, tied to his presence at a protest that disrupted a church service at Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota, earlier this month. The protest targeted the administration’s large-scale deportation push, which has included deploying thousands of armed immigration agents into major cities — including cities in Minnesota.
According to Bondi, Lemon faces federal charges that include conspiring to deprive others of their civil rights and violating a statute barring obstruction of access to houses of worship. Three other people were also arrested in the case, including independent local journalist Georgia Fort.
Lemon’s attorney, Abbe Lowell — who previously represented Hunter Biden — called the move a direct threat to press freedoms.
“Don has been a journalist for 30 years, and his constitutionally protected work in Minneapolis was no different than what he has always done,” Lowell said in a statement. “This unprecedented attack on the First Amendment and transparent attempt to distract attention from the many crises facing this administration will not stand.”
The arrest comes amid broader conflict surrounding the immigration enforcement surge, which has fueled sharp tensions in Minnesota and intensified debate over how far the crackdown should go. The operation has also been linked to two fatal shootings of U.S. citizens by federal agents — one before the church protest and one afterward — further escalating public anger and scrutiny.
In court proceedings prior to the arrest, a federal magistrate judge declined to issue an arrest warrant for Lemon and a video producer who accompanied him, finding no probable cause they had broken the law. The judge said Lemon and the producer did not appear to be protesters and noted there was no evidence they had engaged in, or conspired to engage in, criminal behavior.
Prosecutors then sought emergency appeals to overturn that decision, but the efforts failed. The chief federal judge in Minnesota reportedly described the appeals as unprecedented and instructed prosecutors to pursue a grand jury indictment if they believed the magistrate judge was wrong.
The case relies in part on an 1871 law originally aimed at combating the Ku Klux Klan, along with the 1994 Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, which addresses obstruction at abortion clinics and places of worship. Some legal experts have criticized applying those laws here, with one professor calling it an enormous stretch given the circumstances.
The episode is also being viewed as part of a wider pattern of Justice Department activity under the current administration aimed at critics and perceived opponents. Previous efforts have included unsuccessful prosecutions of former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James, along with investigations involving Democratic lawmakers, a former CIA director, and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.
Press freedom advocates condemned Lemon’s arrest as an escalation with broader implications beyond this case.
“Jailing a journalist for doing their job is dangerous – not only for press freedom, but for the public’s right to know,” National Press Club President Mark Schoeff said in a statement.
