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Gone quiet · last update Sep 12, 2026 / Minnesota

Don Lemon's arrest and prosecution over an anti-ICE protest at a Minnesota church

Overview · reviewed October 28, 2026

In January 2026, during the federal immigration crackdown in Minnesota, anti-ICE protesters disrupted a Sunday service at a St. Paul church where an Immigration and Customs Enforcement official apparently serves as a pastor, and the former CNN anchor Don Lemon recorded it.[1][2] The Justice Department charged Lemon and dozens of others with federal civil rights crimes, and he has pleaded not guilty.[3][4][5] Reporting in August said law enforcement officials had given false information to federal judges in building a case against one defendant, and a federal judge has ordered records released.[6][7]

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Follow this story to see new developments when you return.

The Justice Department charged Lemon and dozens of others with federal civil rights crimes, and he has pleaded not guilty.[3][4][5] Reporting in August said law enforcement officials had given false information to federal judges in building a case against one defendant, and a federal judge has ordered records released.[6][7]

Coverage over time

Share of tracked outlets · weekly (UTC)

Week of 2026-01-19 (UTC): 35%, 59 of 170 tracked outlets (12 left, 23 center, 24 right)Week of 2026-01-26 (UTC): 41%, 77 of 189 tracked outlets (21 left, 24 center, 32 right)Week of 2026-02-02 (UTC): 12%, 22 of 177 tracked outlets (4 left, 10 center, 8 right)Week of 2026-02-09 (UTC): 26%, 46 of 180 tracked outlets (11 left, 15 center, 20 right)Week of 2026-02-16 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-02-23 (UTC): 4%, 7 of 186 tracked outlets (2 left, 4 center, 1 right)Week of 2026-03-02 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-09 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-16 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-23 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-30 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-06 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-13 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-20 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-27 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-04 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-11 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-18 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-25 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-01 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-08 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-15 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-22 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-29 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-06 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-13 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-20 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-27 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-03 (UTC): 1%, 6 of 537 tracked outlets (3 left, 2 center, 1 right)Week of 2026-08-10 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-17 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-24 (UTC): 2%, 9 of 466 tracked outlets (0 left, 8 center, 1 right)Week of 2026-08-31 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-07 (UTC): 2%, 9 of 480 tracked outlets (4 left, 5 center, 0 right)Week of 2026-09-14 (UTC): under 1%, 1 of 480 tracked outlets (1 left, 0 center, 0 right)Week of 2026-09-21 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-28 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-05 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-12 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-19 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-26 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-11-02 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-11-09 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outlets, so far

LeftCenterRightLighter bar: this week so far

Each bar is the share of the outlets on our Left / Center / Right rating scale that we tracked publishing that week which carried reporting on this story, split by the outlets' ratings. We track more outlets now than in the archive, so a share keeps earlier and later weeks comparable. An outlet counts once a week however much it published, and outlets in one ownership or syndication group count as one on each side they appear on. A rating describes the outlet, not the report. A gap means no such reports were collected that week, not that nothing was reported anywhere. Weeks run Monday to Sunday in UTC, so a report published on a Sunday evening in US Eastern time counts in the next week. 8 more outlets off the scale (not rated, or outside the left-right graphs) also reported; they are not in this chart. See them.

Weekly counts, outlets and reports (9 weeks with coverage)
Outlets on the rating scale that carried this story each week, of the outlets tracked that week, newest first
Week of (UTC)LeftCenterRightOf trackedShareReceipts
Sep 14, 20261001 of 480under 1%
Sep 7, 20264509 of 4802%
Aug 24, 20260819 of 4662%
Aug 3, 20263216 of 5371%
Feb 23, 20262417 of 1864%
Feb 9, 202611152046 of 18026%
Feb 2, 2026410822 of 17712%
Jan 26, 202621243277 of 18941%
Jan 19, 202612232459 of 17035%

Latest coverage

The newest reporting in this story's record.

  1. Sep 12, 2026 · first reported · Headline from WTOP Washington DC

    Minnesota churches roiled by legal battle over ICE surveillance and right to protest

Background

The protest on January 18 became the latest flash point in tensions between the Trump administration and Minnesota residents,[8] and the Justice Department said it was investigating.[1] Conservative outlets accused Lemon of colluding with the protesters,[9] while Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison defended the group.[10] A federal magistrate judge rejected the department's first attempt to charge Lemon.[11] The killings by immigration agents that fueled the protests are followed in their own arc.

Federal agents arrested Lemon in Los Angeles at the end of January on civil rights charges; he was released and spoke defiantly.[3][12] Attorney General Pam Bondi announced more arrests as a grand jury nine people, and later 30 more,[13][4] among them the independent journalist Georgia Fort.[6] Lemon hired a former federal prosecutor who had quit in protest over the shooting of Renee Nicole Good,[14] and pleaded not guilty in February.[5] In August a judge ordered the department to release grand jury records in his case.[7]

Supporting stories (14)
  1. DOJ investigating after activists disrupt church where Minnesota ICE official is a pastor
  2. Journalist Don Lemon arrested after protest that disrupted Minnesota church service
  3. Don Lemon released after being arrested in connection with church protest near Minneapolis
  4. Attorney general announces indictments against 30 more people who protested at a Minnesota church
  5. Don Lemon Pleads Not Guilty to Church Protest in Minnesota
  6. Journalist Georgia Fort, who filmed ICE protest in church, seeks dismissal of federal charges
  7. Judge in Don Lemon indictment asks to see grand jury records, adding to growing scrutiny of Justice Department cases
  8. Trump officials investigate protesters who interrupted Minnesota church service, targeting ICE official
  9. DOJ hints at criminal charges against Don Lemon, anti-ICE protesters for St. Paul church invasion
  10. Ellison on Church Protest: I'm Frustrated by ICE 'Escalating Into Our State'
  11. Magistrate judge rejects charges against Don Lemon over anti-ICE protest in Minnesota church
  12. Don Lemon Speaks Out About Arrest, Vows He ‘Will Not Be Silenced’
  13. Bondi announces two more arrests in Minnesota church invasion
  14. Don Lemon hires former MN prosecutor Joe Thompson to help fight church protest charges

The full record

Each date is when an update was first reported.

All 19 recorded updates

September 2026

  1. Minnesota churches roiled by legal battle over ICE surveillance and right to protestHeadline from WDIO Duluth · 10 outlets

August 2026

  1. Judge in Don Lemon indictment asks to see grand jury records, adding to growing scrutiny of Justice Department casesHeadline from KRDO · 9 outlets
  2. Journalist Georgia Fort, who filmed ICE protest in church, seeks dismissal of federal chargesHeadline from Southern Minnesota · 7 outlets

February 2026

  1. Attorney general announces indictments against 30 more people who protested at a Minnesota churchHeadline from CNN · 7 outlets
  2. Ex-CNN host Don Lemon set to be arraigned in Minnesota church protest caseHeadline from New York Post · 10 outlets
  3. Don Lemon Pleads Not Guilty to Church Protest in MinnesotaHeadline from Lamag · 37 outlets
  4. Don Lemon hires former MN prosecutor Joe Thompson to help fight church protest chargesHeadline from KTVU San Francisco · 13 outlets
  5. Bondi announces two more arrests in Minnesota church invasionHeadline from New York Post · 11 outlets

January 2026

  1. Don Lemon released after being arrested in connection with church protest near MinneapolisHeadline from KYMA Yuma · 53 outlets
  2. Don Lemon Speaks Out About Arrest, Vows He ‘Will Not Be Silenced’Headline from Southern Minnesota · 5 outlets
  3. Don Lemon shares details of his arrest on 'Kimmel,' says DOJ wanted to 'embarrass' himHeadline from NBC Los Angeles · 23 outlets
  4. Journalist Don Lemon arrested after protest that disrupted Minnesota church serviceHeadline from The Boston Globe · 42 outlets
  5. Several people were arrested for protesting at a St. Paul church. Here’s what we knowHeadline from KTVZ Bend · 26 outlets
  6. Don Lemon reacts to Nicki Minaj backlash over anti-ice church protestHeadline from Newsweek · 6 outlets
  7. Ellison on Church Protest: I'm Frustrated by ICE 'Escalating Into Our State'Headline from Breitbart News · 4 outlets
  8. Magistrate judge rejects charges against Don Lemon over anti-ICE protest in Minnesota churchHeadline from CBS News · 13 outlets
  9. DOJ hints at criminal charges against Don Lemon, anti-ICE protesters for St. Paul church invasionHeadline from New York Post · 12 outlets
  10. Trump officials investigate protesters who interrupted Minnesota church service, targeting ICE officialHeadline from KRDO · 14 outlets
  11. DOJ investigating after activists disrupt church where Minnesota ICE official is a pastorHeadline from Alexandria Echo Press · 18 outlets

Coverage & sources

Read the reports, see how much was collected over time, or compare outlets by political leaning.

Coverage & sources →