The Justice Department has withdrawn its warrant for podcaster Don Lemon’s arrest for his role in the anti-ICE protest that disrupted a Minneapolis church service.
This comes after a judge refused to approve charges against Lemon, who livestreamed the protest.
From CNN:
The Justice Department has formally withdrawn its request for the chief judge in Minnesota’s federal court to issue arrest warrants for journalist Don Lemon and four others for their alleged involvement in an anti-ICE protest that disrupted a church service in Minnesota.
Their request was made after a lower court judge refused to approve criminal complaints against several people the department claims were part of the protest. A person familiar with the matter said that Lemon is one the individuals whose arrest warrants were declined.
Despite their withdrawal, the DOJ can still attempt to bring charges against Lemon, including through a grand jury indictment. Officials have not publicly said what their plans are moving forward.
The Justice Department has withdrawn its request for arrest warrants against Don Lemon and other protesters who stormed a church in St. Paul after a federal judge declined to sign them.
— AF Post (@AFpost) January 27, 2026
No arrest warrants have been issued so far in connection with the disruption of the service… pic.twitter.com/1oK99ox0HR
Days after the protest, a federal appeals court refused to allow the Justice Department to charge Lemon. However, it did approve charges against eight of the other people involved in the disruption, CNN reported.
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A federal appeals court declined to order a judge to sign an arrest for journalist Don Lemon for his actions at a protest inside a Minnesota church, court documents show.
The ruling, which was unsealed Saturday, referenced the Department of Justice’s attempts to arrest eight individuals allegedly involved in the anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement protest that disrupted a service at the Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota.
A magistrate judge only approved three of the eight arrests, court records show. A person familiar with the matter said that Lemon is one of the five whose arrest warrants were declined.
One of the judges on the panel, Judge Leonard Steven Grasz, wrote in a concurrence that the Justice Department “clearly establish[ed] probable cause for all five arrest warrants,” but “failed to establish that it has no other adequate means” of obtaining them.
Lemon, a former CNN host who now makes content independently, has said that he was present at the demonstration as a journalist and not as a protester.
“They’re going to try again, and they’re going to try again.
And guess what? Here I am,” Lemon said on his YouTube show Thursday night.
“Keep trying. That’s not gonna stop me from being a journalist. You’re not gonna diminish my voice.”
Prosecutors can still attempt to obtain another criminal complaint and arrest warrant, or can seek a grand jury indictment.
NEW: Man says he would pay to see Don Lemon try his church stunt at a black church.
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) January 20, 2026
“He wouldn't have got past the aunties at the front…”
“In the name of Jesus, he wouldn't have got in. You're talking about dudes reformed from the streets, giving the testimony, aunties never… pic.twitter.com/iJVFIy5cEw
Federal Magistrate Judge Douglas Micko argued that there was no probable cause to support the charges against Lemon because he did not engage in any criminal behavior during the incident. Chief U.S. District Judge Patrick Schiltz concurred, noting that “two of the five protesters were not protesters at all; instead, they were a journalist and his producer. There is no evidence that those two engaged in any criminal behavior or conspired to do so.”
However, this does not mean Lemon is out of the woods yet. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon, during an appearance on The Megyn Kelly Show said that prosecutors would "pursue this to the ends of the earth" and that the DOJ had already established "the groundwork for pursuing FACE Act and conspiracy" charges against the podcaster.
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