The more that we learn about Don Lemon's participation in the invasion and occupation of a Minnesota church on Sunday, the more it seems like he should probably lawyer up. Ironically, his own postings are doing most of the damage to any claim he might have that he was just a journalistic bystander.
If you haven't already seen the videos of the initial incident, left-wing anti-ICE activists (mostly made up of Black Lives Matter groups) stormed the church, harassing the congregants during their worship service while refusing to leave the private property. Nekima Levy Armstrong, who has presented herself as the leader of the "protest," then ran to Facebook to list out all her alleged co-sponsors and their motivations.
See: Anti-ICE Protest Leader Who Invaded MN Church Just Did the Dumbest Thing Imaginable
That wasn't a smart move, given that DOJ Civil Rights head Harmeet Dhillon has already said they'll be going after those who invade places of worship with federal charges, including in this case.
This heinous act that occurred in Minnesota yesterday is receiving the highest level of attention from @TheJusticeDept. @AGPamBondi & I are working around the clock, because no right in our Constitution is more sacred than the freedom to assemble & pray to God. pic.twitter.com/kwwfI48dTZ
— AAGHarmeetDhillon (@AAGDhillon) January 19, 2026
But what about Lemon? Was he just an observer idly documenting what happened? Does he enjoy immunity from prosecution by claiming to be a journalist? I'm not going to make any definitive legal claims on that question, but let's go through everything we now know, including what happened before the attack, as it appears damning for Lemon.
INTENT: The opening to Don Lemon’s insane livestream is an admission of foreknowledge that the group he was in contact with was going to storm a church, based on his prior communications with its leader. pic.twitter.com/g0GVHB4871
— Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) January 19, 2026
LEMON: Into Minneapolis a little bit ago and did some reconnaissance on the ground, speaking to an organization here that is gearing up for resistance and protest. I've been surprised, pleasantly surprised with the community coming together, diverse community. If you see this and you first pull up and you're like, "Wait a minute, which operation are we at," and as it turns out, because we're like, "Well, this is kinda MAGA-coded, right," so the American flag or whatever,
But these are resistance protesters that are planning an operation and we're going to follow them on. I can't tell you exactly what they're doing, but it's called Operation Pull-up, and it's Nakema Armstrong, and she has been doing this since George Floyd, Dante Wright, and others, where they surprise people, catch them off guard, and hold them to account. And that's what we're doing here, and then after that, after we do this operation, you'll see it live. These operations are surprise operations; again, I can't tell you where we're going.
This wasn't a journalist showing up at a scene after hearing about it on a police scanner. Lemon appears to have directly coordinated with these activists and had foreknowledge of what was going to happen. By the end of his comments, he even says, "After we do this operation." He also obviously knew they were going to storm a church because he arrived there with them as a group. Even still, if one wants to assume he thought the protest would take place outside, once the activists started storming the building, Lemon had ample time to call the police and extricate himself from the situation.
Which brings us to what Lemon did when the attack started. He didn't stay outside to document the situation. Instead, he participated in the invasion of the church, including expressing support for the operation. At one point, he asserts to the pastor that the activists have a First Amendment right to protest in the church. He also demands to know why the pastor isn't doing something to appease those who had just invaded the house of worship.
NEW: Don Lemon tries lecturing a pastor on the First Amendment after a mob of far leftists stormed a church in Minneapolis.
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) January 18, 2026
Pastor: “This is unacceptable. It's shameful to interrupt a public gathering of Christians in worship…”
Lemon: “Listen, there's a constitution, the First… pic.twitter.com/joHdCvaXe6
PASTOR: This is unacceptable. It's shameful. It's shameful to interrupt a public gathering of Christians in worship.
LEMON: But, their repost will...
PASTOR: I have to take care of my flock, my family...
LEMON: Okay, but listen, we live in, there's a constitution, the First Amendment to freedom of speech and freedom to assemble and protest.
PASTOR: We're here to worship Jesus because the hope of these cities, that's the hope of the world is Jesus Christ.
LEMON: I'm going to be very respectful. Please don't push me.
PASTOR: We're here to worship Jesus. That's why we're here. That's what we're about.
LEMON: Do you think Jesus would be understanding and love these folks?
PASTOR: We're about spreading the love of Jesus...
LEMON: But did you try to talk to them?
PASTOR: No one is willing to talk. I have to take care of my church and my family, and also ask you to leave this building.
LEMON: You don't want us to chronicle what happened?
PASTOR: We're here to worship
LEMON: I always worship, I'm a Christian
What Lemon does to the pastor in that video is one of the most psychotic things I've ever seen from a supposed journalist (and that word has no real meaning in this case). It's right up there with Jim Acosta interviewing an AI version of a dead child to push gun control. This kind of behavior is disgusting.
Regardless, nothing Lemon says there paints him as an unbiased observer just doing his job. He seems to be offering support and justification for the crimes being committed at the church by the activists. When you couple that with the fact that he allegedly coordinated beforehand with the people who did this, it seems like he may have put himself in legal jeopardy. For further context, if you watch Lemon's full stream, after he's asked by the pastor to leave the building (see in the clip above), he spends another nine minutes walking around inside trying to "interview" people. Churches are not "open to the public" in the sense that you can ignore a request to leave, and trying to distinguish between what he did and what the activists did seems rather arbitrary.
I'd also note that the excuses that will inevitably be made for Lemon did not apply on January 6th. Right-wing journalists who entered the Capitol Building to film what was happening still faced charges. The church that was invaded is private property. There is no inherent right for Don Lemon to participate in the storming of it, no matter what he claims to be.
With that said, the DOJ will have to decide how to move forward.
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