Things are getting interesting when it comes to how the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) may go about finding and prosecuting the agitators involved in Sunday's ambush at Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon made some media appearances Monday to set the record straight on actions being taken by the Trump DOJ to determine if laws were broken by the ambushers, including former CNN host Don Lemon, and, if so, how the government might move ahead with charges.
For starters, Dhillon put the ambushers on notice that anyone who "paid for, coordinated, or participated in this attack made a big—BIG—mistake." This message might be of particular interest to Don Lemon, who live-streamed himself gathering with the agitators in the church's parking lot ahead of the ambush, then proceeded to show every second of the church service takeover.
Whoever paid for, coordinated, or participated in this attack made a big—BIG—mistake.
— AAGHarmeetDhillon (@AAGDhillon) January 19, 2026
No worshipper in this country should ever feel intimidated in a house of God, and @TheJusticeDept will bring the full force of the law, as directed by @AGPamBondi. pic.twitter.com/gs5gX8605Y
Lemon's presence there was curious, no? As RedState's Bonchie reported Monday morning, Don Lemon looked like a willing participant, not the intrepid journalist he thinks he is. Here's Bonchie: "[Lemon] 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."
READ MORE: After Latest Revelations, Don Lemon Should Probably Lawyer Up Over His Participation in MN Church Attack
Wild: Anti-ICE Activists Disrupt Church Service Because They Think One of the Pastors Is an ICE Agent
This clearly caught the attention of the DOJ. In another media appearance Monday, Dhillon laid out one possible way the DOJ could bring charges against those involved, saying, "We will pursue charges in this case. I see various crimes that have occurred. Exactly what they are, I'm not going to flag, but the FACE Act has been mentioned as one of the predicates there. In other cases, the Biden DOJ used the Klan Act conspiracy charges tacked onto the FACE Act in the case of the protests outside the abortion clinics to bring much longer sentences. So, there are a number of tools available to us."
BREAKING: DOJ Announces Intention to Charge Don Lemon under the Ku Klux Klan Act.
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) January 19, 2026
The KKK Act makes it illegal to threaten, hurt, or intimidate people to prevent them from exercising their God-given rights.
HARMEET DHILLON: "The Klan Act is one of the most important federal… pic.twitter.com/GWnXAMtWc9
BREAKING: DOJ Announces Intention to Charge Don Lemon under the Ku Klux Klan Act.
The KKK Act makes it illegal to threaten, hurt, or intimidate people to prevent them from exercising their God-given rights.
HARMEET DHILLON: "The Klan Act is one of the most important federal civil rights statutes. Its a law that makes it illegal to terrorize and violate the civil rights of citizens. Whenever people conspire this, the Klan Act can be used."
"Everyone in the protest community needs to know that the fullest force of the federal government is going to come down and prevent this from happening and put people away for a long time."
As for Don Lemon? Here's more from Dhillon: "Don Lemon himself has come out and said he knew exactly what was going to happen inside that facility. He went into the facility, and then he began 'committing journalism.' As if that is a shield from being an embedded part of a criminal conspiracy. It isn't."
Dhillon also sought to reassure Americans that the DOJ is following proper legal procedures to obtain arrest warrants and pursue federal charges against those who stormed Cities Church on Sunday.
To those asking where the arrests are: MN state prosecutors could have made arrests yesterday. The DOJ must first go before a federal judge to obtain an arrest warrant.
— AAGHarmeetDhillon (@AAGDhillon) January 19, 2026
Make no mistake: @AGPamBondi & @TheJusticeDept will pursue federal charges in this case. pic.twitter.com/aifeMUwvmf
As President Trump has said before, if Tim Walz and other Democrat leaders in Minnesota won't pursue justice against the agitators and bullies, the Trump administration will.
Editor’s Note: Democrat politicians and their radical supporters will do everything they can to interfere with and threaten ICE agents enforcing our immigration laws.
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