DOJ Charges 30 More After Minnesota Church Protest Chaos
DOJ charges 30 more in Minnesota anti-ICE church protest, expanding the federal indictment in a case tied to Don Lemon and religious freedom claims.
The US Department of Justice announced Friday that 30 more people involved in last month's anti-ICE protest at a Minnesota church are facing charges.
Attorney General Pam Bondi wrote on social media that 25 of the 30 defendants named in the newly unsealed indictment have been arrested by federal agents, and "more arrests are forthcoming."
This is the same protest that led to the arrest of former CNN anchor Don Lemon, who was charged along with nine others after storming Cities Church in St. Paul with protesters who claimed a pastor was an immigration-enforcement officer.
Lemon and the others initially arrested have pleaded not guilty to civil rights violations.
Bondi wrote on social media Friday, "You cannot attack a place of worship. If you do, you cannot hide from us—we will find you, arrest you, and prosecute you." "This Department of Justice stands for Christians and Americans of all faiths."
All 39 people arrested face charges of conspiracy against religious freedom at a place of worship and injury, intimidation, and interference with the exercise of religious freedom at a place of worship.
The indictment states, "A group of approximately 40 protesters, including all the defendants named in this indictment, orchestrated an attack that constituted an occupation of the church and committed acts of harassment, intimidation, interference, and physical obstruction, as described herein."
In the January 18 incident, protesters disrupted a church service by chanting "ICE Out" and "Justice for Renee Good." Renee Good was a mother of three who was shot and killed by a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer in Minneapolis last month.
Footage showed a chaotic scene inside the church, which belongs to the Southern Baptist Convention, where protesters and members of the congregation were shouting at each other. Lemon was live-streaming the incident when it occurred, and defended his decision to enter the church, saying he was simply performing his duty as a freelance journalist covering a protest.
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Shortly after his arrest, he said, "I've spent my entire career covering the news. I won't stop now."
But the indictment alleges that Lemon and the other co-defendants "entered the church in a coordinated takeover-style attack and engaged in acts of harassment, intimidation, interference, and physical obstruction."
Doug Wardlow, an attorney representing Cities Church, expressed joy at the news of the additional arrests, saying it sends a clear message: places of worship are off-limits to those who would use chaos and intimidation to advance a political agenda.
In a statement posted on social media, Wardlow said the protests "put people, including children, in fear for their lives."
Three weeks after Good's death and a week after the church protest, federal agents shot and killed a second person, intensive care nurse Alex Pretty.
Both Pretty and Good were killed while protesting the Trump administration's immigration-enforcement efforts in Minnesota, an operation that has now ended.
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