As Ed described this morning, two people involved in disrupting a St. Paul church service have been arrested. Nekima Levy Armstrong and Chauntyll Louisa Allen were both taken into custody. AG Pam Bondi promised there would be "more to come." A third arrest was made a short time ago. His name is William Kelly.
UPDATE:
— Attorney General Pamela Bondi (@AGPamBondi) January 22, 2026
William Kelly is now in custody.
Our nation was settled and founded by people fleeing religious persecution. Religious freedom is the bedrock of this country.
We will protect our pastors. We will protect our churches. We will protect Americans of faith.
Here he is in handcuffs.
William Kelly is being charged with conspiracy to deprive rights, a federal crime, and violating the FACE act 18 USC 248 for his involvement in the St. Paul church riots. pic.twitter.com/IlktEkhu7b
— Secretary Kristi Noem (@Sec_Noem) January 22, 2026
But one of the people many observers expected would be arrested today, former CNN reporter Don Lemon, has not been arrested so far. Now we're learning why. A Minnesota federal judge refused to sign a criminal complaint against him.
A Minnesota federal magistrate judge refused to sign a complaint charging independent journalist Don Lemon in connection with a protest inside a church in St. Paul on Sunday, multiple sources familiar with the proceedings told CBS News.
"The attorney general is enraged at the magistrate's decision," said a source familiar with the matter. Attorney General Pam Bondi has been in Minnesota for two days, as the Justice Department has sought to surge prosecutorial and law enforcement resources there.
A different source stressed that the process is not over, and the Justice Department could find other avenues to charge Lemon.
Lemon claims that he was only there as a journalist and wasn't part of the protest:
Lemon, who is a former CNN host who now makes content independently, was with dozens of anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement protesters as they rushed into Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota on Sunday morning, interrupting a church service and leading to tense confrontations, CNN has reported.
Lemon has said that he was present at the demonstration as a journalist and not as a protester. In a video of the episode that he posted on YouTube, Lemon says “I’m just here photographing, I’m not part of the group… I’m a journalist.”
Video from the service shows that Lemon was asking questions of the pastor. But the pastor asked him to leave.
BREAKING - Minnesota federal magistrate judge Zia Faruqui is refusing to sign the Department of Justice’s complaint bringing charges against Don Lemon for his involvement in the raid on a Christian church in Minnesota. pic.twitter.com/2grBG4aByc
— Right Angle News Network (@Rightanglenews) January 22, 2026
Journalists do have a right to ask questions, but in this case Lemon was doing that by taking part in the disruption which he knew in advance was coming. In other words, he coordinated this with the activists and became a participant in what they were doing. I think it would be a close call if he were merely observing with a camera but he's in the church arguing with the pastor. He's helping to create the disruption.
Take the other protesters out of it for a moment. If Lemon can't be held accountable for participating in this disruption, does that mean a journalist can walk into any church, synagogue or mosque and start asking questions of the pastor in the midst of a service, even if that's disruptive? The answer has to be no. Disrupting a religious service violates the right to assemble, the right to freedom of religion and the right to speech for all of the people in the service. Don Lemon's right to be a journalist can't trump all of those rights at once, can it? That seems to be what this judge is saying.
People have a right to speak but that right doesn't trump other people rights. And so, entering a classroom and speaking over the professor isn't a legitimate protest. Taking over the college quad and pitching tents for weeks at a time is not a legitimate protest because those activities aren't allowed to anyone. Similarly, entering a church and talking over the pastor isn't a legitimate protest. There are time and place restrictions for speech which are meant to prevent this kind of heckler's veto.
What Don Lemon is talking about is civil disobedience. In other words, you do something nonviolent but outside the law and then you expect to be arrest for it. That's what these activists were doing. They could have held a peaceful protest outside but by going inside they violated other people's rights. The should be charged.
🚨 BREAKING: AG Pam Bondi and DOJ pushed to charge Don Lemon but a Minnesota magistrate judge BLOCKED it
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) January 22, 2026
Bondi is reportedly "ENRAGED" at the decision.
The process is NOT over, though, and other avenues can be pursued to charge Lemon, per CBS
Don Lemon must face justice. If a… pic.twitter.com/iyuUgVUbBg
We'll have to wait and see where this goes next. Stay tuned.
