Don Lemon Describes Arrest by Federal Agents in First Post-Arrest Interview
Independent journalist Don Lemon is publicly detailing his arrest for the first time, saying federal authorities used excessive force and unnecessary resources to detain him last week despite assurances from his legal team that he would voluntarily surrender. In an interview aired Monday on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Lemon said approximately a dozen federal agents arrested him at a Los Angeles hotel to face federal civil rights charges connected to his coverage of a January anti-immigration enforcement protest at a Minnesota church. Lemon has denied any wrongdoing and says he intends to plead not guilty.
“I Was Arrested for Committing Journalism”
Kimmel introduced Lemon as his first guest of the night by telling the audience he had been “arrested for committing journalism,” framing the interview as a First Amendment issue rather than a routine criminal matter. Lemon said his attorney had already informed authorities that he would turn himself in. Instead, he described being physically detained without warning inside his hotel.
“I was walking up to the room and I pressed the elevator button, and then all of a sudden, I feel myself being jostled and people trying to grab me and put me in handcuffs,” Lemon said.
According to Lemon, the agents initially did not present a warrant when he asked for one. He said an FBI agent was later summoned from outside the building to show him the warrant on a cellphone. Neither the Department of Justice nor the FBI’s Minneapolis field office commented on the arrest. The FBI said it would be inappropriate to comment because the case has entered the adjudication phase.
Charges Linked to Minnesota Church Protest
A federal grand jury in Minnesota has indicted Lemon, fellow independent journalist Georgia Fort, and others on charges of conspiracy and interfering with the First Amendment rights of worshippers during a Jan. 18 protest at Cities Church in St. Paul. The church is led by a pastor who is also a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement official. Protesters disrupted a church service that day, drawing national attention and prompting a federal investigation. Lemon has consistently said he was not a protester and was not affiliated with the group that disrupted the service.
“I went there to be a journalist,” Lemon told Kimmel. “I went there to chronicle and document and record what was happening. I was following that one group around, and so that’s what I did. I reported on them.”
Arrest Conditions and Detention
Lemon said he was denied the opportunity to make a phone call after his arrest and was told he could contact his attorney the following day. He attempted to use Siri on his Apple Watch to call his husband and lawyer, but neither call connected. He described being held in a federal courthouse holding room from midnight until approximately 1 p.m. the next day. During the arrest, Lemon said a diamond bracelet he was wearing became painfully caught in his handcuffs. Agents agreed to remove it and, at Lemon’s request, deliver it to his husband in their hotel room.
“That’s how my husband found out,” Lemon said. “Otherwise, no one would have known where I was.”
After a judge ordered his release, Lemon told reporters he would not back down.
“I will not be silenced,” he said.
Co-Defendant Describes “Extremely Traumatic” Arrest
Georgia Fort, who was also indicted, described her arrest in a separate interview with Rachel Maddow, saying nearly two dozen agents came to her home, where her children were present.
“It was extremely traumatic,” Fort said, explaining that one of her daughters woke up during the arrest and cried silently out of fear. “Now they’re afraid to be alone. They’re having issues going through their normal routines.”
Fort argued that the arrests represent a broader escalation against journalists.
“Attacking the press is not simply attacking journalists,” she said. “It’s attacking the public’s right to know.”
A Broader Free-Speech Backdrop
Lemon’s appearance on Kimmel’s show comes amid heightened tensions over press freedom and political speech. Kimmel himself became a focal point in a censorship debate last year after ABC briefly suspended Jimmy Kimmel Live! following controversial remarks, a move that sparked backlash from lawmakers and civil liberties advocates.
ABC later lifted the suspension after public pressure, and congressional Democrats raised concerns that federal pressure on broadcasters could undermine the First Amendment. Lemon, who was fired from CNN in 2023 after a turbulent tenure as a morning show host, has since positioned himself as an independent journalist operating outside corporate media, a status that now places him at the center of a closely watched legal and constitutional battle.
What Happens Next
Lemon’s attorney has said he will plead not guilty. The case is expected to test the boundaries between journalism, protest coverage, and federal civil rights law, with press-freedom advocates closely monitoring how prosecutors proceed. For now, Lemon says the message sent by his arrest is chilling and deliberate.
“They didn’t need to do this,” he told Kimmel. “But they wanted to.”
