Ex-CNN host Don Lemon pleads not guilty in Minnesota church protest case

BBC News - WorldCenterEN 2 min read 100% complete February 13, 2026 at 09:53 PM

AI Summary

medium article 2 min

Former CNN host Don Lemon pleaded not guilty to charges related to his coverage of a January 18 protest at Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota. Lemon and eight others are charged with conspiracy to deprive rights and interfering with religious freedoms for allegedly disrupting a church service protesting federal immigration raids. The protest involved chanting and interrupting the service, referencing the fatal shooting of Renee Good by an ICE officer. Lemon maintains he was present as an independent journalist covering the event. During Friday's hearing, Lemon's lawyer expressed concern about investigators seizing Lemon's phone during his arrest in Los Angeles. Four co-defendants also pleaded not guilty.

Key Entities & Roles

Key Player Opposition Context

Los Angeles 30% Alex Pretti 40% Pam Bondi 40% Abbe Lowell 40% Renee Good 40% Minneapolis ×250% CNN 50% St Paul ×260% United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) ×260% Cities Church 60% Minnesota ×370% Don Lemon ×990%

Keywords

don lemon 90% church protest 90% not guilty plea 80% religious freedom 70% immigration raids 70% st paul minnesota 60% first amendment 60% ice 50% journalist 50% conspiracy 40%

Sentiment Analysis

Neutral

Score: -0.10

Source Transparency

Source

BBC News - World

Political Lean

Center (0.00)

Far LeftCenterFar Right

Classification Confidence

90%

This article was automatically classified using rule-based analysis. The political bias score ranges from -1 (far left) to +1 (far right).

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