Former CNN host Don Lemon will walk free Friday after a judge ordered his release without bond following his arrest.
Federal agents arrested Lemon Thursday night in Los Angeles. Authorities said Lemon stormed an evangelical church in St. Paul, Minn. U.S. District Judge Patricia Donahue imposed no domestic travel restrictions, allowing Lemon to move freely within the United States, according to Daily Caller News Foundation West Coast Reporter Hailey Gomez, who was in the courtroom when the decision was announced.
Federal prosecutors sought to impose domestic and international travel restrictions on Lemon, including barring travel to New York and requiring him to surrender his passport, according to Gomez. The Department of Justice argued the restrictions were necessary, but Lemon’s attorney pushed back, citing a previously scheduled international trip as grounds to oppose the surrender of Lemon’s passport.
Gomez also noted that Democratic Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass attended the hearing in person. Bass had been reported earlier this week to be traveling from Washington, D.C., where she attended a conference, according to Politico. When Lemon entered the courtroom, he briefly blew a kiss toward the side of the room where Bass was seated. Members of Lemon’s family were seated in the same section.
The judge approved international travel, allowing Lemon to proceed with his annual trip to France, court officials said during the hearing. Lemon’s defense attorney Marilyn Bednarsk said Lemon plans to plead not guilty and will fight the case, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
As part of his release conditions, Lemon cannot contact any alleged victims, witnesses, or co-defendants. Prosecutors unsuccessfully pushed for a $100,000 bond, limits confining him to New York, Minnesota, and Washington, D.C., and the surrender of his passport. U.S. Attorney Alexander Robbins argued in court that Lemon committed a “very serious felony” by joining what he described as a mob that terrorized people inside a house of worship.
“I have spent my entire career covering the news – I will not stop now,” Lemon said outside the federal courthouse. “In fact, there is no more important time than right now, this very moment, for a free and independent media that shines a light on the truth and holds those in power accountable.”
Lemon faces two federal charges, including conspiracy to violate constitutional rights and a violation of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, according to an unsealed grand jury indictment, CNN reported. The FACE Act bars the use of force, threats, or physical obstruction to intentionally interfere with a person’s First Amendment right to practice religion.
Lemon claimed he was acting as a journalist when he covered the Jan. 18 incident in which anti-ICE rioters stormed Cities Church in St. Paul. He later aired footage of the disruption on his YouTube channel. Lemon joined the scene roughly 40 minutes into a Sunday livestream. While he denied knowing the church was a target, his early livestream remarks suggested he knew where the group was headed.
Lemon will return to court on Feb. 9 in Minneapolis.
(Featured Image Media Credit: Screenshot/YouTube/Don Lemon)
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