"This is a stunning move by the Department of Justice, going after a journalist, arresting Don Lemon, Sidner said. What do you see has happened here? Because a magistrate judge just last week told them, no, you are not going to lump him in with those who were protesting. He was there as a journalist. What could have changed, A? And B, how do you see this by the administration, what they have just done?"
"The First Amendment protects the work of journalists, Stelter said. It also protects the right of worshippers to go to church and be able to peacefully assemble and worship and practice their faith. And the argument that we have heard from Trump officials is that that right to worship was infringed not just by the protesters who walked into that church and started chanting, but also by Don Lemon because he and his crew members were there."
Don Lemon was arrested on charges that he violated federal law during a protest inside a Minnesota church on Jan. 18. A magistrate judge had ruled the previous week that Lemon was present as a journalist and should not be lumped with protesters. The Department of Justice contends that worshippers' rights were infringed not only by protesters but also by Lemon and his crew because their presence coincided with chanting and disruption. Lemon has maintained that he was acting as a journalist, announced as much while inside the church, told viewers to stay tuned, and delayed sending his camera crew into the church until a disruption occurred. The situation raises complex First Amendment questions about journalistic protections and the right to worship.
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