Overview
- Attorney General Pam Bondi said Monday that Ian Davis Austin and Jerome Deangelo Richardson were arrested in connection with the Jan. 18 disruption at Cities Church in St. Paul.
- A federal grand jury last week indicted nine people, including journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort, on conspiracy against rights and FACE Act counts tied to interference with a worship service.
- Lemon was arrested in Los Angeles on Jan. 30 and released without bail, and he maintains he was reporting the event rather than participating in it.
- Prosecutors cite Lemon’s livestream and other video, including references to “Operation Pull-Up,” alongside a DHS affidavit alleging 30–40 agitators intimidated worshippers and caused at least one injury.
- Press-freedom advocates and officials such as CNN and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass criticized the charges against journalists, while DOJ leaders emphasize enforcement of protections for religious worship.