ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Former CNN host turned independent journalist Don Lemon and four other people are set to be arraigned on federal civil rights charges Friday, accused in a protest at a Minnesota church where an Immigration and Customs Enforcement official is a pastor.
Also scheduled for arraignment Friday is civil rights attorney Nekima Levy Armstrong. The prominent local activist was the subject of a doctored photo posted on official White House social media that falsely showed her crying during her arrest. The picture is part of a deluge of AI-altered imagery that has circulated since the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti by federal officers in Minneapolis amid the Trump administration's immigration crackdown.
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Don Lemon arrives at the 68th annual Grammy Awards on Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)
FILE - Acting U.S. Attorney for Minnesota Joe Thompson speaks to reporters at a news conference July 15, 2025, in Minneapolis. (Jeff Wheeler/Star Tribune via AP, File)
Journalist Don Lemon, talks to the media after a hearing at the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building in Los Angeles on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Journalist Don Lemon, waves to the media after a hearing outside the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building in Los Angeles on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
It was unclear ahead of the hearing if Lemon planned to appear at the court in St. Paul and his attorney, Joe Thompson, did not return calls this week seeking comment. Arraignments in federal court typically include the entering of pleas and scheduling of future proceedings. Lemon has said he plans to plead not guilty.
Two more defendants accused in the protest at a Southern Baptist church in St. Paul are scheduled for arraignment next week, including another independent journalist, Georgia Fort. Nine people have been charged in the case.
Protesters interrupted a service at Cities Church on Jan. 18 by chanting “ICE out” and “Justice for Renee Good,” referring to the 37-year-old mother of three who was fatally shot by an ICE officer in Minneapolis last month. Lemon has said he is not affiliated with the group and that he was there as a journalist to chronicle the event for his livestream show.
“I have spent my entire career covering the news. I will not stop now. 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 told reporters after his arrest.
The church protest drew sharp complaints from conservative religious and political leaders. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt warned in a social media post: “President Trump will not tolerate the intimidation and harassment of Christians in their sacred places of worship.” Even clergy who oppose the administration's immigration enforcement tactics expressed discomfort.
All nine are charged under the 1994 Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, which prohibits interference or intimidation of “any person by force, threat of force, or physical obstruction exercising or seeking to exercise the First Amendment right of religious freedom at a place of religious worship.” Penalties can range up to a year in prison and up to a $10,000 fine.
Thompson is one of several former prosecutors who have left the Minnesota U.S. Attorney's Office in recent weeks citing frustration with the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement crackdown in the state and the Justice Department’s response to the killing of Good and Pretti.
One of four lawyers registered to represent Lemon, Thompson had led the sprawling investigation of major public program fraud cases for the prosecutors office until he resigned last month. The Trump administration has cited the fraud cases, in which most defendants have come from the state’s large Somali community, as justification for its immigration crackdown.
Don Lemon arrives at the 68th annual Grammy Awards on Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)
FILE - Acting U.S. Attorney for Minnesota Joe Thompson speaks to reporters at a news conference July 15, 2025, in Minneapolis. (Jeff Wheeler/Star Tribune via AP, File)
Journalist Don Lemon, talks to the media after a hearing at the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building in Los Angeles on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Journalist Don Lemon, waves to the media after a hearing outside the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building in Los Angeles on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
TESERO, Italy (AP) — Friday the 13th will be remembered as a lucky day for Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo. Norway’s cross-country skiing star tied an all‑time Winter Games record by winning his eighth gold medal Friday at the Milan Cortina Olympics. The 29‑year‑old claimed victory in the men’s 10 kilometer interval‑start race, for his third gold at the 2026 games.
With three races still ahead, he now shares the record with three other Norwegian athletes who have all retired: Marit Bjoergen and Bjoern Daehlie in cross-country skiing and Ole Einar Bjoerndalen in the biathlon.
Klaebo said he has tried to flip the script on superstition about the supposedly ill-fated day, having proposed last year to his girlfriend, Pernille Doesvik, on June 13th — also a Friday.
“I think I like Friday the 13th,” he said. “It’s a good day.”
All the days in this Olympics, so far, have been good for Klaebo.
The win was particularly meaningful for Klaebo because he doesn't do as well in a race against the clock when he's not going head-to-head with rivals.
“This is the distance I’ve kind of struggled the most with so being able to do that means a lot,” he said. “And then it’s cool to be up there (in the records) with a lot of great athletes.” Klaebo again gained vital ground in the final hill and clocked 20 minutes, 36.2 seconds, showing rare signs of fatigue as he collapsed at the finish line of the race considered to be his toughest challenge.
He was 4.9 seconds head of Frances’s Mathis Desloges and 14 in front of his main challenger Einar Hedegart also of Norway who lost momentum on the last hill.
“It's a special day,” Klaebo said. “This one means a lot for sure … I'm lost for words.”
The Norwegian said he was happy with his tactics, racing the first half of the course with a controlled pace, saving energy for a burst up the last hill and home stretch — an ability that often sets him apart from others.
“It was really hard out there today so I'm very proud,” he said.
Over at the French camp, athletes and team officials celebrated as if they had won the race, linking arms and dancing on the snow after underdog Desloges won his second silver medal in his Olympics debut. “I trained incredibly hard for these races,” Desloges said. “I told people I was at this level — and now we are delivering.” The 23-year-old Frenchman, like many other top racers in the interval start, was mostly unaware of his position during the race.
“I don’t really pay attention to what’s being shouted from the sidelines,” he said. “Honestly, I don’t listen to them. I just focus on my race. I know what I have to do and I give it everything.” On a blue-sky day in northern Italy, with the race track surrounded by the snow-capped Dolomite mountains, temperatures hovered around 5 degrees Celsius (41 Fahrenheit). A few racers chose to compete wearing only their race bibs.
Organizers had treated the course with salt Thursday to harden the surface but left it untouched Friday — a decision that favored Klaebo, who started early among the seeded skiers. Celebrations were led by Norwegian fans: national flags — red with a blue cross outlined in white — were draped over athletes and the railing on the spectators' area. Klaebo's grandfather, Kare Hoesflot, who helped launch his career traveled to northern Italy to watch the race, while messages of congratulations poured in from back home, where cross-country skiing is a prime time sport.
“Another show of strength from Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo. What a performance in a thriller of a race! Congratulations on gold number three in these Olympics!,” Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere wrote on social media. Finn Dahl, a retired marketing manager from Norway, was dressed in a white suit covered in Norwegian flags and the motto, “The Viking is back” emblazoned on the front pocket as he watched Klaebo win. He credited Klaebo's success to relentless hard work.
“He's so dedicated. He sacrificed everything in terms of training, how he eats, how he sleeps and calms down after races,” he said.
“It's fantastic … he's up to eight now,” Dahl said. “I hope he'll be the biggest winner ever. “ —-
AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics
Silver medalist Mathis Desloges, of France, from left, gold medalist Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo, of Norway, and bronze medalist Einar Hedegart, of Norway, pose after the cross country skiing men's 10km interval start free at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Tesero, Italy, Friday, Feb. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)
Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo, of Norway, poses after winning the gold medal in the cross country skiing men's 10km interval start free at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Tesero, Italy, Friday, Feb. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)
Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo, of Norway, stands on the podium after winning the gold medal in the cross country skiing men's 10km interval start free at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Tesero, Italy, Friday, Feb. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)
Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo, of Norway, reacts after crossing the finish line in the cross country skiing men's 10km interval start free at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Tesero, Italy, Friday, Feb. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)
Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo, of Norway, sits on the leader's chair after crossing the finish line in the the cross country skiing men's 10km interval start free at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Tesero, Italy, Friday, Feb. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)
Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo, of Norway, competes in the cross country skiing men's 10km interval start free at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Tesero, Italy, Friday, Feb. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
