{"id":273145,"date":"2026-01-31T04:51:15","date_gmt":"2026-01-31T04:51:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/273145\/"},"modified":"2026-01-31T04:51:15","modified_gmt":"2026-01-31T04:51:15","slug":"andy-cohen-billy-baldwin-and-more-stars-react-to-don-lemon-arrest-over-minnesota-church-protest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/273145\/","title":{"rendered":"Andy Cohen, Billy Baldwin and more stars react to Don Lemon arrest over Minnesota church protest"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hollywood weighed in after Don Lemon<\/a> was arrested Friday in connection with a protest that disrupted a church service in Minnesota<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The former CNN<\/a> anchor was taken into custody by federal agents <\/a>in Los Angeles<\/a> over his role in a January demonstration at a St. Paul church, which he insists he was covering as a journalist.<\/p>\n

Lemon has been charged with conspiring to deprive others of their civil rights and violating the FACE Act by allegedly obstructing access to a house of worship, a move his lawyer slammed as an ‘unprecedented attack on the First Amendment.’<\/p>\n

The arrest quickly ignited outrage across Tinseltown.<\/p>\n

Bravo boss Andy Cohen<\/a> was among the most vocal, pointedly invoking the fatal shootings of Minnesota protesters Renee Nicole Good and Alex Jeffrey Pretti.<\/p>\n

\u2018They arrested Don and not the guys who murdered protesters?\u2019 Cohen tweeted.<\/p>\n

\"Andy <\/p>\n

Andy Cohen and other celebs weighed in after Don Lemon was arrested Friday in connection with a protest that disrupted a church service in Minnesota; (Cohen in 2025)<\/p>\n

\"Lemon <\/p>\n

Lemon was taken into custody by federal agents in Los Angeles over his role in a January demonstration at a St. Paul church, which he insists he was covering as a journalist<\/p>\n

Actor Josh Gad added a fiery take, warning that authorities are pushing citizens too far.<\/p>\n

\u2018What\u2019s the BREAKING POINT? They want you to be a frog in boiling water. When people are arrested for First Amendment protected activity or shot execution style for exercising their Second Amendment rights, it\u2019s time to STOP being a frog & start being an enraged citizen who says \u201cNO. F*** THIS. I will not remain idle,”‘ he wrote on X.<\/p>\n

Kathy Griffin chimed in, ‘Do you guys really, really get it? It doesn\u2019t matter if you\u2019re a Democrat, Republican or just a hater, it\u2019s dangerous for YOU that Don Lemon and OTHER journalists have been ARRESTED.’<\/p>\n

Billy Baldwin posted simply, ‘Free Don Lemon.’\u00a0<\/p>\n

Newscaster Jemele Hill called the arrest ‘horrifying’ and emphasized that it transcends political or professional lines.<\/p>\n

\u2018They arrested Don Lemon. This is horrifying. I don\u2019t care what your political beliefs or leanings are, what journalism outlet you represent, this absolutely cannot stand.\u2019<\/p>\n

Some voices sided with the authorities, however.<\/p>\n

Megyn Kelly tweeted: \u2018For those saying this is criminalizing journalism, journalists don\u2019t get a pass when breaking the law just bc they have a mic.\u00a0<\/p>\n

‘If I accompanied ppl storming an abortion clinic harassing\/scaring\/\u201ctraumatizing\u201d the crying women while saying \u201cBut I\u2019m a reporter!\u201d I would absolutely have been charged under any Dem admin.\u2019<\/p>\n

\"\" \"Billy <\/p>\n

Billy Baldwin posted simply, ‘Free Don Lemon’; (pictured 2024)<\/p>\n

\"\" \"Kathy <\/p>\n

Kathy Griffin chimed in, ‘Do you guys really, really get it? It doesn\u2019t matter if you\u2019re a Democrat, Republican or just a hater, it\u2019s dangerous for YOU that Don Lemon and OTHER journalists have been ARRESTED’<\/p>\n

\"\" \"\" \"\" \"The <\/p>\n

The arrest quickly ignited outrage across Tinseltown<\/p>\n

Actor James Woods added a meme, captioning it: \u2018As you all know, I started this whole thing when I called arrestee Don Lemon a \u201cdingleberry on the ass of American journalism\u201d on @MegynKellyShow.\u2019<\/p>\n

Lemon and three others were taken into custody on Friday after a protest at a Minnesota church opposing immigration enforcement, an event that stirred tension between local residents and federal authorities.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Federal agents arrested Lemon in Los Angeles, where he was covering the Grammy Awards, according to his lawyer Lowell.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Details about the exact charges against Lemon and the others involved in the Jan. 18 demonstration at Cities Church in St. Paul\u00a0\u2013 pastored by a local ICE official\u00a0\u2013 remain unclear.<\/p>\n

Lemon, who was let go from CNN in 2023, has insisted he had no ties to the group that entered the church, emphasising he was reporting on the protest as a journalist.<\/p>\n

\u2018Don has spent 30 years reporting, and his work in Minneapolis was no different,\u2019 Lowell said. \u2018The First Amendment protects journalists exposing the truth and holding those in power accountable.\u2019<\/p>\n

Attorney General Pam Bondi confirmed the arrests on social media, naming Lemon along with Trahern Jeen Crews, Georgia Fort, and Jamael Lydell Lundy.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u2018At my direction, federal agents took these individuals into custody this morning in connection with the coordinated attack on Cities Church,\u2019 she wrote.<\/p>\n

\"A <\/p>\n

A magistrate previously denied prosecutors\u2019 initial effort to press charges against him, but Lemon warned on his show that authorities might try again<\/p>\n

Since leaving CNN, Lemon has built a career posting content independently on YouTube, often openly criticising former President Donald Trump.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Yet during his coverage at the church, he repeatedly stressed, \u2018I\u2019m not here as an activist. I\u2019m here as a journalist\u2019, reporting on the scene and speaking with both churchgoers and demonstrators.<\/p>\n

A magistrate previously denied prosecutors\u2019 initial effort to press charges against him, but Lemon warned on his show that authorities might try again.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u2018And guess what?\u2019 he said. \u2018Here I am. Keep trying. That won\u2019t stop me from doing my job. It won\u2019t silence my voice. Go ahead\u00a0\u2013 make me the new Jimmy Kimmel if you want. I\u2019m not going anywhere.\u2019<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Hollywood weighed in after Don Lemon was arrested Friday in connection with a protest that disrupted a church…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":273146,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[2002,321,11503,539,127314,93,61,60,116,9073,1489],"class_list":["post-273145","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-celebrities","tag-andy-cohen","tag-celebrities","tag-cnn","tag-dailymail","tag-don-lemon","tag-entertainment","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-los-angeles","tag-minnesota","tag-tvshowbiz"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/273145","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=273145"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/273145\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/273146"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=273145"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=273145"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=273145"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}