Story perspectives

Don Lemon Seeks Dismissal as DOJ Acknowledges False Journalist Warrants

8/7/2026

Summary

Don Lemon Appeals

Don Lemon asked a judge on Friday to dismiss the indictment alleging conspiracy to violate religious-freedom rights and the FACE Act.
Federal agents arrested Lemon in Los Angeles on Jan. 29 for his presence at a Jan. 18 anti-ICE protest inside Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Lemon has pleaded not guilty while his lawyers seek dismissal with prejudice after a magistrate judge rejected the DOJ complaint for lack of probable cause.

Summary

Prosecutors Mislead Courts

Prosecutors filed at least 15 search-warrant applications falsely claiming journalist Georgia Fort was chanting with protesters, a claim the Justice Department later admitted was untrue.
Magistrate Judge Douglas Micko ordered the government to produce all grand-jury materials on Fort and journalist Michael Beute.
The government pursued Fort’s subscriber lists via a customs-related administrative process after social-media platforms refused the request.

History

Historical Context

In 1735 colonial New York, printer John Peter Zenger was tried for seditious libel before Chief Justice James De Lancey. Andrew Hamilton’s defense convinced the jury that truth could excuse libel, securing Zenger’s acquittal and the colony’s first affirmation of press freedom. The verdict spread to England in four editions within three months, shaping later American First-Amendment protections.

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Don Lemon Appeals

Don Lemon asked a judge on Friday to dismiss the indictment alleging conspiracy to violate religious-freedom rights and the FACE Act.
Federal agents arrested Lemon in Los Angeles on Jan. 29 for his presence at a Jan. 18 anti-ICE protest inside Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Lemon has pleaded not guilty while his lawyers seek dismissal with prejudice after a magistrate judge rejected the DOJ complaint for lack of probable cause.

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