Journalist Don Lemon pleaded not guilty Friday to federal charges related to an anti-immigration enforcement protest inside a Minnesota church.
The Department of Justice brought the case against the former CNN anchor, charging him under a federal law that prohibits interfering with people exercising their religious rights in a house of worship.
First-time offenders can face a prison sentence of up to a year and up to a $10,000 fine.
Mr. Lemon followed protesters who disrupted a church service where an Immigration and Customs Enforcement official allegedly serves as a pastor, livestreaming the demonstration.
He said he was acting in a journalism capacity, which was to “report on it and talk to the people involved, including the pastor, members of the church and members of the organization,” he said previously. “That’s it. That’s called journalism.”
The arrest provoked the ire of press freedom and First Amendment advocates, who say his distinction as a journalist should shield him from punishment.
“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,” Mr. Lemon told reporters after his arrest.
As he entered the courthouse, protesters stood outside chanting, “Protect the press.”
Prosecutors said Friday that authorities seized his phone during the arrest, and it is now in the custody of the Department of Homeland Security.
DHS obtained a search warrant, and the phone cannot be returned until the search process is completed.
Mr. Lemon’s lawyer, Abbe Lowell, said that taking the phone was a possible “over-execution.”
During the hearing, the defense told Magistrate Judge Douglas L. Micko that it seeks to obtain grand jury transcripts, as Mr. Lowell said prosecutors took an “unusual” path to secure charges against his client.
Nine people have been charged under the 1994 Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act.
Four others also joined Mr. Lemon in pleading not guilty in the case, including civil rights attorney Nekima Levy Armstrong. She was the subject of an AI-altered photo posted by the White House that falsely showed her crying during her arrest.
Two more accused in the protest are scheduled for arraignment next week, including another independent journalist, Georgia Fort.
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