Former CNN anchor Don Lemon has been arrested by federal agents in connection with his journalistic work covering protests in Minnesota, his attorney announced Friday.
“Mr. Lemon was taken into custody by federal agents in Los Angeles last night while covering the Grammy Awards,” Lemon’s attorney, Abby Rowell, said in a statement.
“Don has been a journalist for 30 years, and his constitutionally protected work in Minneapolis was no different than anything he’s ever done,” Rowell said.
Justice Department officials had publicly vowed to prosecute Lemon over his attendance at a Jan. 18 protest at a church in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Lemon, an independent reporter who hosts “The Don Lemon Show” on YouTube, said he was reporting on the protests. A federal judge reportedly dismissed criminal charges filed against Lemon last week.
In a statement Friday, Lowell called Lemon’s arrest an “unprecedented attack on the First Amendment” and “a clear attempt to deflect attention from the many crises facing this administration.”
“Don will vigorously and thoroughly contest these charges in court,” Rowell said.
