Media Organizations Urge Dismissal of Criminal Charges Against Journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort
A coalition of 45 media organizations, including The Associated Press, The New York Times, and The Washington Post, has formally requested a federal judge in Minnesota to dismiss criminal charges against journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort. The journalists were charged by the Department of Justice under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act and a Reconstruction-era law prohibiting conspiracies to deprive people of federally protected rights. Lemon and Fort were covering a protest at Cities Church in St. Paul on January 18, 2026, following the killing of Renee Nicole Good by an ICE officer. Demonstrators interrupted a worship service after discovering one of the church's pastors was an acting director for an Immigration and Customs Enforcement field office. Prosecutors allege the journalists interfered with worshippers' religious rights, while Lemon and Fort maintain they were engaged in routine newsgathering. Both journalists have pleaded not guilty. 
