Los Angeles mayor blasts DOJ's Don Lemon prosecution after judge frees journalist without bail

"Out journalist Don Lemon was released without bail Friday after a federal court hearing in Los Angeles, as Mayor Karen Bass, a Democrat, sharply criticized the Justice Department's case against him and warned that the prosecution marks a dangerous escalation in the Trump administration's confrontation with the press."

"Speaking to reporters outside the courthouse Friday, Bass said Lemon should never have been charged, arguing that the conduct prosecutors described amounted to routine newsgathering, not a crime. "He should not have been in court anyway," she said, adding that what she heard during the proceedings made "no sense at all.""

"The hearing came as newly unsealed federal court records laid out the government's theory that Lemon's reporting crossed into criminal conduct during a January 18 protest at Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota. According to a federal indictment returned by a grand jury in Minnesota, prosecutors allege Lemon was aware in advance of a planned operation to disrupt a worship service and took steps while livestreaming to avoid disclosing the target publicly. The indictment claims Lemon acknowledged before entering the church that he could not reveal "what's going on," and later stated during the protest that "the whole point" was to disrupt the service."

Don Lemon was released without bail after a federal court hearing in Los Angeles and freed on his own recognizance with no pretrial detention. Mayor Karen Bass sharply criticized the Justice Department's case, saying Lemon should not have been charged and describing the conduct prosecutors cited as routine newsgathering, not a crime. Prosecutors had sought travel restrictions while the case proceeds. Newly unsealed records allege Lemon's reporting during a January 18 protest at Cities Church in St. Paul crossed into criminal conduct. A federal indictment alleges he was aware in advance of a planned operation to disrupt a worship service, took steps while livestreaming to avoid revealing the target, acknowledged he could not reveal "what's going on," and later said "the whole point" was to disrupt the service.

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