Midwest
Don Lemon criticizes churchgoers for not seeing him as a journalist as he tagged along with agitators
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Former CNN host Don Lemon criticized parishioners who were upset by his presence in their church alongside agitators, saying they could not understand he was merely attending as a journalist.
In January, a group of agitators interrupted a worship service at a church in St. Paul, Minnesota, over suggestions that the church was affiliated with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. Cities Church Lead Pastor Jonathan Parnell described the incident as an “ambush” and said agitators were screaming in children’s faces. Parnell said cameras were shoved in his face and he lost sight of his wife, children, and congregation.
Former CNN host Don Lemon has pleaded “not guilty” to federal charges related to his presence at the church. Lemon has denied wrongdoing and argued he was there as a journalist protected by the First Amendment. He spoke about the controversy in a Wednesday interview with liberal journalist and podcaster Jim Acosta.
Acosta said he was surprised as to why parishioners were viewing Lemon as a disruption rather than a journalist.
Journalist Don Lemon interviews Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, at a rally at Columbus Circle near Union Station in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 2, 2025. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
“I don’t know. It’s weird because they kept saying it, even when I told them that I’m not. And I think they were looking at me and, because the bulk of the protesters were Black, maybe they thought because I’m Black, that and I kept saying, ‘I’m not a protester. I’m here covering the protest. I’m not with them.’”
He continued, noting, “They were, you know, they just for some reason could not understand. And I just I had to keep telling them that I’m not part of the group. I’m just here photographing, and I would say chronicling or whatever it is. And that’s it, Jim. So why they couldn’t figure that out, I don’t know.”
Acosta then added, “Even when you’re talking to the pastor, you know, that did not seem like a heated confrontation or anything. You just — you’re talking to him.”
During the confrontation, the pastor politely said that disrupting the church was unacceptable, to which Lemon argued they had a right to be there thanks to the First Amendment. Lemon questioned the pastor, asking, “Don’t you think Jesus would be understanding and love these folks?” When the pastor said he was focused on spreading the love of Jesus, Lemon pressed again, more intensely, “But did you try to talk to them? As a Christian?”
When he was asked to leave, Lemon began his next sentence with “You don’t want us to — “
TEMPLE UNIVERSITY STUDENT WHO ‘ASSISTED DON LEMON’ CHARGED IN FEDERAL CHURCH-STORMING CASE
Liberal podcaster Jim Acosta expressed sympathy for Don Lemon, questioning why parishioners viewed Lemon as part of a disruption rather than as a journalist. (John Nacion/Variety via Getty Images)
Lemon agreed with Acosta’s claim that his encounter with the pastor was not a heated confrontation.
“It wasn’t heated. He stood there and talked to me for a long time,” Lemon said. “I will just say in this, the video speaks for itself.”
“They can as they can try to do, as they did with Renee Good, as they did with Alex Pretti. They can try to get people to believe something other than what they’re seeing with their eyes and hearing with their ears, and that’s what they will try to do,” he said. “But I think that I think the video is — tells you everything, that I was there doing what I’m — I was there doing journalism, which is what I was supposed to be doing, which is what I went there to do, and that’s it.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Cities Church in St. Paul for comment about Lemon’s latest comments and Jonathan Parnell, lead pastor at Cities Church responded, “On Jan. 18, just as I was about to read from John 13 on Jesus’s command to love one another, a mob stormed into the house of God, a place of peace and refuge, and defiled it with rage. Many in our congregation fled, believing it to be an active shooter situation. The agitators accosted our people, terrified our children, and would not leave the sanctuary when asked. They gloated about shutting down our worship of Jesus. Everyone who invaded Cities Church that day was in on the terror.”
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Don Lemon speaks to the media after a hearing at the Edward R. Roybal Federal Courthouse in Los Angeles on Jan. 30, 2026. (Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images)
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The South Dakota Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at March 10, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Mega Millions numbers from March 10 drawing
16-21-30-35-65, Mega Ball: 07
Check Mega Millions payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from March 10 drawing
03-27-43-45-49, Bonus: 04
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize
- Prizes of $100 or less: Can be claimed at any South Dakota Lottery retailer.
- Prizes of $101 or more: Must be claimed from the Lottery. By mail, send a claim form and a signed winning ticket to the Lottery at 711 E. Wells Avenue, Pierre, SD 57501.
- Any jackpot-winning ticket for Dakota Cash or Lotto America, top prize-winning ticket for Lucky for Life, or for the second prizes for Powerball and Mega Millions must be presented in person at a Lottery office. A jackpot-winning Powerball or Mega Millions ticket must be presented in person at the Lottery office in Pierre.
When are the South Dakota Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
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- Dakota Cash: 9 p.m. CT on Wednesday and Saturday.
- Millionaire for Life: 10:15 p.m. CT daily.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a South Dakota editor. You can send feedback using this form.
Wisconsin
‘Not a hiding place’: Ogden police lauded for role in catching Nevada, Wisconsin murder suspects
OGDEN — In the last week, Ogden police have helped track down two suspects wanted outside of Utah in connection with separate homicides, which has Chief Jake Sube lauding the efforts of local law enforcement.
“Ogden is not a place where violent criminals come to run, hide or blend in. If you victimize people and come here to hide, we will find you,” he said in a social media post Tuesday.
In the most recent case, Ogden officials on Sunday arrested Randy Darius Jenks, 36, wanted in Mount Morris, Wisconsin, in connection with the death of his grandmother. The woman’s body had been discovered that same day at her Wisconsin home, according to court papers filed in 2nd District Court in Ogden as part of Jenks’ arrest accusing him of being a fugitive from justice.
On March 3, police arrested Ziaire Jacob Ham, 22, who is charged in Las Vegas with murder in the killing of a woman and a toddler, according to court papers and Sube’s statement. Ham had been spotted in Ogden by an Ogden officer and subsequently fled to Roy, where he was arrested.
“The arrest of these two individuals reflects exactly how we protect Ogden every day. We use technology, relentless police work and coordinated action with our regional partners to find violent offenders, take them into custody and deliver them to justice,” Sube said.
Ogden Mayor Ben Nadolski echoed Sube’s comments. “Ogden is not a hiding place,” he said.
Waushara County, Wisconsin, law enforcement officials found a dead woman on Sunday at a Mount Morris home. Jenks “admitted to multiple family members” that he had stabbed the woman in the neck and killed her, and then drove to Ogden, according to court papers filed in Ogden. Wisconsin authorities alerted Ogden officials, who were also alerted on Sunday by the man’s family here that he was in their home.
“Randy Jenks was located and taken into custody and officers noted the presence of blood on Randy’s person and clothing,” court documents state. Police body camera footage posted to the Ogden Police Department Facebook page shows Jenks surrendering to officers.
According to WLUK, a Green Bay, Wisconsin TV station, Jenks faces a count in Wisconsin of first-degree intentional homicide. The court papers filed in Ogden say Jenks confessed to killing his grandma, complaining that the woman “pushed him too far.” A bloody folding knife found in the Ogden home where Jenks had fled to is the weapon he used to kill the woman, with whom he lived, the charges allege.
In the Ham case, an Ogden officer on March 3 spotted a car that had been reported stolen out of Phoenix, Arizona, with Ham inside, driving. The officer attempted to pull him over, but Ham fled, eventually making it to Roy and abandoning his car. Authorities arrested him nearby.
Ham is charged in 2nd District Court with theft by receiving stolen property, a second-degree felony; failure to respond to an officer’s signal to stop, a third-degree felony; and reckless driving, a class B misdemeanor. According to court papers filed Tuesday, he has waived extradition to Las Vegas. Sube’s statement on Tuesday said Ham confessed to the killings in Nevada when interviewed by Ogden detectives.
Authorities said they thought Ham had discarded a gun somewhere between Ogden and Roy. Ogden police said Saturday that the gun had been located.
The Key Takeaways for this article were generated with the assistance of large language models and reviewed by our editorial team. The article, itself, is solely human-written.
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Former Presidents Barack Obama, Joe Biden and Bill Clinton are among the prominent guests Friday paying tribute to the late Rev. Jesse Jackson at his memorial service in Chicago.
Hundreds of people were seen lined up earlier Friday morning to enter the 10,000-seat House of Hope arena for the event remembering the longtime civil rights leader, two-time Democratic presidential candidate and founder of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition.
Former Vice President Kamala Harris, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Rev. Al Sharpton and California Gov. Gavin Newsom are some of the other notable attendees.
President Donald Trump, who is not attending the event, said on Feb. 17 following the 84-year-old’s death that he knew Jackson “well” and described him as “a good man.”
REV JESSE JACKSON, CIVIL RIGHTS LEADER AND RAINBOW PUSH FOUNDER, DIES AT 84
Former Vice President Kamala Harris, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former President Bill Clinton, former President Barack Obama, former First Lady Jill Biden and former President Joe Biden attend a public memorial service to celebrate the life of civil rights activist Rev. Jesse Jackson in Chicago, Ill., on March 6, 2026. (Kamil Krzaczynski/AFP via Getty Images)
The three former Democratic presidents, who are each scheduled to speak at the event, were met with cheers as they entered the House of Hope on Friday.
On the day of his death, Jackson’s family said, “It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of civil rights leader and founder of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, the Honorable Reverend Jesse Louis Jackson Sr.”
VANCE, HARRIS, OBAMA ISSUE TRIBUTES TO REV JESSE JACKSON
People gather for a memorial service for the late Rev. Jesse Jackson at the House of Hope in Chicago, on Friday, March 6, 2026. (Nam Y. Huh/AP)
“He died peacefully on Tuesday morning, surrounded by his family,” said a statement from Jackson’s family.
Former President Barack Obama and former President Bill Clinton arrive at a memorial service for the late Rev. Jesse Jackson at the House of Hope in Chicago, on Friday, March 6, 2026. (Nam Y. Huh/AP)
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“Our father was a servant leader — not only to our family, but to the oppressed, the voiceless, and the overlooked around the world,” the Jackson family added. “We shared him with the world, and in return, the world became part of our extended family. His unwavering belief in justice, equality, and love uplifted millions.”
Fox News’ Patrick McGovern and Bradford Betz contributed to this report.
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