Don Lemon Hires Ex-Prosecutor for Church Protest Trial

Former CNN anchor Don Lemon has bolstered his legal defense team by hiring Joseph H. Thompson, a former senior prosecutor in the Minnesota U.S. Attorney's Office, as he prepares for trial on federal charges stemming from his involvement in an anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement protest that disrupted a church service in St. Paul, Minnesota, last month.

The court filing announcing Thompson's addition came on Tuesday, ahead of Lemon's arraignment scheduled for February 13 in federal court. Thompson, who served 17 years in the office and acted as U.S. Attorney from June to October last year, resigned in mid-January along with several colleagues. His departure followed internal disagreements over the Justice Department's approach to immigration enforcement cases in the state, including the handling of a fatal shooting of Minneapolis resident Renee Good by an ICE agent. Thompson has since formed a law firm with another former prosecutor, Harry Jacobs, focusing on trial work.

Lemon, 59, faces two felony charges: conspiring to intimidate or violate the free exercise of religion and violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, known as the FACE Act. The law, enacted in...