‘Gross Abuse of Power’: Minneapolis Mayor Condemns Trump DOJ for Indicting Protesters Who Stormed Church

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey holds a news conference as Police Chief Brian O’Hara listens, on Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jen Golbeck)(

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey (D) condemned President Donald Trump and the Department of Justice on Thursday after the arrest of two community organizers behind a controversial church protest.

“This is a gross abuse of power. The federal government is picking and choosing who to investigate – going after protestors and not the person who shot and killed one of our neighbors. I am calling for Nekima to be released immediately,” Frey wrote on X in reaction to Attorney General Pam Bondi’s announcement of the first arrests.

“More to come. WE WILL PROTECT OUR HOUSES OF WORSHIP,” Bondi wrote in X posts announcing the arrests of Chauntyll Louisa Allen, a St. Paul school board member and local organizer, and lawyer Nekima Levy Armstrong.

The protesters are accused of storming a Cities Church service in St. Paul, much of which was caught on camera by former CNN host Don Lemon. President Donald Trump himself has pushed the suggestion Lemon could face legal consequences too over the protest. A judge reportedly refused to sign a complaint bringing charges against Lemon, who continues to insist he was not aware of the specific plans of the protesters.

“Don Lemon, who’s a loser, lightweight. I saw him, the way he walked in that church. It was terrible. I have such respect for that pastor. He was so calm. He was so nice. He was just accosted. What they did in that church was horrible yesterday,” Trump said at a White House briefing.

The protest was one of many held in Minnesota after an ICE agent shot and killed 37-year-old mother Renee Good earlier this month.

Frey has already rejected ICE officials’ account of Good’s death, telling ICE after the shooting to “get the f*ck out of Minneapolis.” The city is currently suing the federal government over the deployment of agents.

Bondi said on Thursday that the two announced-arrests are just the beginning of what’s to come.

“We will share more updates as they become available. Listen loud and clear: WE DO NOT TOLERATE ATTACKS ON PLACES OF WORSHIP,” she wrote.

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