Cities Church Weighs Legal Action Against Anti-ICE Protesters Who Stormed Sunday Service

Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota, is considering litigation against the anti-ICE activists who disrupted a Sunday worship service on January 18.

The DOJ arrested three activists who disrupted the service: Nekima Levy Armstrong, Chauntyll Louisa Allen, and William Kelly. Federal authorities charged them under a law that bars obstructing access to houses of worship and related conspiracy statutes for interfering with constitutionally protected religious rights.

DOJ officials, including Attorney General Pam Bondi and civil-rights leadership, framed the action as enforcement of federal protections for places of worship, emphasizing that disrupting a service violates federal law. Bondi stated, “If you protested and went into that church on the Sunday and you terrorized the parishioners, we are coming after you. … We are coming after you if you participated in that. I don’t care who you are. If you’re a failed CNN journalist, you have no right to do that in this country. We don’t live in a third world country. We’re going to protect our houses of worship in this country.”

Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon echoed, “The JusticeDept will identify & hold accountable every person who unlawfully interrupted this church service. @AGPamBondi  and I will not tolerate harassment of Americans at worship—especially from agitators posing as ‘journalists.’”

Renee Carlson, General Counsel for True North Legal, which represents the church, told Fox & Friends on Monday morning, “What I would say here is we have a situation where rights were violated, those rights have to be protected, and there is a law here that can be accessed to ensure those protections. We are thankful that the Department of Justice is moving swiftly to make sure that happens, and the church will continue to evaluate their legal options to make sure that churches in Minnesota, and especially Cities Church, are protected.”

Last week, Carlson issued a statement in which she said, “The First Amendment does not allow premeditated plots or coordinated actions to violate the sanctity of a sanctuary, disrupt worship, and intimidate small children. There is no ‘press pass’ to invade a sanctuary or to conspire to interrupt religious services. The Constitution protects citizens from threats against fundamental rights by the government, but it also requires government to protect those same rights when they are jeopardized by private actors.”

Doug Wardlow, director of litigation for True North Legal, added, “The First Amendment protects the God-given rights of every American to assemble and to worship God. It does not give anyone the right to invade a church and terrorize worshippers. That’s a federal crime: the FACE Act prohibits intimidating or interfering with people worshipping in a church. It is outrageous that, instead of doing their jobs and protecting Minnesotans’ rights, state officials like Keith Ellison choose to mock the invasion of a church. … We are thankful for the Justice Department’s swift action, and we are exploring all legal options to protect the church and prevent further invasions.”