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Lemon has reportedly attempted to defend himself by claiming he was acting as a journalist covering a story. Dhillon rejected that argument outright, saying such a claim will not “shield” him from prosecution or from the full application of federal law.
Federal officials explained that the Klan Act makes it illegal for individuals to conspire to terrorize, intimidate, or interfere with people who are lawfully exercising their civil rights. While the statute is most commonly associated with cases involving law enforcement misconduct, it can also be applied to civilians when a coordinated effort to violate civil rights is alleged.
Dhillon pointed out that the Biden administration itself has relied on the same law in other politically sensitive cases. She referenced instances in which the Department of Justice paired Klan Act conspiracy charges with violations of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act of 1994 in abortion clinic protest cases, allowing prosecutors to seek significantly longer sentences.
“We will pursue charges in this case,” Dhillon told Benny Johnson. “In other cases, the Biden DOJ used the Klan Act conspiracy charges tacked on to the FACE act in the case of protests outside abortion clinics, to bring much longer sentences. So there are a number of tools available to us.”
Beyond the immediate charges, Dhillon said the federal government is widening its investigation to determine whether additional crimes were committed. That includes looking into who funded the event, whether mail or wire services were used to organize the activists, and whether any participants crossed state lines—each of which could trigger further federal charges.
She emphasized that the statute is not some obscure legal relic, but a powerful and relevant civil rights law. “The Klan Act is one of the most important federal civil rights statutes… [It’s] a law that makes it illegal to terrorize citizens to violate the civil rights of citizens — to get together and conspire to violate the civil rights,” Dhillon said.
The case sends a clear message, according to federal officials, that high-profile status or media credentials do not provide immunity. Dhillon stressed that coordinated disruptions of religious services or other protected activities will be met with serious consequences.
“Everyone in the protest community needs to know that the fullest force of the federal government is going to come down and prevent this from happening and put people away for a long, long time,” Dhillon concluded.
As the investigation continues, the Lemon case is shaping up to be a major test of how aggressively the federal government is willing to apply civil rights laws against political activists—especially when those activists are well-known figures accustomed to friendly treatment from the media.
