In Los Angeles, the head of a Southern California labor union, arrested during a protest against an immigration raid earlier this year, will see his felony obstruction charge downgraded to a misdemeanor, as indicated by court documents.
David Huerta had initially faced a charge of obstructing, resisting, or opposing a federal officer, categorized as a class A felony, according to a document submitted by Acting U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli in federal court on Friday.
On Saturday, prosecutors filed a request to dismiss the original felony charge of conspiracy to impede an officer without prejudice, suggesting a reduction in the severity of the charges.
The Justice Department confirmed on Saturday via email to The Associated Press that they had moved to withdraw the felony complaint against Huerta.
Huerta serves as the president of the Service Employees International Union California. His arrest took place on June 6 during a protest at a Los Angeles business under investigation by federal agents for suspected immigration violations.
A group of protesters gathered, shouting at the officers, while Huerta positioned himself in front of a vehicular gate, urging others to circle around to hinder law enforcement’s movement, according to a special agent from Homeland Security Investigations, which operates under Immigration and Customs Enforcement, in an earlier federal court document.
An officer told Huerta to leave, then put his hands on Huerta to move him out of the way of a vehicle, the agent wrote. Huerta pushed back, and the officer pushed Huerta to the ground and arrested him, according to the filing.
Huerta later was released from federal custody on a $50,000 bond.
Huerta’s union represents hundreds of thousands of janitors, security officers and other workers across California. His arrest became a rallying cry for immigrant advocates across the country as they called for his release and an end to President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown.
Abbe David Lowell and Marilyn Bednarski, Huerta’s attorneys, said in a statement that they will seek “the speediest trial” to vindicate him.
“In the four months that have passed since David’s arrest. it has become even clearer there were no grounds for charging him and certainly none for the way he was treated,” they wrote. “This case is not a good-faith pursuit of justice but a bald act of retaliation, designed to silence dissent and punish opposition. It reflects the Trump Administration’s continued weaponization of prosecutorial power against its perceived opponents.”
