The Justice Department has reportedly dropped its final criminal charge against a California union leader arrested during a protest against Immigration and Customs Enforcement, ending a closely watched case that drew sharp criticism from Democrats and organized labor.

According to Politico, federal prosecutors moved on Monday to dismiss the remaining misdemeanor charge against David Huerta, president of SEIU-United Service Workers West, who was arrested during an anti-ICE demonstration in Los Angeles last summer.

Huerta was originally charged with a felony count of conspiring to impede a federal officer before prosecutors later reduced the case to a misdemeanor. Under the agreement, Huerta must continue complying with the conditions of his bond.

The Justice Department maintained that the prosecution was based on Huerta's actions, not his political views.

In a statement, the department said the government "does not arrest people for peacefully protesting" and noted that Huerta "has not engaged in the same obstructive behavior that led to his arrest and criminal charges being filed against him."

U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli also pushed back on claims that dismissing the case amounted to an exoneration.

"This is not where he's been absolved of wrongdoing," Essayli told Politico. "He's accepted responsibility."

Huerta, however, celebrated the outcome, arguing in a statement that the government's decision confirms his claim that he was prosecuted for speaking out against the Trump administration's immigration policies.

He said the case was intended "to punish and silence me for exercising my constitutional rights."

Huerta added: "This means the government is finally admitting what we knew from day one and what was obvious to anyone who saw the videos: the charge against me was baseless, meant to intimidate anyone who dares to speak out, organize, or demand justice."

Huerta's arrest became a flashpoint in California as Democrat lawmakers and labor leaders rallied to his defense amid the Trump administration's stepped-up immigration enforcement efforts.

Politico also noted that the case follows other instances in which the Justice Department has struggled to secure convictions or indictments in cases involving people accused of obstructing ICE operations or assaulting federal immigration agents.

Huerta's attorneys, Abbe Lowell and Marilyn Bednarski, said the government's decision to abandon the prosecution underscores what they contend was a weak case from the beginning.

"This case revealed that the Department of Justice was willing to charge a labor leader with a crime, hold it over him for months, and then walk away from it once the charge couldn't survive scrutiny. That is not how a justice system is supposed to work," they said in a joint statement to Politico.