Los Angeles, CA - Today, following the announcement that the United States Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California has filed a misdemeanor charge of obstruction against David Huerta, president of SEIU California State Council and SEIU-United Service Workers West (USWW), the following statements were released:

Statement from SEIU-United Service Workers West (SEIU-USWW), SEIU California State Council, and the Service Employees International Union on the misdemeanor charges being brought against union President David Huerta:

“Four months ago, SEIU California and SEIU-USWW President David Huerta was thrown to the ground, tackled, pepper sprayed, and detained by federal agents while exercising his constitutional rights at an ICE raid in Los Angeles. As the video of his arrest went viral, David’s courage showed the world what it means to peacefully stand up for immigrant workers and for all workers.

“Despite David’s harsh treatment at the hands of law enforcement, he is now facing an unjust charge. This administration has turned the military against our own people, terrorizing entire communities, and even detaining U.S. citizens who are exercising their constitutional rights to speak out.

“Standing up for immigrants is not a crime. While ICE continues its cowardly raids while refusing to show their faces, SEIU members – of every race and background across California and our country – are proud to stand up for David Huerta just as he stood up for all of us. We will keep fighting until every worker and every family is safe from raids, separation, and fear.”

Statement from David Huerta:

“We are witnessing a deliberate and escalating campaign of fear that targets workers, immigrants, and entire communities. These are not isolated incidents, they are part of a broader strategy to silence dissent, criminalize resistance, and erode the foundations of our democracy.

“The baseless charges brought against me are not just about me, they are meant to intimidate anyone who dares to speak out, organize, or demand justice. I will not be silenced.

“I am being targeted for exercising my constitutional rights for standing up against an administration that has declared open war on working families, immigrants, and basic human dignity. If the goal was to instill fear, it has failed.

“Across this country, families are being separated. People are being taken from their homes and neighborhoods by masked agents. They are being harassed at work, intimidated in schools, and detained without due process. This is not public safety - it is state repression.

“But we are not afraid. We will not be silenced. We will not be divided. And we will not stop fighting for justice, for dignity, and for a future rooted in freedom and solidarity.”

Statement from Mr. Huerta’s Counsel, Abbe David Lowell, Lowell & Associates & Marilyn Bednarski, Clane, Bednarski + Litt, LLP:

“It’s clear that David Huerta is being singled out not for anything he did but for who he is -- a life-long workers’ advocate who has been an outspoken critic of its immigration policies. These charges are a clear attempt to silence a leading voice who dared to challenge a cruel, politically driven campaign of fear.

“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. 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. That is not how justice works in a free society, it is how power is abused in one.

“We will seek the speediest trial to vindicate David.”

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