California labor leader charged with impeding officer during immigration crackdown

Huerta is president of Service Employees International Union California, which represents thousands of janitors, security officers and other workers in the state.

The SEIU held a large rally in downtown Los Angeles Monday in support of Huerta and to stand up for his right to observe and document law enforcement activity. Union leaders from across the state led the crowd in chants of “Free Huerta now!”

Demonstrations were also planned in at least a dozen cities, from Boston to Denver.

The union has been a strong Democratic supporter, and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and California's two Democratic senators wrote a letter to federal officials demanding answers regarding Huerta's arrest. California Sen. Adam Schiff was at the court ahead of Huerta's hearing.

“It is deeply troubling that a U.S. citizen, union leader, and upstanding member of the Los Angeles community continues to be detained by the federal government for exercising his rights to observe immigration enforcement,” the senators wrote.

Protests broke out last week in response to reports of immigration raids in the nation's second-largest city. Tensions have since escalated with thousands of protesters taking to the streets after Trump took the extraordinary move of deploying the National Guard. Demonstrators blocked a major freeway and set self-driving cars on fire as law enforcement used tear gas and rubber bullets to control the crowd.

Huerta was arrested Friday when law enforcement officers were executing a federal search warrant at a Los Angeles business suspected of hiring illegal immigrants and falsifying employment papers, a special agent for Homeland Security Investigations, which is part of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, wrote in a court filing.

A crowd of people including Huerta gathered outside the business yelling at the officers. Huerta sat down in front of a vehicular gate and encouraged others to walk in circles to try to prevent law enforcement from going in or out, the agent wrote, adding it was clear “he and the others had planned in advance of arrival to disrupt the operation.”

A law enforcement officer approached Huerta and told him 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.

“Let me be clear: I don’t care who you are—if you impede federal agents, you will be arrested and prosecuted,” Bill Essayli, U.S. Attorney in Los Angeles, said in a post on X. “No one has the right to assault, obstruct, or interfere with federal authorities carrying out their duties.”

Messages left for Huerta's attorney, Marilyn Bednarski, have not been returned.

The SEIU said in a statement that the union condemns the immigration raids and will continue to protect workers' rights.

“We demand David Huerta’s immediate release and an end to these abusive workplace raids,” said April Verrett, SEIU’s international president.

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Taxin reported from Santa Ana, California.