The Justice Department has dropped its criminal prosecution of Palestinian professor and activist Sami Al-Arian. Al-Arian was first accused of ties to the group Palestinian Islamic Jihad, but a Florida jury failed to return a single guilty verdict on any of the 17 charges against him. After prosecutors refiled charges, Al-Arian chose jail time and then deportation rather than face a second trial and a lengthier sentence. Defense lawyers argued prosecutors then violated his plea deal by subsequently charging him for refusing to testify in cases that had nothing to do with his. On Friday, prosecutors said they would drop the contempt case “in light of the passage of time without resolution,” and in order to begin deportation proceedings. In a statement, the Al-Arian family said: “We hope today’s events bring to a conclusion the government’s pursuit of Dr. Al-Arian and that he can finally be able to resume his life with his family in freedom.”