The charges against Doug "Mr. Natural Universe" Burns, who police say resisted arrest and assaulted an officer in April outside a movie theater in downtown Redwood City, were dropped Wednesday by the San Mateo County District Attorney's Office.

Burns, 43, has maintained that he was unaware of his actions during the incident, which the diabetic bodybuilder claims occurred as a result of insulin shock.

But prosecutors had steadfastly refused to drop the charges, claiming Burns needed to provide more medical evidence that he is, in fact, a type 1 diabetic who suffered insulin shock at the time of the incident.

The district attorney's office and Burns' defense attorney had spent the past two months wrangling over the required medical evidence, but the issue began moving quietly toward a resolution two weeks ago, according to Chief Deputy District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe, after Burns supplied more detailed information of his condition.

Several days ago, prosecutors discussed the evidence with an endocrinologist, and on Wednesday, Wagstaffe dropped the charges, proclaiming "that (Burns) has a valid defense of unconsciousness -- that he was not aware of what he was doing at the time of the conduct.

"We did the right thing today -- we dismissed the charges -- and I think the members of our community can be satisfied that we did handle the situation in a proper manner," Wagstaffe said.

"Obviously, we're very pleased," said defense attorney Micah Jacobs. "It does send a message out to those who are suffering from diabetes that law enforcement will take seriously the issues facing diabetics."

Burns, the reigning winner of the Mr. Natural Universe event, a steroid-free competition for bodybuilders, said Wednesday afternoon that he felt "vindicated" now that he does not have to stand trial for alleged crimes that he only committed unconsciously, if at all.

Burns recalls that he went to see a 7 p.m. movie at the Century 20 movie theater, but a security guard ejected him from the theater lobby, mistaking his insulin shock for an alcohol- ordrug-induced stupor.

Burns, who remembers that he had gone to the lobby to search for popcorn to deal with his insulin shock, was standing in front of the theater when two police officers attempted to prevent him from re- entering the building, according to police reports. The reports state that Burns reportedly "lunged" at an officer and that several police officers were called to forcibly subdue the 207-pound bodybuilder.

Witness statements indicate that Burns struggled with officers during the arrest, but Burns maintains that he was unaware of his actions due to his condition. According to paramedics, who treated Burns at the scene, the bodybuilder's blood sugar was extremely low.

Jacobs has stated that Burns' low blood sugar, documented in the police reports, should have been enough evidence for the district attorney's office never to have pressed charges in the first place.

Only, according to Wagstaffe, "it was necessary to go through this process, because we had police officers who were victims."

One officer suffered "a major shoulder injury" during the incident, while another's finger was slightly cut, said Wagstaffe.

Meanwhile, Jacobs claims that Burns' scuffle with police has caused nerve damage in the bodybuilder's right arm and prevented him from training.

Burns previously said he planned to file a civil suit against the Redwood City Police Department. Now, however, he said he would prefer working with the department to educate officers about diabetes.

"My concern is that this doesn't happen to someone else, and probably the best thing to do would be to try to work in a positive light," he said.

"Suing them is like trying to punish (police) for what they did, and that's not what Doug wants to accomplish," said Amy Tenderich, a Millbrae-based diabetes advocate who edits Diabetesmine.com, a popular blog on the medical condition. "He wants to help prepare and train the authorities to better deal with these situations going forward."

Burns, a board member of the Silicon Valley branch of the American Diabetes Association, said he is talking with the ADA about producing a training video to educate police departments about diabetes-related insulin shock. The Redwood City Police Department, he added, also has been receptive to better preparing its officers about the medical condition and its potential effects.

Wagstaffe applauded Burns' decision to use the incident as an educational opportunity.

"Mr. Burns can take the approach that the police and the officers are ogres ... for what they did, or we could turn this into a positive and bring more community awareness to what diabetes is and what diabetics go through."

Burns, a father of three, expressed gratitude that prosecutors have dropped the charges against him, optimism that international media attention on his case had improved diabetes awareness, and relief that he could finally put this chapter of his life behind him.