Leonard Peltier remains defiant in AP interview, maintaining innocence and vowing continued activism

February 28, 2025:

BELCOURT, N.D. (AP) — More than 50 years after a shootout on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation landed him in federal prison, Leonard Peltier remains defiant. He maintains his innocence in the deaths of two FBI agents in 1975. President Joe Biden commuted Peltier’s life sentence so he could return to the Turtle Mountain Reservation, his tribal homeland in North Dakota. He says he will spend the rest of his life fighting for Native American rights. Peltier was part of a movement in the late 1960s and 1970s that fought for Native American rights and tribal self-determination, sometimes resulting in the occupation of federal and tribal property.

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BELCOURT, N.D. (AP) — More than 50 years after a shootout on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation landed him in federal prison, Leonard Peltier remains defiant.

He maintains his innocence in the deaths of two FBI agents in 1975 and sees his newfound freedom — the result of a commutation from former President Joe Biden — as the beginning of a new phase of his activism.

“I’m going to spend the rest of my life fighting for our people, because we ain’t finished yet. We’re still in danger,” Peltier, now 80, said in an exclusive interview with The Associated Press at his new home on the Turtle Mountain Reservation, his tribal homeland in North Dakota, near the Canadian border.

There among the rolling, often snow-covered hills, he will serve out the rest of his sentence on house arrest.

Born into an era of violent hostility between the American government and Indigenous peoples, the former American Indian Movement member has now stepped into another politically volatile moment in the country. He said he understands well the threats the rise of the far right, as well as the federal government, pose to tribal nations and Indigenous peoples. He believes that, like previous administrations, President Donald Trump will come for mineral and oil on tribal lands.

“You don’t have to get violent, you don’t have to do nothing like that. Just get out there and stand up,” he told AP this week, in his first sit-down conversation with a journalist in over 30 years. “We got to resist.”

The FBI and Native American activists: A volatile mix

Peltier was part of a movement in the late 1960s and 1970s that fought for Native American rights and tribal self-determination, sometimes occupying federal and tribal property.

The movement grabbed headlines in 1973 when it took over the village of Wounded Knee on Pine Ridge, leading to a 71-day standoff with federal agents. They also protested at Alcatraz and the Bureau of Indian Affairs headquarters. For many members of the American Indian Movement, or AIM, their activism was part of legacy of resistance stretching back to the country’s founding.

The day of the shootout came amid heightened tensions on the Pine Ridge reservation, where residents felt the FBI’s heavy presence was a threat to the people’s autonomy. Peltier and other AIM members got into a confrontation with agents Jack Coler and Ron Williams when the agents drove onto a rural property where the AIM members were staying. Both agents were shot and killed, along with Joseph Stuntz, another AIM member.

The FBI says Peltier shot the agents at close range. In a letter sent to Biden last year opposing his release, former FBI director Christopher Wray called Peltier a “remorseless killer.”

His guilt is clear to many, including North Dakota Gov. Kelly Armstrong.

“More than 20 federal judges upheld his conviction, and he was denied parole as recently as last July,” Armstrong said in a statement to the AP. “There was no legal justification for his release. He should still be in prison.”

Peltier was not pardoned; Biden said he was commuting Peltier’s sentence because of his age, his declining health, and the long period he had already been in prison.

Peltier has acknowledged he was at the shootout, but says he acted in self-defense and wasn’t the one whose bullets killed the agents. He believes the FBI and prosecutors were looking for someone to take the blame, after his two co-defendants were exonerated for self-defense.

“They wanted revenge, and they didn’t know who was responsible,” Peltier told the AP from the kitchen table of his new home. “And they said ‘Put the full weight of the American government on Leonard Peltier, we need a conviction.’ And when they say that you don’t have no rights,” he said.

Amnesty International and scores of political leaders around the world called Peltier a political prisoner of the U.S., questioning the fairness of his trial and conviction. James Reynolds, the former U.S. Attorney who oversaw Peltier’s conviction, urged clemency in a letter to Biden in 2021, acknowledging that prosecutors couldn’t prove Peltier fired the fatal shots and calling his imprisonment “unjust”.

His grandson, Cyrus Peltier, remembers visiting him every weekend at Leavenworth, a federal prison in Kansas. He didn’t always understand why his grandfather wouldn’t just tell the parole board he was sorry for the crimes, and hopefully win his freedom.

“And he would say ‘Well, that’s just not what I’m fighting for, grandson,’” Cyrus Peltier, now 39, recalled from his home in North Dakota this week. ”‘I’m sorry for what happened to those agents, but I’m not going to sit here and admit to something I didn’t do. And if I have to die in here for that, I’m going to.’”

A life behind bars, but always hope for freedom

In prison, Peltier’s fame only grew, as he amassed the support of prominent political leaders around the globe and celebrities in the U.S. and became a symbol of the injustices against Native Americans.

He said it was all their letters of support and acts of protest for his release that kept him going.

Peltier said there were moments in the last few years where he began to lose hope that he would ever see freedom. His denial of parole in July was another crushing blow.

“They gave me the strength to stay alive and to know what I was in prison for,” he said.

Many Indigenous people, leaders, and organizers lobbied for decades for Peltier’s release.

However, some who believe Peltier was involved in the murder of AIM member Anna Mae Pictou Aquash in 1975, fought against his release. Two other AIM members were convicted of the crime.

“Their ability to say that he is free and he gets to go home negates the whole fact that Anna Mae never got to go home,” said Aquash’s daughter, Denise Pictou Maloney.

In his interview with the AP, Peltier denied having any knowledge of Aquash’s death.

‘I didn’t give my life for nothing’

In the end, Biden listened to the counsel of former Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, a member of the Pueblo of Laguna and the first Native American to lead the Interior Department. Pelltier was released on Feb. 18, and returned to North Dakota.

A week later, he still often wakes up at night terrified that it is all a dream and that he is still in a cell.

Peltier remains confined to his home and nearby community. But he now has access to routine medical treatment for his many health issues, including an aortic aneurysm. He gets around with the help of a cane or a walker.

He is heartened by the many people who come to visit him and drop off gifts like beaded medallions, letters and artwork, which are piling up in his home.

Peltier wants to make a living selling his paintings, as he did in prison, and plans to write more books. He also wants to train young activists about the threats they will face.

When he was in prison, lying in his bunk at night, he would often wonder if his protest efforts resulted in any change. Seeing young Native activists today continuing to fight for the same things gives meaning to the 49 years he was incarcerated.

“It makes me feel so good, man, it does,” he said, holding back tears. “I’m thinking, well, I didn’t give my life for nothing.”

February 20, 2025:

BELCOURT, N.D. (AP) — Native American activist Leonard Peltier was defiant toward the government but grateful for his supporters as they welcomed him home to North Dakota on Wednesday (Feb. 19, 2025), a day after his release from a Florida prison where he had been serving a life sentence in the 1975 killings of two FBI agents.

Peltier, 80, grew emotional as he addressed about 500 people who gathered at the festive event that included food, a drum circle and dancers at a center in Belcourt. The small town is just south of the Canadian border on the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians’ reservation.

“I’m so proud of the showing and support you’ve given me,” Peltier said. “I’ve got a hard time keeping myself from crying. A strong warrior can’t be up crying in front of his people.”

Then-President Joe Biden commuted Peltier’s life sentence to home confinement, leading to his release Tuesday from the Coleman penitentiary. Peltier was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder and given two consecutive life sentences stemming from a 1975 confrontation on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota.

FBI agents Jack Coler and Ronald Williams were killed, and while Peltier acknowledged firing shots during the confrontation, he denied being the person whose shots killed the men. Native Americans widely believe he was a political prisoner who was wrongly convicted because he fought for Indigenous rights as a member of the American Indian Movement.

For years, many in law enforcement argued against freeing Peltier. Current and former FBI agents disputed his claims of innocence. As Biden considered his options as his term ended, former FBI Director Christopher Wray sent the president a letter in which he called Peltier “a remorseless killer” who should remain in prison.

In a statement about the commutation, Biden said numerous individuals and groups supported releasing Peltier due to the time he spent in prison, his age and his leadership role among Native Americans.

For decades, Peltier has maintained he was innocent of the murder charges, and he said Wednesday: “I spent 49 years straight in prison for something I didn’t do.”

Peltier said he went into prison a young man and emerged far older at age 80. During all that time, Peltier said he tried to keep Native American issues in the forefront of his activism, and he thanked tribes across the nation for their decades of support.

“From day one, from the first hour I was arrested, Indian people came to my rescue, from all over the country,” Peltier said.

Tribal leaders presented Peltier with an eagle feather staff that supporters had carried to Washington, D.C., and other places as they campaigned for his release, and a traditional star quilt that Peltier draped over his shoulder.

Nick Tilsen, an Oglala Lakota and founder of the NDN Collective, an Indigenous-led advocacy group, paid tribute to Peltier and his generation of American Indian Movement leaders for standing up “against the most powerful government in the world. And they instilled that pride back into our people. They instilled that fight back into our people.”

“All around the world, Leonard Peltier’s name will be remembered as a warrior, as a warrior who outlasted one of the strongest governments in the world, and came out victorious.”

Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Tribal Chair Jamie Azure said the welcome shown by hundreds of people at the event was a testament to what he means to the tribe and other Native Americans.

“What I think you can see from the turnout here today, it means a lot to a lot of people on a lot of different levels to see Mr. Peltier come back to his homeland, to just be home,” Azure said.

As tribal member Denise Lajimodiere said, “It’s a big day. A day of celebration.”

February 19, 2025:

BELCOURT, N.D. (AP) — Supporters of Native American activist Leonard Peltier plan to welcome him back to his North Dakota community on Wednesday (Feb. 19, 2025), a day after his release from a Florida prison where he had been serving a life sentence in the 1975 killings of two FBI agents.

Peltier, 80, is expected to join family and supporters at an events center in Belcourt, a small town just south of the Canadian border on the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians’ reservation.

“We’re so excited for this moment,” Jenipher Jones, one of Peltier’s attorneys said soon before his release. “He is in good spirits. He has the soul of a warrior.”

FBI agents Jack Coler and Ronald Williams were killed, and while Peltier acknowledged firing shots during the confrontation, he denied being the person whose shots killed the men. Native Americans widely believe he was a political prisoner who was wrongly convicted because he fought for tribal rights as a member of the American Indian Movement.

Some in law enforcement have argued for years against freeing Peltier. As Biden considered his options as his term ended, former FBI Director Christopher Wray sent the president a letter in which he called Peltier “a remorseless killer” who should remain in prison.

February 18, 2025, update:

SUMTERVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Native American activist Leonard Peltier was released from a Florida prison on Tuesday (Feb. 18, 2025), weeks after then-President Joe Biden angered law enforcement officials by commuting his life sentence in the 1975 killings of two FBI agents.

For nearly half a century, Peltier’s imprisonment has symbolized systemic injustice for Native Americans across the country who believe in his innocence. The decision to release the 80-year-old to home confinement was celebrated by supporters.

“He represents every person who’s been roughed up by a cop, profiled, had their children harassed at school,” said Nick Estes, a professor of American Indian Studies at the University of Minnesota and a member of the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe who advocated for Peltier’s release.

But the move just before Biden left office also prompted criticism from those who say Peltier is guilty, including former FBI Director Christopher Wray, who called him “a remorseless killer” in a private letter to Biden obtained by The Associated Press.

“Granting Peltier any relief from his conviction or sentence is wholly unjustified and would be an affront to the rule of law,” Wray wrote.

The commutation was not a pardon for crimes committed, something Peltier’s advocates have hoped for since he has always maintained his innocence.

Peltier left the prison Tuesday morning in an SUV, according to a prison official. He didn’t stop to speak with reporters or his supporters outside the gates.

One of his attorneys, Jenipher Jones, said Peltier was looking forward to going home.

“We’re so excited for this moment,” Jones said. “He is in good spirits. He has the soul of a warrior.”

After being released from USP Coleman, a high-security prison, Peltier planned to return to North Dakota, where he is expected to celebrate with friends and family on Wednesday.

Biden commuted Peltier’s sentence Jan. 20, noting he had spent most of his life in prison and was now in poor health.

“We never thought he would get out,” Ray St. Clair, a member of the White Earth Band of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe, said shortly before Peltier’s release. “It shows you should never give up hope. We can take this repairing the damage that was done. This is a start.”

Peltier, an enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians in North Dakota, was active in the American Indian Movement, which beginning in the 1960s fought for Native American treaty rights and tribal self-determination.

The group grabbed headlines in 1969 when activists occupied the former prison island of Alcatraz in the San Francisco Bay, and again in 1972, when they presented presidential candidates with a list of demands including the restoration of tribal land. After they were ignored, they seized the headquarters of the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

From then on, the group was subject to FBI surveillance and harassment under a covert program that sought to disrupt activism and was exposed in 1975.

Peltier’s conviction stemmed from a confrontation that year on the Oglala Sioux Indian Reservation in Pine Ridge, South Dakota, in which FBI agents Jack Coler and Ronald Williams were killed. According to the FBI, the agents were there to serve arrest warrants for robbery and assault with a dangerous weapon.

Prosecutors maintained at trial that Peltier shot both agents in the head at point-blank range. Peltier acknowledged being present and firing a gun at a distance, but he said he fired in self-defense. A woman who claimed to have seen Peltier shoot the agents later recanted her testimony, saying it had been coerced.

He was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder and given two consecutive life sentences.

Two other movement members, co-defendants Robert Robideau and Dino Butler, were acquitted on the grounds of self-defense.

Peltier was denied parole as recently as July and was not eligible to be considered for it again until 2026.

“Leonard Peltier’s release is the right thing to do given the serious and ongoing human rights concerns about the fairness of his trial, his nearly 50 years behind bars, his health and his age,” Paul O’Brien, executive director with Amnesty International USA, said in a statement before Peltier’s release. “While we welcome his release from prison, he should not be restricted to home confinement.”

Prominent Native American groups like the National Congress of the American Indian have called for Peltier’s release for decades, and Amnesty International considered him a political prisoner. Prominent supporters over the years included South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu, civil rights icon Coretta Scott King, actor and director Robert Redford and musicians Pete Seeger, Harry Belafonte and Jackson Browne.

Generations of Indigenous activists and leaders lobbied multiple presidents to pardon Peltier. Former Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, a member of the Pueblo of Laguna and the first Native American to hold the secretary’s position, praised Biden’s decision.

“I am grateful that Leonard can now go home to his family,” she said Jan. 20 in a post on X. “I applaud President Biden for this action and understanding what this means to Indian Country.”

As a young child, Peltier was taken from his family and sent to a boarding school. Thousands of Indigenous children over decades faced the same fate, and were in many cases subjected to systemic physical, psychological and sexual abuse.

“He hasn’t really had a home since he was taken away to boarding school,” said Nick Tilsen, who has been advocating for Peltier’s release since he was a teen and is CEO of NDN Collective, an Indigenous-led advocacy group based in South Dakota. “So he is excited to be at home and paint and have grandkids running around.”

February 18, 2025:

UNDATED (AP)- Indigenous activist Leonard Peltier is set to be released from a Florida prison Tuesday (Feb. 18, 2025) based on former President Joe Biden having commuted his life sentence for the 1975 killings of two FBI agents, a decision that elated Peltier’s supporters while angering law enforcement officials who believe in his guilt.

But the last-minute move as Biden was leaving office also prompted criticism from those who say Peltier is guilty, including former FBI Director Christopher Wray, who called him “a remorseless killer” in a private letter to Biden that was obtained by The Associated Press.

“Granting Peltier any relief from his conviction or sentence is wholly unjustified and would be an affront to the rule of law,” Wray wrote.

The commutation was not a pardon for crimes committed, something that Peltier’s advocates have hoped for since he has always maintained his innocence.

Peltier, an enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa in North Dakota, was active in the American Indian Movement, which beginning in the 1960s fought for Native American treaty rights and tribal self-determination.

The group grabbed headlines in 1969, when activists occupied the former prison island of Alcatraz in the San Francisco Bay, and again in 1972, when they presented presidential candidates with a list of demands including the restoration of tribal land. After they were ignored, they seized the headquarters of the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

From then on the group was subject to FBI surveillance and harassment under a covert program that sought to disrupt activism and was exposed in 1975.

Peltier’s conviction stemmed from a confrontation that same year on the Oglala Sioux Indian Reservation in Pine Ridge, South Dakota, in which FBI agents Jack Coler and Ronald Williams were killed. According to the FBI, the agents were there to serve arrest warrants for robbery and assault with a dangerous weapon.

Prosecutors maintained at trial that Peltier shot both agents in the head at point-blank range. Peltier acknowledged being present and firing a gun at a distance, but said he fired in self-defense. A woman who claimed to have seen Peltier shoot the agents later recanted her testimony, saying it had been coerced.

He was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder and given two consecutive life sentences.

Two other movement members, co-defendants Robert Robideau and Dino Butler, were acquitted on the grounds of self-defense.

Peltier was denied parole as recently as July and was not eligible to be considered for it again until 2026.

“Leonard Peltier’s release is the right thing to do given the serious and ongoing human rights concerns about the fairness of his trial, his nearly 50 years behind bars, his health and his age,” said Paul O’Brien, executive director with Amnesty International USA in a statement. “While we welcome his release from prison, he should not be restricted to home confinement.”

Prominent Native American groups like the National Congress of the American Indian have called for Peltier’s release for decades, and Amnesty International considered him a political prisoner. Prominent supporters included South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu, civil rights icon Coretta Scott King, actor and director Robert Redford and musicians Pete Seeger, Harry Belafonte and Jackson Browne.

“I am grateful that Leonard can now go home to his family,” she said Jan. 20 in a post on the social platform X. “I applaud President Biden for this action and understanding what this means to Indian Country.”

JANUARY 20, 2025:

WASHINGTON (AP) — Just moments before leaving office, President Joe Biden commuted the life sentence of Indigenous activist Leonard Peltier, who was convicted in the 1975 killings of two FBI agents.

Peltier was denied parole as recently as July 2024 and wasn’t eligible for parole again until 2026. He was serving life in prison for the killings during a standoff on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. He will transition to home confinement, Biden said in a statement.

Biden issued a record number of individual pardons and commutations. He announced Friday (Jan. 17, 2025) that he was commuting the sentences of almost 2,500 people convicted of nonviolent drug offenses. He also gave a broad pardon for his son Hunter, who was prosecuted for gun and tax crimes.

Chauncey Peltier, who was 10 when his father was locked up, was shocked and thrilled.

“It means my dad finally gets to go home,” Peltier said. “One of the biggest rights violation cases in history and one of the longest-held political prisoners in the United States. And he gets to go home finally. Man, I can’t explain how I feel.”

Peltier’s tribe, the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa, has a home ready for him on the Turtle Mountain Indian Reservation in Belcourt, North Dakota, his son said.

On Monday, Biden also pardoned Gerald Lundergan, a Democrat who served in the Kentucky state House of Representatives. He was convicted of making illegal campaign contributions to his daughter’s failed U.S. Senate campaign. Ernest William Cromartie, a former Columbia, South Carolina, city council member who was convicted of tax evasion, also was pardoned.

Bureau of Prisons spokesperson Emery Nelson said Peltier remained incarcerated Monday at USP Coleman, a high-security prison in Florida.

Outgoing Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, the first Native American Cabinet member, posted on X that the commutation of Peltier’s sentence ″signifies a measure of justice that has long evaded so many Native Americans for so many decades. I am grateful that Leonard can now go home to his family. I applaud President Biden for this action and understanding what this means to Indian Country.”

The fight for Peltier’s freedom is entangled with the Indigenous rights movements. Nearly half a century later, his name remains a rallying cry.

Peltier was active in the American Indian Movement, which began in the 1960s as a group that grappled with police brutality and discrimination against Native Americans. It quickly became a national force.

The movement grabbed headlines in 1973 when it took over the village of Wounded Knee on Pine Ridge — the Oglala Lakota Nation’s reservation — leading to a 71-day standoff with federal agents. Tensions between the movement and the government remained high for years.

On June 26, 1975, agents went to Pine Ridge to serve arrest warrants amid battles over Native treaty rights and self-determination.

After being injured in a shootout, agents Jack Coler and Ronald Williams were shot in the head at close range, the FBI said. AIM member Joseph Stuntz was also killed in the shootout.

Two other movement members and Peltier’s co-defendants, Robert Robideau and Dino Butler, were acquitted in the killings of Coler and Williams.

After fleeing to Canada , Peltier was extradited to the United States and convicted of two counts of first-degree murder. He was sentenced in 1977 to life in prison despite defense claims that evidence against him had been falsified.

Biden’s action Monday follows decades of lobbying and protests by Native American leaders, human rights activists, liberal lawmakers and celebrities who maintain Peltier was wrongfully convicted. Amnesty International has long considered him a political prisoner. Advocates for his release have included Archbishop Desmond Tutu, civil rights icon Coretta Scott King, actor and director Robert Redford and musicians Pete Seeger, Harry Belafonte and Jackson Browne.

Law enforcement officers, former FBI agents, their families and prosecutors strongly opposed a pardon or any reduction in Peltier’s sentence. Democratic Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama rejected Peltier’s clemency requests, and he was denied parole in 1993, 2009 and 2024.

The No Parole Peltier Association, led by former FBI agents, issued a statement condemning the action and suggesting Biden signed it “mindlessly.”

“There is little doubt that the President failed to understand the details of the line-of-duty killings of FBI Agents Jack R. Coler and Ronald A. Williams,” the group said in a statement. “Certainly, the President did not see the dreadful crime scene photograph.”

Peltier’s supporters pushed Biden to act because Peltier is 80 and has health problems, including diabetes, high blood pressure, heart trouble and an aortic aneurysm discovered in 2016, according to his lawyers. His backers worried that he would not get another chance at parole or a compassionate release before dying behind bars.

Peltier’s attorney, Kevin Sharp, celebrated Peltier’s commutaion and insisted there was never any evidence that proved Peltier was guilty.

“It recognizes the injustice of what happened in Mr. Peltier’s case,” Sharp, a former federal judge, said. “And it sends a signal to Native Americans in Indian country that their concerns — what has happened to them and their treatment — isn’t going to be ignored. It’s a step toward reconciliation and healing.”

In response to news that President Biden has commuted the life sentence of Indigenous elder and activist Leonard Peltier, Paul O’Brien, executive director of Amnesty International USA, made the following statement:

“President Biden was right to commute the life sentence of Indigenous elder and activist Leonard Peltier given the serious human rights concerns about the fairness of his trial. Amnesty International has advocated for the U.S. government to grant Leonard Peltier clemency for years, following the leadership of Tribal Nations and Indigenous Peoples.”

“This is a truly historic day,” declared National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) President Christopher A. Wellborn of Rock Hill, S.C. who, in partnership with Indigenous leaders, notably Holly Cook Macarro, who leads Government Affairs for the NDN Collective, had sent President Biden a letter urging clemency for Mr. Peltier. “After decades of tireless advocacy by Indigenous communities, human rights organizations, and countless individuals from Nelson Mandela to Pope Francis, a measure of mercy has finally been served for Leonard Peltier. His conviction has long been a stain on the American justice system, a symbol of systemic racism and the erosion of due process.”

Wellborn continued, “Mr. Peltier’s case has served as a stark reminder of the profound injustices faced by Indigenous peoples throughout our nation’s history. His decades-long imprisonment is a testament to the urgent need for criminal legal reform and the recognition of Indigenous rights. President Biden’s decision to grant clemency to Mr. Peltier sends a powerful message of hope and reconciliation.” “We applaud President Biden for his courage and compassion in this matter,” Wellborn concluded. “This act of clemency will not only bring a merciful measure of relief to Mr. Peltier and his family but will also serve as a beacon of hope for countless others who have been unjustly impacted by the criminal legal system.”

South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley released this statement following former President Biden’s decision to commute the sentence (Jan. 20, 2025) of Leonard Peltier from life in prison to serving the remainder of his sentence in home confinement: “The Attorney General’s Office strongly opposes this action and has in recent months argued against any change in the defendant’s sentence. He was convicted in the 1975 cold-blooded murders of FBI Special Agents Ronald Williams and Jack Coler on the Pine Ridge Reservation. That conviction has been reviewed and upheld by no fewer than 22 federal judges since then. Former Gov. Janklow, who was Attorney General at the time of the murders, also opposed any reduction or change in sentence. I was the prosecutor in the Annie Mae Aquash murder trial that elicited the testimony from the witness recounting how Peltier described in his own words executing the FBI Special Agent by shooting him through his hand raised to protect himself into the face. The Attorney General’s Office will continue to stand with, and protect, law enforcement.”

SEPTEMBER 11, 2024:

As Indigenous elder and activist Leonard Peltier approaches his 80th birthday on September 12, 2024, Amnesty International USA has written a letter to President Biden again urging him to grant clemency for Peltier and to release him immediately.

Peltier has been incarcerated for nearly 50 years despite serious and ongoing concerns about the fairness of his trial. Earlier this year, Amnesty International USA asked the U.S. Parole Commission and the Bureau of Prisons to grant Peltier parole, or compassionate release, respectively which they denied.

In its letter to President Biden, Amnesty urged him to rectify a case that has long troubled human rights advocates and Indigenous Peoples worldwide. This is not the first time the group has asked the Biden administration to grant clemency, but due to Peltier’s age and his most recent request for parole or for compassionate release being denied earlier this year, the request is now even more urgent, as clemency is now likely his only chance for freedom.

“Leonard Peltier should not have to die in prison,” said Justin Mazzola, researcher with Amnesty International USA. “In his remaining months in office, President Biden has the opportunity to release Leonard Peltier, allowing him to be home with his family and community for his last years, which could be one step to help mend the fractured relationship between Native Americans and the government and would forever be part of Biden’s legacy.”

In its appeal to President Biden, Amnesty International USA reiterated long standing concerns about the legal process that led to Peltier’s conviction and sentencing, Peltier’s age, length of time he has been imprisoned, and his critical health issues.

“No one should be imprisoned after a trial riddled with uncertainty about its fairness,” said Mazzola. “Keeping an 80-year-old man with various health issues locked behind bars for the rest of his life doesn’t serve justice. We hope that President Biden finds it in his heart to release Leonard Peltier as a matter of humanity, mercy, and human rights.”

JULY 3, 2024:

(DRG Media Group)- South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley Attorney General Jackley sent a letter to the Parole Commission this spring objecting to Peltier’s parole request. Jackley was the prosecuting attorney that examined a trial witness regarding Peltier’s confession in Marlon Brandon’s motorhome to American Indian Movement leader Anna Mae Aquash. Peltier’s confession ultimately led to her execution by John Graham who was found guilty of her murder. More than 30 members of Congress have written President Biden asking clemency for Peltier. Jackley said he will write to the President as well, requesting that clemency be denied.

Additionally…..

UNDATED (AP)- Indigenous activist Leonard Peltier, who has spent most of his life in prison since his conviction in the 1975 killings of two FBI agents in South Dakota, has been denied parole.

The U.S. Parole Commission said in a statement Tuesday (July 2, 2024) announcing the decision that he won’t be eligible for another parole hearing until June 2026. Peltier is serving life in prison for the killing the agents during a standoff on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. He was convicted in 1977.

His attorney, Kevin Sharp, a former federal judge, vowed to appeal. He had argued that Peltier was wrongly convicted and that the health of the 79-year-old was failing.

“This decision is a missed opportunity for the United States to finally recognize the misconduct of the FBI and send a message to Indian Country regarding the impacts of the federal government’s actions and policies of the 1970s,” he said in a statement.

The fight for Peltier’s freedom is embroiled in the Indigenous rights movements. Nearly half a century later, his name remains a rallying cry and “Free Peltier” T-shirts are hawked online.

“The way they have treated Leonard is the way they have treated Indigenous people historically throughout this country,” said Nick Tilsen, president and CEO of the NDN Collective, an Indigenous-led advocacy group. “That is why Indigenous people and oppressed people everywhere see a little bit of ourselves in Leonard Peltier. Although today is a sad day, we are not going to stop fighting.”

The FBI and its current and former agents dispute the claims of innocence.

“They were down, they were wounded, they were helpless and he shot them point blank,” said Mike Clark, president of the Society of Former Special Agents of the FBI. “It is a heinous crime.”

FBI Director Christopher Wray said in a statement that “justice continues to prevail.” And Natalie Bara, president of the FBI Agents Association, described Peltier in a statement as an “unremorseful murderer.”

“We believe this decision upholds justice for our fallen colleagues and their families,” the statement said.

An enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa in North Dakota, Peltier was active in the American Indian Movement, which began in the 1960s as a local organization in Minneapolis that grappled with issues of police brutality and discrimination against Native Americans. It quickly became a national force.

Tilsen, a citizen of the Oglala Lakota Nation, credits AIM and others for most of the rights Native Americans have today, including religious freedom and the ability to operate casinos and tribal colleges and enter into contracts with the federal government to oversee schools and other services.

On June 26, 1975, agents came to Pine Ridge to serve arrest warrants amid battles over Native treaty rights and self-determination.

After being injured in a shootout, agents Jack Coler and Ronald Williams were shot in the head at close range, Wray said. Also killed in the shootout was AIM member Joseph Stuntz. The Justice Department concluded that a law enforcement sniper killed Stuntz.

Two other AIM members, Robert Robideau and Dino Butler, were acquitted of killing Coler and Williams.

After fleeing to Canada and being extradited to the United States, Peltier was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder and sentenced in 1977 to life in prison, despite defense claims that evidence against him had been falsified.

Amnesty International has been among his backers, writing in a statement that keeping him locked up is a “human rights tragedy.”

His latest parole hearing was in June at a high-security lockup in Florida that is part of the Federal Correctional Complex Coleman. Afterward, his attorney, Sharp, said the commission was obligated legally to “look forward,” focusing on issues such as whether he is likely to commit another crime if he is released.

Relatives of the two agents have long argued that Peltier should remain behind bars. In a 2022 letter to Wray, Coler’s son Ronald Coler said the campaign for Peltier’s release has been painful for the family.

“Not only has my family suffered the loss of my father, but we have also been forced to endure the insult that Peltier has become a favorite cause and figurehead championed by Hollywood, the music industry, politicians and well-intentioned activists who assume or believe he is being punished unfairly,” he wrote. “Peltier allows himself to be celebrated thus. He knows his guilt.”

Parole also was rejected at a hearing in 2009, and then-President Barack Obama denied a clemency request in 2017. Another clemency request is pending before President Joe Biden.

JUNE 10, 2024, UPDATE:

UNDATED (AP)- A parole hearing was held Monday (June 10, 2024) for Indigenous activist Leonard Peltier, who has spent most of his life in prison since his conviction in the 1975 killings of two FBI agents in South Dakota.

At 79, Peltier’s health is failing, and if this parole request is denied, it might be a decade or more before it is considered again, said his attorney Kevin Sharp, a former federal judge. Sharp and other supporters have long argued that Peltier was wrongly convicted and say now that this effort may be his last chance at freedom.

It’s been about 15 years since Peltier’s last parole hearing. A decision on Monday’s hearing is expected within 21 days.

“This whole entire hearing is a battle for his life,” said Nick Tilsen, president and CEO of the NDN Collective, an Indigenous-led advocacy group. “It’s time for him to come home.”

The FBI and its current and former agents dispute the claims of innocence. The fight for Peltier’s freedom, which is embroiled in the Indigenous rights movements, remains so robust nearly half a century later that “Free Peltier” T-shirts and caps are still hawked online.

“It may be kind of cultish to take his side as some kind of a hero. But he’s certainly not that; he’s a cold blooded murderer,” said Mike Clark, president of the Society of Former Special Agents of the FBI, which wrote a letter arguing that Peltier should remain incarcerated.

JUNE 10, 2024:

UNDATED (AP)- Indigenous activist Leonard Peltier, who has spent most of his life in prison since his conviction in the 1975 killings of two FBI agents in South Dakota, has a parole hearing Monday (June 10, 2024) at a federal prison in Florida.

At 79, his health is failing, and if this parole request is denied, it might be a decade or more before it is considered again, said his attorney Kevin Sharp, a former federal judge. Sharp and other supporters have long argued that Peltier was wrongly convicted and say now that this effort may be his last chance at freedom.

“This whole entire hearing is a battle for his life,” said Nick Tilsen, president and CEO of the NDN Collective, an Indigenous-led advocacy group. “It’s time for him to come home.”

“It may be kind of cultish to take his side as some kind of a hero. But he’s certainly not that; he’s a cold blooded murderer,” said Mike Clark, president of the Society of Former Special Agents of the FBI, in a letter arguing that Peltier should remain incarcerated.

SEPTEMBER 13, 2023:

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Hundreds of activists and Indigenous leaders rallied outside the White House on Tuesday (Sept. 12, 2023) to support Leonard Peltier on the imprisoned activist’s 79th birthday, holding signs and chanting slogans urging President Joe Biden to grant clemency to the Native American leader.

Peltier is serving life in prison for the killing of two FBI agents during a 1975 standoff on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. He was convicted in 1977.

Key figures involved in Peltier’s prosecution have stepped forward over the years to urge his release, rally organizers said, including the judge who presided over Peltier’s 1986 appeal and the former U.S. attorney whose office handled the prosecution and appeal.

Tuesday’s rally kicked off with chanting and drumbeats. Organizers delivered impassioned speeches about Peltier’s life and his importance as a Indigenous leader, punctuated by shouts of “Free Peltier! Free Peltier!”

The rally’s organizers said Peltier wrote a statement, which was read aloud in front of the White House, in which he thanked the people who have pushed for his release.

“I hope to breathe free air before I die. Hope is a hard thing to hold, but no one is strong enough to take it from me,” Peltier wrote. “There is a lot of work left to do. I would like to get out and join you in doing it.”

“Forty-eight years is long enough,” said Nick Tilsen, president of NDN Collective, an Indigenous-led advocacy group that co-organized the rally with Amnesty International USA.

Amnesty considers Peltier a political prisoner, and organizers said a United Nations working group on arbitrary detention specifically noted the anti-Indigenous bias surrounding Peltier’s detention.

“We are calling on the Biden administration, who has made it a choice — has made Indigenous civil rights a priority — for his administration, yet he allows and continues to allow the longest incarcerated political prisoner in the United States,” Tilsen said.

Over 100 people journeyed by bus and caravan for three days from South Dakota to the District of Columbia to support Peltier’s release, NDN Collective said in a Facebook post. Speakers at the rally included “Reservation Dogs” actor Dallas Goldtooth, President of the National Congress of American Indians Fawn Sharp and other Indigenous leaders.

While Peltier’s supporters argue he was wrongly convicted of killing FBI agents Jack Coler and Ronald Williams, the agency has maintained that he is guilty and was properly sentenced to two consecutive life terms.

“Peltier intentionally and mercilessly murdered these two young men and has never expressed remorse for his ruthless actions,” the FBI said in an email Monday, adding that the conviction “has withstood numerous appeals to multiple courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court.”

Peltier has exhausted his opportunities for appeal and his parole requests have been denied. In 2017, then-President Barack Obama denied a clemency request by Peltier.

An enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Chippewa tribe, Peltier was active in the American Indian Movement, which began in the 1960s a local organization in Minneapolis that sought to grapple with issues of police brutality and discrimination against Native Americans. It quickly became a national force.

AIM grabbed headlines in 1973 when it took over the village of Wounded Knee on the Pine Ridge reservation, leading to a 71-day standoff with federal agents. Tensions between AIM and the government remained high for years, providing the backdrop for the fatal confrontation in which both agents were shot in the head at close range.

The White House has been quiet on whether Biden would even consider clemency for Peltier, given the FBI’s opposition. But members of Biden’s own cabinet, including Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, have pushed for Peltier’s release in the past.

“Congress hasn’t weighed in on this issue in years,” Haaland posted on social media in 2020, citing concerns about COVID-19. “At 75 with chronic health issues, it is urgent that we #FreeLeonardPeltier.”

At the time, Haaland was a congresswoman. She is now the first Native American to lead a Cabinet department in the U.S.

SEPTEMBER 12, 2023:

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Hundreds of activists and Indigenous leaders are rallying outside the White House in support of imprisoned Native activist Leonard Peltier. Tuesday (Sept. 12, 2023) is his 79th birthday. They’re urging President Joe Biden to grant clemency to the Native American leader. Peltier is serving life in prison for the killing of two FBI agents during a 1975 standoff on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. Peltier’s supporters argue he was wrongly convicted. But the FBI maintains he’s guilty and was properly sentenced to two consecutive life terms. Organizers say more than 100 people have journeyed by bus and caravan for three days from South Dakota to the District of Columbia.

Extended version:

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Hundreds of activists and Indigenous leaders rallied outside the White House on Tuesday (Sept. 12, 2023) in support of Leonard Peltier on the imprisoned activist’s 79th birthday, holding signs and chanting slogans urging President Joe Biden to grant clemency to the Native American leader.

Peltier is serving life in prison for the killing of two FBI agents during a 1975 standoff on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. He was convicted in 1977.

The rally kicked off Tuesday with chanting and drum beats. Organizers delivered impassioned speeches about Peltier’s life and his importance as a Native leader, punctuated by shouts of “Free Peltier! Free Peltier!”

“Forty-eight years is long enough,” said Nick Tilsen, president of NDN Collective, an Indigenous-led advocacy group that co-organized the rally with Amnesty International USA.

Amnesty International considers Peltier a political prisoner, and organizers said a United Nations working group on arbitrary detention specifically noted the anti-Indigenous bias surrounding Peltier’s detention.

Over 100 people have journeyed by bus and caravan for three days from South Dakota to the District of Columbia this week in support of Peltier’s release, NDN Collective said in a Facebook post. Expected speakers include “Reservation Dogs” actor Dallas Goldtooth, U.S. Rep. Raul Grijalva of Arizona, the president of the National Congress of American Indians and other Indigenous leaders.

While Peltier’s supporters argue that he was wrongly convicted in the killings of FBI agents Jack Coler and Ronald Williams, the agency has maintained over the years that he is guilty and was properly sentenced to two consecutive life terms.

“Peltier intentionally and mercilessly murdered these two young men and has never expressed remorse for his ruthless actions,” the FBI said in an email Monday, adding that Peltier’s conviction “has withstood numerous appeals to multiple courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court.”

Peltier has exhausted his opportunities for appeal and his parole requests have been denied. He is incarcerated at a federal prison in Coleman, Florida.

An enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Chippewa tribe, Peltier was active in the American Indian Movement, or AIM, which grabbed headlines in 1973 when it took over the village of Wounded Knee on the reservation, leading to a 71-day standoff with federal agents.

Tensions between AIM and the government remained high for years, providing the backdrop for the fatal confrontation in which both agents were shot in the head at close range.

U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, the first Native American to lead a Cabinet department, said while she was a congresswoman that she supports Peltier being released.

In 2017, then-President Barack Obama denied a clemency request by Peltier.

According to Peltier’s attorney at the time, Martin Garbus, they received a letter from the White House saying their application to commute his sentence to the 40 years he already served was denied.

AIM began as a local organization in Minneapolis that sought to grapple with issues of police brutality and discrimination against Native Americans in the 1960s. It quickly became a national force.

The group called out instances of cultural appropriation, provided job training, sought to improve housing and education for Indigenous people, provided legal assistance, spotlighted environmental injustice and questioned government policies that were seen as anti-Indigenous. At times, AIM’s tactics were militant, which led to splintering in the group.

Leonard Peltier remains defiant in AP interview, maintaining innocence and vowing continued activism

Story Body

The FBI and Native American activists: A volatile mix

A life behind bars, but always hope for freedom

‘I didn’t give my life for nothing’

Extended version:

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