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PAROLE COMMISSION: IT’S LONG PAST THE TIME TO FREE LEONARD PELTIER
 
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Levi Rickert
June 9, 2024
Native News Online
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_ "We are hoping and praying that the parole commission will grant
Leonard parole so that he can go back to his people on the Turtle
Mountain Reservation to be with his loved ones to serve to be with his
grandchildren and great-grandchildren." _

Leonard Peltier (Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians) was
arrested in Canada to face murder charges of the two FBI agents killed
on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.,

 

OPINION. For the first time in 15 years, Leonard Peltier will be
afforded a full parole hearing on Monday, June 10 at the United States
Penitentiary at Coleman, Fla. 

Peltier (Turtle Mountain Ojibwe) has been incarcerated for 48 years
for the killing of two FBI agents at Oglala on the Pine Ridge Indian
Reservation in June 1975. For five decades, Peltier has maintained his
innocence and hoped for the chance to clear his name.  

Monday’s hearing may well be his last chance at vindication.  

The incident that led to Peltier’s imprisonment happened some 49
years ago, when two FBI agents — Jack Coler and Ronald Williams —
arrived at a residence on the reservation to pursue a suspect who had
taken a pair of shoes in a robbery. The two FBI agents, who were
white, arrived in an unmarked car in plain clothes. 

Tensions were already running high between law enforcement and Native
Americans in South Dakota in the aftermath of the 71-day siege of
Wounded Knee by the American Indian Movement (AIM) in early 1973. The
incident occurred during a time known on Pine Ridge as a “reign of
terror,”' characterized by deadly ambushes on highway checkpoints
and extended gunfights. During this span, some 64 Native Americans
were murdered and over 300 were physically assaulted.

On June 26, 1975, the situation escalated when Coler and Williams were
killed during a shootout as they attempted to apprehend a young AIM
member accused of theft and assault. The gunfight involved numerous
individuals, and there has never been a denial that Peltier was
present during the shooting, but he has said repeatedly he did not
kill the agents. 

It didn’t matter. He was accused of shooting the two FBI agents. He
fled to Canada, only to be extradited back to the United States in
1976 to stand trial for the agents' murders.

Following a controversial trial marred by allegations of prosecutorial
conduct, falsified testimony, and fabricated evidence, Peltier was
convicted of aiding and abetting murder and has been imprisoned since
1977.

Notable legal experts, including former U.S. Attorney General Ramsey
Clark, say Peltier was not given a fair trial by the U.S. government.

“I think I can explain beyond serious doubt that Leonard Peltier has
committed no crime whatsoever. But if he had been guilty of firing a
gun that killed an FBI Agent, it was in defense of not just his people
but the integrity of humanity from domination and exploitation,”
Clark said. “You have to remember no witness really said they saw
Leonard take aim at anybody. No witness said they heard him shoot at
the time he could have killed an agent. There was no evidence that he
did it, except fabricated, circumstantial evidence, overwhelmingly
misused, concealed and perverted.”

Even federal Judge Gerald Heaney, who presided over an appeal hearing,
has said the FBI utilized improper tactics to convict Peltier. He
suggests the FBI was equally responsible for the shoot-out.

In 2017, former U.S. Attorney James Reynolds wrote a letter to
President Obama
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support clemency for Peltier. Reynolds was the federal prosecutor
involved in the legal proceedings against Peltier, playing a
significant role in the case. 

In his later years, Reynolds has publicly expressed doubts about the
fairness of Peltier's trial and has joined calls for his clemency,
acknowledging issues with the case and the conduct of the prosecution.
Reynolds urged Obama to grant Peltier’s clemency petition “as
being in the best interests of justice considering the totality of all
matters involved.”

Through the years, the FBI has adamantly opposed the release of
Peltier. While the deaths of their two agents at Oglala were tragic by
all human standards, the deaths of hundreds of innocent Native
Americans who died during the 1970s’ Reign of Terror were equally
tragic.

To many Native Americans, Peltier is a symbol of an oppressive federal
system that relegates Native people to apartheid and neglect. He is a
political prisoner that we may only think about if we happen to see a
bumper sticker on the back of a vehicle that reads “FREE Leonard
Peltier.”

Beyond his Native American supporters, many people and human rights
organizations — including Amnesty International, the Southern
Christian Leadership Conference, National Congress of American
Indians, the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights,
Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and others — have stated their beliefs that
Peltier is a political prisoner who should be immediately released.

Now 79 years old, Peltier suffers from multiple health issues and has
to use a walker to maneuver the maximum-security prison. He also
suffers from diabetes, blindness in one eye, and an aortic aneurysm.
As with other elders, his advanced age has rendered him frail. 

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Peltier’s age and comorbidities
unequivocally made him eligible for home release under Department of
Justice guidelines. The Department of Justice ignored the pleas to
have Peliter released then.

In a recent episode
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Bidaské_, I asked attorney Kevin Sharp, who will represent Peltier at
the parole hearing on Monday, how he thought the parole commission
would react to the fact Peltier has maintained his innocence through
the years. Typically, parole boards want convicted prisoners to admit
guilt and express remorse.

“It's difficult because Leonard didn't commit the crime, and there's
no evidence that he did. He shouldn't lie about something he didn't
do. Leonard has expressed remorse for the tragic events of that day
and the overall situation,” Sharp responded.

Peltier’s spiritual advisor of 40 years, Lenny Foster (Diné), spoke
with me Saturday morning about his hopes for his longtime friend.  

“We are hoping and praying that the parole commission will grant
Leonard parole so that he can go back to his people on the Turtle
Mountain Reservation to be with his loved ones to serve out his
remaining years to be with his grandchildren and
great-grandchildren,” Foster told me. “He is a revered elder among
the Indian community.” 

Nearly 80, Peltier is a Native American elder who poses no threat to
society. He’s old and broken. He has paid a price for an injustice
to him, his family, and to all Native Americans. It is past time to
free Leonard Peltier.

_THAYÉK GDE NWÉNDËMEN - WE ARE ALL RELATED._

_Levi "Calm Before the Storm" Rickert (Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation)
is the founder, publisher and editor of Native News Online. Rickert
was awarded Best Column 2021 Native Media Award for the print/online
category by the Native American Journalists Association. He serves on
the advisory board of the Multicultural Media Correspondents
Association. He can be reached at [email protected]._

_Native News Online delivers important daily news that affects the
lives of Native Americans nationwide. Founded in 2011, Native News
Online reaches millions of Native and non-Native readers annually
including American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians and
others interested in Native American concerns._

* Leonard Peltier
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* Pine Ridge
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* Native Americans
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* criminal justice
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* FBI
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