Leonard Peltier case
The Leonard Peltier case centers around the 1975 shootout on the Lakota Indian Reservation in Pine Ridge, South Dakota, during which two FBI agents were killed. Leonard Peltier, a member of the American Indian Movement (AIM), was convicted of these killings, but he has consistently maintained his innocence. His conviction has been controversial, with allegations that the government engaged in misconduct, including the use of falsified documents and witness coercion during his trial. Despite these claims, multiple appeals have failed to overturn his conviction, leading many to label him a political prisoner and sparking international attention and calls for justice.
Over the years, Peltier's case has inspired significant advocacy, including initiatives by groups like Amnesty International and public support from various leaders. Although subsequent confessions and new evidence have emerged, attempts to secure clemency have not been successful, including denials from former President Obama and ongoing appeals to the current administration. Activists continue to advocate for Peltier's release, emphasizing concerns about racial bias within the criminal justice system. As of 2023, Peltier remains incarcerated, with calls for clemency reflecting a broader dialogue about Indigenous rights and justice.
Leonard Peltier case
On June 26, 1975, two agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) were killed in a shootout on the Lakota Indian Reservation in Pine Ridge, South Dakota. Leonard Peltier, a member of the American Indian Movement (AIM), was found guilty of the killings. Peltier declared himself innocent.
Peltier appealed his conviction many times. During the appeals, the court found that the government had acted improperly in arresting and trying him. Federal authorities admitted to falsifying affidavits used to extradite Peltier from Canada. Witnesses in the original trial had been coerced, and evidence supporting Peltier’s claims was suppressed. In spite of these irregularities, the courts refused to overturn Peltier’s conviction. Peltier’s case became known throughout the world. Many people believed that, even if he were guilty, he had not been granted a fair trial. Amnesty International declared him a political prisoner, and important religious leaders spoke out on his behalf. A book and several films were made about the case.
In 2004, the Supreme Court rejected Peltier's appeal of a lower-court denial of parole. The following year, Bob Robideau, another AIM activist whose self-defense plea had led to his acquittal, confessed to the killings. Though Peltier was then denied presidential clemency and parole again in 2009, his supporters continued to hope that they could win his release. As Peltier continued to maintain his innocence into the 2010s and 2020s, despite battling health conditions such as a stroke, hypertension, and diabetes, he focused largely on the hope that he could be granted a new trial and present new evidence upon a reopening of the case, as he felt that was the only way to truly clear his name. In 2017, President Barack Obama had denied him clemency. Particularly because President Joe Biden, elected in 2020, had indicated Indigenous rights as an agenda goal during his time in office, activists supporting Peltier's release advocated, including through White House rallies, in the early 2020s for Biden to grant the longtime prisoner clemency. Many cited systemic racial bias in the criminal justice system, and in 2023 thirty-three national congressional legislators issued a letter to Biden calling for clemency. By that point, Peltier did not have any more opportunities to appeal.
Bibliography
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Peltier, Leonard. Prison Writings: My Life Is My Sun Dance. Ed. Harvey Arden. New York: St. Martin's, 1999. Print.