FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 13, 2025
Washington, DC – In a show of broad support from Indian Country, today over 120 tribal leaders sent a letter calling for President Biden to grant clemency to Leonard Peltier. At 80 years old, Peltier is in his 49th year of incarceration.
The full letter can be viewed here. Below is an excerpt:
“For the majority of his life, Leonard Peltier has been serving a sentence based on a conviction that would not hold up in court today and for a crime that the government has admitted it could not prove. Mr. Peltier’s continued incarceration is a symbol to Native Americans of the systemic inequities of the criminal justice system in America.
“Mr. President, we honor your demonstrated commitment to Indian Country. You have stood with us many times – both in the White House and in the U.S. Senate. Our standing in the world as a champion of freedom, justice, and human rights cannot be maintained in a system that allows Leonard Peltier to die in prison.”
Leonard Peltier is the longest-incarcerated Native American political prisoner in American history, and one of the oldest people currently in federal prison. He is a survivor of the federally funded boarding school system where he endured years of physical, emotional, and spiritual abuse. Peltier endured a trial rife with constitutional violations and prosecutorial misconduct that the prosecuting office itself later acknowledged, and have since urged for his release.
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