Leonard Peltier Deserves to Spend His Remaining Years as a Free Man — Here's Why

Leonard Peltier is a member of the Chippewa tribe and was born on the Turtle Mountain Indian Reservation on Sept. 12, 1944. When he was 21, Peltier moved to Seattle and became heavily involved in various causes that worked to bolster Native American civil rights.

In 1972, he joined the American Indian Movement (AIM) which was focused on the kind of activism Peltier was already participating in.

One of the most significant protests AIM organized was later known as the Wounded Knee Occupation at the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. The group was unhappy with the corrupt leadership of the tribal council and separately from that, demanded better living conditions for Native Americans.

Although Petlier did not participate in this siege, he ended up at the same reservation two years later. While there, something happened that would change his life forever. Where is he now? Here's what we know.

According to The Guardian, Peltier says he has been wrongfully convicted for his involvement in the 1975 murders of two FBI agents. Peltier is currently serving two life sentences at USP Coleman I in Wildwood, Fla. In 2016, attorneys for Peltier filed a clemency request with then-President Obama. In it they claimed "federal agents made false statements and affidavits, coerced witness statements and deliberately withheld crucial ballistics reports," per the outlet.

James Reynolds, a senior U.S. attorney who was involved in Peltier's prosecution, wrote a letter to President Obama echoing the request for clemency. He said it would be "in the best interest of justice in considering the totality of all matters involved."

In a phone interview with The Guardian, Reynolds added, "There seems to be no point in taxpayers paying his room and board. It’s time to call it quits."

In January 2017, the Associated Press reported that Peltier's request for clemency was denied. Martin Garbus, Peltier's attorney, said this was essentially a death sentence for their 72-year-old client who was in extremely poor health.

Amnesty International considers Peltier a political prisoner. In response to this decision they said in a statement said the families of the FBI agents who were killed have a "right to justice," but that won't happen with "Peltier’s continued imprisonment."

Sadly, in what feels like a last-ditch effort, Amnesty International urged President Biden to grant Peltier clemency in November 2024, per The Huffington Post. The human rights organization penned a letter to Biden in which they stated this was a matter of "humanity, mercy, and human rights."

The 80-year-old Peltier deserves to be with his family as well as his community, for his last remaining years.

The government's case against Peltier fell apart so spectacularly, that they were forced to charge him with "aiding and abetting whoever did kill those agents — entirely on the grounds that he was one of dozens of people present when the shoot-out took place," said Huffington Post.

Not only that but the FBI and U.S. attorney’s office later revealed they still have no idea who killed Special Agents Ronald Arthur Williams and Jack Ross Cole.

The Huffington Post spoke with Peltier in May 2022, where they asked him what he would say to Biden if he had the opportunity to speak with him. "I’m not guilty of this shooting. I’m not guilty," said Peltier. "I would like to go home to spend what years I have left with my great-grandkids and my people."