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LEONARD PELTIER
FILES LAWSUIT AGAINST FBI
PRESS THE GOVERNMENT
REFORM COMMITTEE TO INVESTIGATE PELTIER CASE!
Recent
FOIA Developments
Other
Related Documents Already Online
PELTIER
APPEALS LOST BID TO REDUCE SENTENCE
UNTIL FREEDOM IS WON! -
UPDATE of March 23, 2002
Text
of the letter from Leonard Peltier at the Alliance for Prison Justice
Conference
![[hr]](images/abstrrul.gif)
LEONARD PELTIER FILES LAWSUIT
AGAINST FBI
Former FBI Director Louis Freeh is named as a defendant in
a lawsuit filed today by attorneys for imprisoned Native American activist,
Leonard Peltier. Freeh, along with the FBI Agents Association and a long list
of active FBI agents, are accused of violating Peltier's Constitutional rights
by making false and unsupported statements to the public, the Department of
Justice, the United States Parole Commission, and former President Clinton.
The complaint, filed in U.S. District Court, Washington D.C., alleges that the
FBI "engaged in a systematic, and officially sanctioned campaign of mis-information
and dis-information" designed to prevent Peltier from receiving fair
clemency and parole reviews.
The suit follows a highly controversial campaign conducted by the FBI to stop
former president Bill Clinton from issuing Peltier a grant of executive
clemency during his last days in office. FBI agents across the nation
submitted letters to the editor, sponsored major newspaper and radio ads, and
marched by the hundreds in front of the White House to discourage clemency.
Former FBI Director Louis Freeh wrote searing letters to Bill Clinton and
Janet Reno, to urge against Peltier's release. The campaign, which gained
national attention, characterized Peltier as a cold-blooded killer who
brutally shot two FBI agents at point blank range. Peltier's attorneys and
supporters assert that this characterization is not only false but
intentionally deceptive given the government's long held position that it
cannot prove who shot the agents. Furthermore, they say it cost Peltier, now
57 years of age and in poor health, his long deserved freedom.
Peltier has served more than 26 years in prison for the deaths of two FBI
agents killed in a 1975 shoot-out on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.
Peltier's supporters claim the FBI terrorized witnesses, utilized false
testimony and withheld a ballistic test proving Peltier's innocence to gain
his conviction. Senior Eighth Circuit Judge Gerald Heaney, who denied Peltier
a new trial based on a legal technicality, has since come forward to support
Peltier's release, citing FBI misconduct Amnesty International, the Kennedy
Memorial Center for Human Rights, Rev. Jesse Jackson, Rigoberta Menchu Tum,
Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Corretta Scott King, and scores of Native tribes are
among those who consider Peltier a political prisoner who should be freed.
Complaint will be posted on LPDC
web site on April 4: . Interviews with lawyer handling case and
spokespeople for the LPDC can be arranged. Also note that this has been
distributed to all national news sources already, so we just need to focus on
everyone's local press. You may want to follow up with phone calls to your
paper, radio and TV stations to request they cover the story given that a
local support group or supporters exist in the area. Let us know if you have
any questions. THANK you for your help and support!
In Solidarity,
Leonard Peltier Defense Committee
lpdc@freepeltier.org
PO Box 583
Lawrence, KS 66044
(785)-842-5774
Until Freedom Is Won!
The New Peltier
Justice Campaign
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PRESS THE GOVERNMENT REFORM
COMMITTEE TO INVESTIGATE PELTIER CASE!
The House Government Reform Committee is holding hearings
on FBI misconduct relating to wrongful convictions. The hearings were
prompted by the release of two Boston men who were framed by the FBI and held
wrongfully in prison for more than 32 years. Their two co-defendants,
also innocent, died in prison. Congressman Burton, who chairs the
committee, said on 60 Minutes recently that he will be looking into other
cases. Let's let him know about Leonard Peltier! Write, and ask
your friends, family, and neighbors to write letters now. Below is a
sample letter which you are welcome to use.
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LETTER
TO CONGRESSMAN DAN BURTON
Honorable Dan Burton
Chairman, Government Reform Committee
2157 Rayburn House Office Bldg.
Washington, DC 20515, USA
Dear Congressman Burton,
Recently you spoke out about the case of James Salvati, who was
imprisoned for 32 years for a crime the FBI knew he did not commit. This
is a terrible miscarriage of justice and I am grateful that you will be
pressing for further investigations regarding this and other injustices of a
similar nature.
I would like to bring your attention to a case remarkably similar to that of
Mr. Salvati's: the case of American Indian Movement activist, Leonard Peltier.
Leonard Peltier has been imprisoned for 26 years, following his highly
controversial conviction of the 1975 murders of two FBI agents. Amnesty
International, the Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and Coretta Scott King, amongst
many other human rights leaders, consider Mr. Peltier a political prisoner and
have called for his immediate release.
During Mr. Peltier's trial, the FBI and U.S. Prosecutors emphatically swore
that every FBI document had been handed over to the defense. Yet,
a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit would force the release of over 12,000
FBI documents that had in fact been withheld. Had the jury been able to
consider this evidence at trial, Mr. Peltier would undoubtedly be free.
Among the documents was a formerly concealed ballistic test, which proved that
the fatal bullets could not have come from the gun tied to Mr. Peltier at
trial. The exposure of the test prompted the U.S. Prosecutor to admit
during subsequent oral arguments, "we can't prove who shot those
agents". The Eighth Circuit found that "There is a possibility that
the jury would have acquitted Leonard Peltier had the records and data
improperly withheld from the defense been available to him in order to better
exploit and reinforce the inconsistencies casting strong doubts upon the
government's case." Yet, a new trial was denied. Judge Heaney,
who authored the denial now supports Mr. Peltier's release, stating that the
FBI used improper tactics to gain Mr. Peltier's conviction.
Moreover, the FBI continues to withhold over 6000 documents pertaining to the
Peltier case today. We are convinced that these files contain even more
critical information. We also note that Mr. Peltier's conviction is
deeply rooted in a three year period of intense political violence on the Pine
Ridge Indian Reservation. During this period, the FBI cooperated with a
brutal tribal chairman and his hired vigilantes who sought to rid the
reservation of American Indian Movement (AIM) activity and sentiment.
More than 60 traditional tribal members and AIM activists were murdered and
scores more were assaulted or otherwise terrorized.
Given all of the above, I am asking you to include the Peltier case in your
investigations. We also request the subpoena of the 6000 FBI documents
that remain secret. Thank you for your time and consideration to this
matter and we hope your efforts to bring about accountability in the Salvati
case are successful.
Sincerely,
(Your name, address)
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|
RECENT FOIA DEVELOPMENT
|
|
The Freedom of Information Act was founded to promote
government transparency and accountability. But unfortunately, the
Freedom of Information Act process is extremely bureaucratic, and can be
manipulated by agencies to resist disclosure of information. The
documents presented here give a sneak peak into what kinds of responses
Attorneys Jennifer Harbury and Michael Kuzma have received in their
pursuit to obtain documents in the Peltier case. Attorney Michael Kuzma
is currently preparing a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit, which will
demand full disclosure of the more than 11,000 full and partial
documents that remain concealed.
A small batch of documents relating to Michael
Anderson, the young Native witness who was coerced into making false
statements at Leonard Peltier's trial, were recently released. It is
clear that the document below could be critical to the case of Leonard
Peltier, but as you can see, the FBI has deleted key parts of the
document citing FOIA exemptions relating to law enforcement.
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OTHER RELATED DOCUMENTS ONLINE
|
TOP
PELTIER
APPEALS LOST BID TO REDUCE SENTENCE
The Associated Press FARGO, N.D. -- American Indian
Movement activist Leonard Peltier has appealed a judge's decision to uphold
the two murder sentences imposed on him in 1977. Peltier claimed he
never had the chance to argue that his sentences should be based on the
theory he, at most, aided others in the killings of two FBI agents in 1975, or
that he acted in self-defense.
He was one of four men charged with killing the agents in a shootout on the
Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. Two suspects were acquitted in 1976,
and the third was freed for lack of evidence.
Peltier was convicted of the murders in Fargo and was sentenced in 1977.
In November, he asked a judge to allow the two life terms to run concurrently,
rather than consecutively. The change would give Peltier an earlier chance at
parole.
U.S. District Judge Paul Magnuson rejected the request, saying Peltier had
earlier opportunities to make the same argument.
Peltier's previous appeals, including a similar request to reduce his
sentence, also have been denied.
His latest request was filed Nov. 1 and rejected Feb. 25. He filed a notice of
appeal to the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Thursday.
Peltier is being held in the federal prison in Leavenworth and is next up for
parole in 2008.
TOP
* * *
A motion to reduce Leonard Peltier's sentence has been
filed. The hearing could be scheduled as early as spring.
The LPDC is
currently preparing two lawsuits which will be filed in the first part of
2002, but we are not equipped with the funds to support these important
avenues. Our lawyers must have the resources they need to focus their full
attention on these cases, and we must mobilize a major support effort to
ensure justice.
TOP
UNTIL FREEDOM IS
WON! - UPDATE ON THE PELTIER CAMPAIGN FOR TRUTH AND JUSTICE (LPDC update,
March 23, 2002)
The motion to reduce Leonard's sentence was denied by the
U.S. District Court of North Dakota. The LPDC expected this case to be a
challenge because of the many procedural obstacles it involved combined with
the political nature of the Peltier case, especially in this district.
However, they had hoped for more fairness given that Judge Benson, who tried
Leonard, is no longer hearing cases.
Judge Magnison denied the motion without a hearing based upon issues of
timeliness. A motion to reduce sentence is supposed to be filed within a year
following a conviction. However, the defense argued that filing at this late
date was justified because of significant developments that occurred since
trial, citing cases in which exceptions had been made due to extraordinary
circumstances. The court said that the significant developments in question
(government admission that it can't prove who shot agents/ballistics) had
already been litigated. Judge Magnison refused to consider these issues
despite the clearly different character of the case, which sought a review of
sentence and not a new trial like before. Attorney Eric Seitz is appealing the
decision to the Eighth Circuit.
Thanks to the persistent letters of supporters in Massachusetts,
Representative Barney Frank wrote to the FBI insisting that the withheld
documents be released given Clinton's Executive Order requiring the disclosure
of documents after the passage of 25 years. The FBI Office of Public and
Congressional Affairs responded by saying, "After receipt of your letter.
the FBI consulted with the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA)
to request that the investigative records pertaining to Mr. Peltier that are
25 years or older be considered of significant historical interest subject to
declassification review. NARA agreed and the process of declassification
review has begun. Upon completion, the material will be accessioned to NARA
and a declassified copy will be provided to your office. The LPDC anticipates
completion of this project by the end of the year." Attorney Mike Kuzma,
who is handling Leonard's FOIA requests, wrote to NARA to learn when the
declassification would be completed. Mike also asked that he be provided
copies of the documents. NARA responded, "We have been informed that the
records are still in the physical and legal custody of the FBI. The FBI has
completed its declassification review and is currently processing the records
for transfer to NARA and their subsequent public release. The transfer is
expected to occur in May of this year. Following the transfer, NARA may
require additional time to prepare for the public release of the
records." This is a very positive development for Peltier's defense and
strengthens his chances for obtaining new information. Furthermore, the
documents are now protected against destruction because of their historical
classification. The battle is not over, as the LPDC expects the documents to
be partly censored for reasons of "national security" like before.
But, they plan to demand the full release and exposure of the documents in
court.
It should also be noted that Mike Kuzma continues to pursue the documents
through the Freedom of Information Act process. Requests have been submitted
to FBI headquarters and numerous field offices across the country. With the
exception of Portland, Oregon, all offices have reported that they possess
records. The defense lawyers anticipate filing one or several suits to demand
the release of these documents in the near future. Mike Kuzma is also working
with law students involved in the Innocence Project of Osgoode Hall and the
LPDC of Canada to obtain documents generated around the extradition.
The civil rights complaint against the FBI has been drafted and the finishing
touches are being added now. This case argues that the FBI violated Leonard's
Constitutional Rights by lying to the Department of Justice, former President
Clinton, the Parole Commission, and the public with the sole intention of
denying Leonard fair clemency and parole reviews, thus costing him his long
deserved freedom.
Meanwhile, a window of opportunity continues to exist with the House Committee
on Government Reform. This committee is planning to investigate cases of FBI
misconduct leading to wrongful convictions. It is necessary to press the
Reform Committee to shine its spot light on Leonard's case. Please continue to
write Representative Burton on a regular basis, and cc your letters to your
representative. A recent phone call to Rep Burton's office indicates that he
is collecting and taking notice of your letters. Please send copies of any
response letters you receive from officials to the LPDC, so they can track
their positions.
TOP
Text
of the inspirational letter from Leonard Peltier at the recently attended
Alliance for Prison Justice Conference, Feb. 16th, 2002, Burlington VT
Dear Brothers, Sisters, Friends, and Supporters,
I want to thank you and commend you for attending this important conference
and for your good work to build a movement to expose and deconstruct the
policies, practices, and abuses that are resulting in the overwhelming
imprisonment of poor people, youth, and people of color. In the history
of this country, episodes of racism and human rights abuses have played out in
different ways, all of which are condemned in hindsight, with many wondering
how such abuse could have been allowed. Whether it be genocide of First
Nations peoples, slavery, segregation, COINTELPRO, or Japanese concentration
camps, few Americans today would say that any of these were right and just.
I believe people will look back similarly on the era we are in now and condemn
the mass imprisonment -- this mass imprisonment must be by far, the most
alarming of human rights abuses occurring in this country. It is you,
the enlightened, devoted, and committed who can and will lead the way to
change. And I believe that this change must lead not only to prison
reform, but to a different kind of society where racism and oppression have no
home.
Today's prisons are little more than warehouses for society's dispossessed,
undesirables and dissidents. The move is away from rehabilitation toward
complete dehumaniza1ion, isolation and long term imprisonment. No longer
are educational courses offered here in Leavenworth and in Kansas state
prisons, officials are even restricting a prisoner's access to books in
prisons across the country, phone and visitation rights are being steadily
whittled away, making contact with our loved ones and support systems nearly
impossible and causing bitterness and hopelessness to increase dramatically.
Our contact with the outside world is diminishing and there is no serious
avenue to report abuses. A major portion of the population is locked up
and completely isolated purposely, so that there can be no public
oversight or scrutiny, or even knowledge of how we are treated. I
say this to encourage you to vigilantly call and work for change. For we
behind bars are only a fraction of those hurt by this. The impacts of long
term imprisonment ripple out to family members and their communities, and can
impact generations. I want you to know how important your work is.
So again, I thank each of you for being here and for having the courage and
strength to say enough is enough' and to demand: Schools for our youth, not
prisons! Drug treatment for drug abuse not criminalization!
Respect, dignity and an end to poverty in our communities, not racism and
degradation! My hope for justice and for all of our futures exists
because of you.
In the Spirit of Crazy Horse,
February 13, 2002
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