Biden Ignores Indian Country and Clemency for Leonard Peltier When Granting Clemency to 1,500 Individuals

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Nizhoni Begay, WPLC Communications,

communications@waterprotectorlegal.org 

On December 12, 2024, the Biden Administration and the White House issued a fact sheet and list of 1,500 individuals who have been granted clemency. Elder Leonard Peltier, a 80-year-old Citizen of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians and of Lakota/Dakota descent, is the longest-serving political prisoner in United States history. While he can still correct course before he leaves office, Biden’s list today has failed to include Mr. Peltier despite increased and heightened efforts from Indian Country demanding Biden to grant clemency to our Relative and Elder. 

The White House touts this executive action as an example of “the President’s record of criminal justice reform to help reunite families, strengthen communities, and reintegrate individuals back into society” and his intention to “[grant] clemency to individuals convicted of non-violent crimes who were sentenced under outdated laws, policies, and practices that left them with longer sentences than if the individuals were sentenced today.” 

The framing around Biden’s efforts for criminal justice reform and correcting historical wrongs is a far cry from the lived experiences of individuals most impacted and discriminated against in this country. The Biden administration has an opportunity to right a historical wrong by granting Mr. Peltier clemency, but the list released today–without Leonard Peltier’s name–is an affront to Indian Country and a contradiction to Biden’s stated goals of uplifting and respecting Indigenous Peoples rights in the United States.  

Although the White House clemency list indicates Biden focused on those that were convicted for “non-violent” crimes, it also points to outdated laws, policies, and longer sentences. Leonard Peltier has maintained his innocence for 50 years and his trial and continued incarceration have been due to gross misconduct and the exact outdated laws, policies, and practices that lead to longer sentences that Biden claims to be his motivation for engaging in large sweeps of clemency powers. 

It is an act of violence upon Indian Country and Leonard Peltier to ignore the cries reverberating throughout the U.S. to grant Mr. Peltier clemency. A father, grandfather and great-grandfather, an artist, and ceremonial Sundance and Čhaŋnúŋpa-Carrier (Pipe-Carrier), Mr. Peltier deserves to spend his elder years with his family following nearly half a century of imprisonment in the custody of the United States. Now 80 years old, he has spent more of his life in prison than as a free man. In September 1953, he was enrolled at the Wahpeton Indian School in North Dakota, an Indian boarding school run by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, making him one of the oldest surviving Indian boarding school survivors. An extraordinary amount of his incarceration in prison has been spent in solitary confinement, confined to a small, windowless cell that he has described as a “cement steel hotbox.” Leonard has been repeatedly denied parole despite widespread legal and human rights experts condemning the irregularities in his case, including fabricated evidence, witness manipulation, FBI interference, and violations of international law. 

We will support Leonard Peltier until he is free. The time for his freedom and justice is now. 

Biden’s pardon decisions today fall short and WPLC calls on President Biden to uphold the rule of law and respect human rights by granting Leonard Peltier clemency in the remaining days of his administration.

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For more information about the background of Mr. Peltier’s case and incarceration please visit:

• Biden: The Time for Leonard Peltier’s Freedom Is Now.

• Time for Justice: Leonard Peltier’s June Parole Hearing Garners Vast Support Including Legal Expert Letter on Arbitrary Detention from WPLC

• Human rights organizations and advocates at U.N. 139th Session Call for Release of Leonard Peltier

• Last year, we participated in “Leonard Peltier’s Walk To Justice” held by the American Indian Movement Grand Governing Council (AIMGGC). Hear from Steven Donziger, Natali Segovia, and Michael “Rattler” Markus on why it’s important to support Leonard’s case.

• WPLC Joins Calls to Action to Support Elder & Political Prisoner, Leonard Peltier

• The Water Protector Legal Collective stands in solidarity with Leonard Peltier and AIMGGC’s Leonard Peltier’s Walk To Justice