Leonard Peltier | Amnesty International USA

20.7.13

Leonard Peltier | Amnesty International USA: 
Leonard Peltier, an Anishinabe-Lakota Native American, is a federal prisoner serving two consecutive life sentences for the murders of two Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents in 1975. Amnesty International (AI) has studied his case extensively over many years and remains seriously concerned about the fairness of proceedings leading to his trial and conviction. AI believes that political factors may have influenced the way in which the case was prosecuted. Leonard Peltier’s most recent petition for release on parole was denied by the US Parole Commission in 2009, and AI understands that he is not eligible for consideration for parole again until 2024. Given that all available legal remedies have been exhausted and that that Leonard Peltier has now spent over 36 years in prison and is in poor health, AI believes that in the context of these ongoing concerns, the US authorities should order Leonard Peltier’s release from prison on humanitarian grounds and in the interests of justice.