Still in prison on 4th of July-Leonard Peltier

Still in prison on 4th of July-Leonard Peltier

A message from Leonard Peltier

June 26, 2008

Greetings my relatives,

I say relatives because you are all my family.



I am honored,
greatly honored today that you would listen to my words and come
together in this way so that our future generations' will not forget
what happened here in this land.





You can't imagine how much I miss walking on the bare earth.




Or brushing against a tree branch or hearing birds in the morning
or seeing an antelope or deer cross my path.



I have been here in
federal prison for 32 years; if you could imagine being in your own
home stuck in one room for one year without leaving it, multiply
that by 32 and you might have some idea of how imprisonment plays
on your feelings.



I really get tired sometimes living here in this
cell, this prison.



Yet at times I feel really good because for
some reason I know that there are those out there who have prayed
for me in some way.



And it helps me because there are moments when
a peaceful feeling will wash over me in my solitude.





I try to keep up with world events like the war in Iraq, where
those people are going through the same thing our Indian people went
through and over the same things.



The US wants their resources and
they have divided those people against each other.



Those children
over there and families for generations will still feel the effects
of that onslaught of destruction.





When I look at our own people's situation I see a people who have
not recovered from the destruction put upon them in the past.




Today, the greater society of America doesn't want to accept us
for who we are because we will always stand as a reminder of the
immoral wrongs that they do and have done all over the world, all
in the name of technology and progress.



Our people have told them
from the very beginning about the consequences of mistreatment of
individuals and mistreatment of Mother Earth.



There are history
books that quote our chief headmen and medicine people cautioning
them about there destruction of the earth and nature.





We know the first concentration camps America ever had held Indian
prisoners.



The first biological warfare was used on our people with
poisonous blankets.



The first atomic bomb dropped was dropped on
Indian land in Nevada.



Today there are abandoned uranium quarries in
Navajo country that cause genetic defects on a lot of their people.




When you look into the past, America has used us Indians as their
social experiment.



They tried to destroy us with boarding schools,
relocation, and even the first slavery practice was with American
people.



However Indian people would fight or commit suicide than
to become slaves, and so they imported Africans.





Forgive me if I am repeating things you already know, but I just
wanted to bring these things up because these are the reasons behind
the Wounded Knee takeover in 73 happened and the shootout at Oglala
happened.



Our people were not just taking a stand against this
government for themselves; they in essence represented Indian people
all across the Americas.



Our resistance wasn't to kill anyone;
our resistance was to remain alive while we let the world know what
had been and what was being done to us, the Indigenous people.





I know for a fact from communication all around the world, that we
Indian people inspired many other indigenous people to stand up and
defend themselves because of our actions.



I have gotten letters
from all over the world where people said "if the native Americans
can stand up to people like that being in the belly of the beast,
surely we can do likewise in some way.



"

I recognize that my being here isn't all about me; my continued
imprisonment in essence serves as a warning to others willing
to stand up for their people.



The US has violated their own
constitution they violated the treaties we had with them, they
violated all kinds of moralities to bring about my conviction.




The average non Indian American either doesn't know or couldn't
care less.



As long as they can keep their high standard of living
our struggles mean nothing to them.



Most recently other nations
have raised the issues of America's mistreatment of the people
in the concentration camp in Guantanamo; issues of lack of a fair
trial, issues of physical, mental abuse and of sanctioned torture of
prisoners.



I want to also mention that our people were the first to
be tortured by this government and we were the first to be victims
of scalping by the Europeans.



The colonizers were paying for our
men, woman and children's scalps.





I may sound angry in what I am saying, but all this goes back to
why we are here today.



We must not forget what has happened in
the past but we must also find a way to heal from those things
that have happened and be stronger in the future.



We need to heal
our families; we need to heal our family's structures so that what
happened to our people in the past can't happen to us again.



For
several generations our children were shipped off to boarding
schools which destroyed their understanding of family and family
responsibilities, and you think of the statistics today facing
this, they don't have to kill us anymore with guns, our children
and adults both are killing themselves.





Again, like I said before we have not healed from the destruction
that was put upon us, I know each one of us can be better than what
we are, it takes effort, it takes getting back to our ceremonies,
it takes getting back to our respect for one another, the earth,
the Creator and our respect for our brothers' and sisters' vision.




It takes men being men and being strong fathers and uncles and
grandfathers and brothers, not just as a matter of birth but as a
matter of responsible behavior.



It also takes our women to stand
as the strong mothers they were meant to be and the sisters,
grandmothers and aunties.



We need to repair ourselves and not
wait for some grant from the government to tell us or guide us in
our recovery.



We need to take that responsibility ourselves and
mend the sacred hoop.





Again I want to say as I have said many times in the past, though
my body is locked into this cell, my heart and soul is with you
today.



In closing I would like to acknowledge the loss of our brother
Vernon Belcourt and the great loss of my brother Floyd Westerman, a
tireless advocate for Indigenous rights I'm sure that he as well as
many others, who like him devoted their time and energies to better
the conditions our people face, are here with us today in spirit.




We have no guarantees of the time of our own passing but until that
time or my time I will miss them greatly as I miss you my family.



Be
kind to one another, and remember my words; for I have spoken to
you from my heart of hearts. And you will always be in my prayers.





In the spirit of Crazy Horse and every Indian man or person that
stood for their people,

Doksha


Leonard Peltier

3:46 PM - 10 Comments - 20 Kudos - Add Comment

Freedom! Lakota Sioux Indians Declare Sovereign Nation Status

Freedom! Lakota Sioux Indians Declare Sovereign Nation Status
Threaten Land Liens, Contested Real Estate Over Five State Area in U.S.West Dakota Territory Reverts back to Lakota Control According to U.S., International Law

WASHINGTON, DC - December 20 - Lakota Sioux Indian representatives declared sovereign nation status today in Washington D.C. following Monday's withdrawal from all previously signed treaties with the United States Government. The withdrawal, hand delivered to Daniel Turner, Deputy Director of Public Liaison at the State Department, immediately and irrevocably ends all agreements between the Lakota Sioux Nation of Indians and the United States Government outlined in the 1851 and 1868 Treaties at Fort Laramie Wyoming.

"This is an historic day for our Lakota people," declared Russell Means, Itacan of Lakota. "United States colonial rule is at its end!"

"Today is a historic day and our forefathers speak through us. Our Forefathers made the treaties in good faith with the sacred Canupa and with the knowledge of the Great Spirit," shared Garry Rowland from Wounded Knee. "They never honored the treaties, that's the reason we are here today."

The four member Lakota delegation traveled to Washington D.C. culminating years of internal discussion among treaty representatives of the various Lakota communities. Delegation members included well known activist and actor Russell Means, Women of All Red Nations (WARN) founder Phyllis Young, Oglala Lakota Strong Heart Society leader Duane Martin Sr., and Garry Rowland, Leader Chief Big Foot Riders. Means, Rowland, Martin Sr. were all members of the 1973 Wounded Knee takeover.

"In order to stop the continuous taking of our resources – people, land, water and children- we have no choice but to claim our own destiny," said Phyllis Young, a former Indigenous representative to the United Nations and representative from Standing Rock.

Property ownership in the five state area of Lakota now takes center stage. Parts of North and South Dakota, Nebraska, Wyoming and Montana have been illegally homesteaded for years despite knowledge of Lakota as predecessor sovereign [historic owner]. Lakota representatives say if the United States does not enter into immediate diplomatic negotiations, liens will be filed on real estate transactions in the five state region, clouding title over literally thousands of square miles of land and property.

Young added, "The actions of Lakota are not intended to embarrass the United States but to simply save the lives of our people".

Following Monday's withdrawal at the State Department, the four Lakota Itacan representatives have been meeting with foreign embassy officials in order to hasten their official return to the Family of Nations.

Lakota's efforts are gaining traction as Bolivia, home to Indigenous President Evo Morales, shared they are "very, very interested in the Lakota case" while Venezuela received the Lakota delegation with "respect and solidarity."

"Our meetings have been fruitful and we hope to work with these countries for better relations," explained Garry Rowland. "As a nation, we have equal status within the national community."

Education, energy and justice now take top priority in emerging Lakota. "Cultural immersion education is crucial as a next step to protect our language, culture and sovereignty," said Means. "Energy independence using solar, wind, geothermal, and sugar beets enables Lakota to protect our freedom and provide electricity and heating to our people."

The Lakota reservations are among the most impoverished areas in North America, a shameful legacy of broken treaties and apartheid policies. Lakota has the highest death rate in the United States and Lakota men have the lowest life expectancy of any nation on earth, excluding AIDS, at approximately 44 years. Lakota infant mortality rate is five times the United States average and teen suicide rates 150% more than national average. 97% of Lakota people live below the poverty line and unemployment hovers near 85%.

"After 150 years of colonial enforcement, when you back people into a corner there is only one alternative," emphasized Duane Martin Sr. "The only alternative is to bring freedom into its existence by taking it back to the love of freedom, to our lifeway."

We are the freedom loving Lakota from the Sioux Indian reservations of Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Montana who have traveled to Washington DC to withdraw from the constitutionally mandated treaties to become a free and independent country. We are alerting the Family of Nations we have now reassumed our freedom and independence with the backing of Natural, International, and United States law. For more information, please visit our new website at www.lakotafreedom.com.

7:40 PM - 33 Comments - 48 Kudos - Add Comment

Global Write-A-Thon for Leonard Peltier

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Global Write-A-Thon for Leonard Peltier

Forwarded from LPDC: From: info@leonardpeltier.netSubject: Global Write-A-Thon for Leonard Peltier, a Message from the Leonard Peltier Defense Committee Date: 26 November 2007 15:21:07 GMT-08:00 Global Write-A-Thon for Leonard Peltier Save the Date: December 1st-10th, 2007December 10th is International Human Rights Day. The date was chosen to honor the United Nations General Assembly's adoptionand proclamation, on 10 December 1948, of the Universal Declaration of HumanRights, the first global enunciation of human rights.(See: http://users.skynet.be/kola/udhr.htm ) The commemoration was established in 1950, when the General Assembly invitedall states and interested organizations to celebrate the day as they sawfit. The day is a high point in the calendar of U.N. headquarters in NewYork City, and is normally marked by both high-level political conferencesand meetings and by cultural events and exhibitions dealing with humanrights issues. In addition, it is traditionally on December 10 that thefive-yearly United Nations Prize in the Field of Human Rights is awarded. Many governmental and nongovernmental organizations active in the humanrights field also schedule special events to commemorate the day. Wecelebrate Human Rights day because there are many people who do not have therights granted to them. This day was declared so that all of us can becomeaware of our rights and create an awareness among others, of people who aredeprived of their rights. To mark this day, join people all around the world and participate in oursecond Global Write-A-Thon for Leonard Peltier. This year, we will concentrate on the release of the documents that the FBIare still withholding. Our Write-A-Thon is directed at Senator PatrickLeahy, the Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary. What's a "Write-A-Thon"?Simply put: a "writing marathon". Or write a ton of letters... :-) Each year, Amnesty International organizes a Write-A-Thon for December 10th.This is where we found our inspiration. Their slogan is "Write = Might".This is oh so very true! (Thank you Amnesty International) Your letters arethe watchdogs, putting perpetrators of abuse on notice. Your letters are thelight that shines through the despair prisoners of conscience & politicalprisoners face on a daily basis. Your letters are tools of freedom, pavingthe way for the abused and battered to finally find justice & freedom. Participation is easy! You can either pledge to write a letter by yourself,or, you can plan a letter writing event, at your home, school, church oreven at your local cafe. You can hold your event, and send your letter (s)anytime from December 1-10, 2007. To make it even easier, we are providingyou with a sample letter that you can print out. You can download the letterat: the IPF website: http://users.skynet.be/kola/writeathon2007.pdf the LPDC website:http://www.leonardpeltier.net/documents/writeathon2007.pdf Senator Leahy's address is on the letter. You can also fax your letter to Sen. Leahy at 202-224-3479 (for supportersoutside the USA: 00-1-202-224-3479) Please inform us how many letters you and your friends/family have sent.(note: have sent, not will send). Send a message to the IPF at ipforum@skynet.beor to the LPDC at info@leonardpeltier.netput "Peltier WriteAThon" as subject title tell us how many letters were sentas well as your city + state (for the USA) or city + province (for Canada)or city + country (outside USA & Canada) Thank you for your support !Let's write a ton of letters for Leonard. Els Herten, International Peltier Forum Toni Zeidan- Leonard Peltier Defense Committee LPDC WEBSITE: http://www.leonardpeltier.net/ IPF WEBSITE: http://users.skynet.be/kola/index.htm andhttp://www.myspace.com/leonardpeltierisinnocent e-mail LPDC: info@leonardpeltier.nete-mail IPF: ipforum@skynet.be ONLINE PETITION FOR EXECUTIVE CLEMENCY:http://users.skynet.be/kola/lppet.htm ---------------------------------------------------------------------To subscribe, send a blank message to lpdc-on@mail-list.comTo unsubscribe, send a blank message to lpdc-off@mail-list.comTo change your email address, send a message to lpdc-change@mail- list.comwith your old address in the Subject: line To unsubscribe, click on the following web page.http://cgi.mail-list.com/u?ln=lpdc&nm=dbwall@earthlink.net This message was launched into cyberspace to dbwall@earthlink.net FREE LEONARD PELTIER!FREE ALL POLITICAL PRISONERS!http://www.leonardpeltier.net

8:57 AM - 9 Comments - 8 Kudos - Add Comment

A Message from Leonard Peltier

Thursday, August 23, 2007
A Message from Leonard Peltier

Greetings Brothers and Sisters,

I hope my message finds you in the best of health and spirits and that each one of you is enjoying your summer and looking forward for the Fall Season. I have always enjoyed the Fall Season. I still remember the vivid colors of the leaves changing and falling in preparation for our Winter. This Sept 12, 2007 I will be 63 years old, and I can no longer say I am a young man eh? Behind bars I have aged from a youth into an Elder. As the seasons have passed I have become an elder, my children have grown, and my grandchildren are now young men and women, and lately I became a Great – Grandfather.

This year will mark more than 31 years of my unjust imprisonment. Your thoughts, supports, letters, cards, prayers, and energy have kept me strong. I thank you for the lovely cards, and letters that I have been receiving, for I enjoy hearing from you! Some of you have been writing me for the past 32 years and through your letters have included me in your family gatherings, festivities and in your life as the years have passed. I thank you! Many of you are writing me to tell me about the activities and events that are being held in my honor, and your efforts of joining me and the Leonard Peltier Defense Committee in our ongoing campaign towards my freedom. On a sad note I also receive letters from supporters who identify themselves as loyal Peltier supporters and yet in their letters their advice is for the Leonard Peltier Defense Committee to be closed and how inappropriate it is for me or the LPDC to be asking for support and help so that we can continue our ongoing work towards my freedom. I once wrote in a message a few months ago that we are all climbing the same mountain, just on different sides at times. As I read my letters from supporters that write to tell me of their ongoing work towards my freedom and state that we are all working together, I feel inspired and know that each one of us is working in unity and solidarity from all sides of the mountain until we win this ongoing struggle for my freedom.
As for the "supporters" who write me and offer their advice on closing the LPDC office, and for the committee to stop raising funds for our legal campaign, I wonder which mountain they are climbing? Are they maybe working with an organization that for the past 32+ years has falsified affidavits, withheld evidence, and has withheld documents in their efforts to keep me wrongfully incarcerated? One would start to wonder…

My case has been fraught with government misconduct since the beginning. The Government among other wrongful acts manufactured false evidence, withheld evidence and coerced witness. We now know that the FBI used confidential informant sources to compromise attorney/client communications they illegally used to develop strategies for conviction. The FBI permitted informants to attend both my trial and that of my co-defendants. The FBI however refuses to produce the name(s) of their informants and has been given unfettered discretion by the courts to keep this information from my legal team.

On June 8, 2007 my legal team, attorneys, Ron Kuby and David Pressman filed with the US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit an appellate brief asking the Court to review and release some 11,000 pages of documents that have been withheld for over 30 years.
Indeed, a document recently produced by the FBI and recently introduced to a Magistrate Judge established that the FBI intentionally took actions to try to avoid producing documents in discovery in my case. But again, this seems to have had no impact on the Court. The United States Federal Courts have recognized overwhelming evidence of FBI misconduct in my case which has already been revealed, yet it has continued to allow the FBI to use exemptions under FOIA to shield its illegal tactics in this case, depriving me of my rights to a fair trail.

I urge all of you who believe in justice to join my fight and cry out for the production of all documents related to my case. Why is the FBI still withholding documents? Why won't they produce all documents to me? To me the answer is obvious. I believe the answer is obvious to you also.

The new legal team, attorneys Ron Kuby, and David Pressman, the Leonard Peltier Defense Committee and I thank you for your support and help.

In the Spirit of Crazy Horse,
Leonard Peltier

Toni Zeidan-Co-director, Leonard Peltier Defense Committee
email: info@leonardpeltier.net
website: http://www.leonardpeltier.net/
Address: 3800 N. Mesa
A2
El Paso, Texas 79902
Online donation site:
http://www.freedomwalk.com/


posted by Leonard @ 7:49 AM



Website: www.leonardpeltier.net

11:00 AM - 29 Comments - 45 Kudos - Add Comment

Leonard Peltier Nominated for 2007 Nobel Peace Prize

forwarded from LPDC:

From: info@leonardpeltier.net
Subject: Leonard Peltier Nominated for 2007 Nobel Peace Prize, A Message From The Leonard Peltier Defense Committee
Date: April 3, 2007 10:01:15 PM PDT


On April 3rd, 2007, the LPDC has received confirmation of Leonard Peltier's official nomination for the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize. This year 181 candidates have been registered. The name of the Prize recipient for 2007 will be announced in mid-October.


We want to thank the people who nominated Leonard for this prestigious award.

Respectfully,
Leonard Peltier Defense Committee


Note:
We ask that Supporters NOT send letters of support or recommendation to the Nobel Peace Prize Committee as only selected individuals can nominate for the Nobel Peace Prize.

8:38 AM - 32 Comments - 62 Kudos - Add Comment

14th Annual NW Regional International Day of Solidarity

A Message from the Leonard Peltier Defense Committee


On behalf of Leonard Peltier and the Leonard Peltier Defense Committee, we
would like to express our appreciation for your ongoing support and work
towards Leonard Peltier's freedom. February 6, 2007 marked the 31st
anniversary of Leonard Peltier's arrest in Canada which later led to his
illegal extradition to the United States using coerced and fraudulent
testimony. On Feb 10, 2007 Tacoma Leonard Peltier Support Group ( LPSG)
hosted the 14th Annual NW Regional International Day of Solidarity for
Leonard Peltier.



Please click here for photographs from the event:


http://www.seattle.indymedia.org/en/2007/02/257659.shtml






Leonard Peltier Support Groups (LPSGs) build awareness and unity. You can
contribute to Leonard's freedom as an individual, a Leonard Peltier Support
Group, ( LPSGs) or solidarity group. Join us!



For more information about forming a Leonard Peltier Support Group (
LPSG)please contact the LPDC @: info@leonardpeltier.net or call the national
office @ 915- 533-6655.



The February 2007 In the Spirit of Crazy Horse newsletter will be available
online soon, which will provide photographs, and updates from LPSG groups,
and supporters internationally and nationally.



Again Thank You for your continued support!



In Solidarity



Leonard Peltier Defense Committee



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11:32 AM - 1 Comments - 4 Kudos - Add Comment

TOP TEN REASONS LEONARD PELTIER SHOULD BE FREED, IN THE WORDS OF THE GOVERNMENT

TOP TEN REASONS LEONARD PELTIER SHOULD BE FREED, IN THE WORDS OF THE GOVERNMENT



Joe Quickle



10. "The United States government must share in the responsibility for the June 26 firefight... It appeared that the FBI was equally to blame for the shootout..."
- Gerald Heaney, Senior Judge in the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, in a letter supporting clemency for Leonard Peltier.



9. "We can't prove who shot those agents... Aiding and abetting whoever did the final shooting. Perhaps aiding and abetting himself. And hopefully the jury would believe that in effect he had done it all. But aiding and abetting nevertheless."
-Prosecutor Lynn Crooks in Court of Appeals, October 15, 1985.



8. "But can't you see... that what happened happened in such a way that it gives some credence to the claim... that the United States is willing to resort to any tactic in order to bring somebody back to the United States from Canada. And if they a re willing to do that, they must be willing to fabricate evidence as well."
-Judge Donald Ross, Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, referring to the coerced and perjured affidavits used to extradite Leonard Peltier from Canada. Transcript of the proceedings (oral arguments) in US v. Peltier, CR C77-3003 "Motion to Vacat e Judgement and for a New Trial," at 7326-7.



7. Federal Bureau of Investigation teletype dated October 2, 1975, indicating that (FBI ballistics expert) Evan Hodge had performed a firing pin test on the Wichita AR-15 (claimed by the government to have been Leonard Peltier's) immediately after h e received it and compared it to the cartridges found at the scene. Contrary to his trial testimony that the test was inconclusive, this memo conclusively stated that the rifle contained "a different firing pin" from the weapon used in the firefight. Th is exculpatory evidence was withheld from the defense, and only discovered years after the trial with the release of documents via the Freedom of Information Act.



6. "There are only two alternatives... to the government's contention that the .223 casing was ejected into the trunk of Coler's car when the Wichita AR-15 was fired at the agents. One alternative is that the .223 casing was planted in the trunk of Coler's car either before its discovery by the investigating agents or by the agents who reported the discovery. The other alternative is that a non-matching casing was originally found in the trunk and sent to the FBI laboratory, only to be replaced by a matching casing when the importance of a match to the Wichita AR-15 became evident."
- Judges of the Appeals panel, Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, "Appeal from the U.S. District Court for the District of North Dakota," op. cit., p. 16. The Court recognized that key evidence against Leonard Peltier could only have been fabric ated, but went on to say "We recognize that there is evidence in this record of improper conduct on the part of some FBI agents, but we are reluctant to impute even further improprieties to them."



5. "The jury agreed with the defense contention that an atmosphere of fear and violence exists on the reservation, and that the defendants arguably could have been shooting in self-defense. While it was shown that the defendants [Dino Butler and Bo b Robideau] were firing guns in the direction of the agents, it was held that this was not excessive in the heat of passion."
-Jury Foreman Robert Bolin, after the acquittal of Butler and Robideau for their roles in the firefight.



4. Leonard Peltier was targeted for "neutralization" by the FBI years before the firefight; in 1972 two off-duty Milwaukee police officers beat Peltier and then had him charged with attempted murder. This occurred after one of the officers had show n a picture of Peltier to his girlfriend and boasted of "catching a big one for the FBI." (U.S. v. Peltier, CR 77-3003-1, U.S. Court for the District of North Dakota, November, 1990, p. 12). Both incidents were entirely consistent with the FBI's COINTEL program, which targeted any individuals or groups with political voices.



3. "...[L]ittle has been done to solve numerous murders on the reservation, but when two white men are killed 'troops' are brought in from all over the country at a cost of hundreds of millions of dollars."
- Civil Rights Commission Chairman Arthur J. Flemming on the reaction to the FBI agents' deaths in (his words again), "an extreme over-reaction which takes on aspects of a vendetta...a full scale military type invasion" of Pine Ridge Indian R eservation.



2. "... the FBI [was] determined to get the AIM movement and completely destroy it."
-Judge Fred Nichol, after presiding over the "Wounded Knee Leadership Trial," quoted in NY Times, Sept. 17, 1974.



1. "We don't know who shot those agents"
- Prosecutor Lynn Crooks in Court of Appeals, Nov. 9, 1992, p. 12 of oral arguments transcript.



Source: http://www.connix.com/~harry/peltier2.htm

10:36 AM - 11 Comments - 18 Kudos - Add Comment

Struggling for justice: A message from Leonard Peltier

Struggling for justice: A message from Leonard Peltier
Friday, January 12, 2007
By: Leonard Peltier

Information held by government could lead to freedom

"Much of the government's behavior at the Pine Ridge Reservation and in its prosecution of Mr. Peltier is to be condemned. The government withheld evidence. It intimidated witnesses. These facts are not disputed."

Background

For over 30 years I have sought justice from the United States Courts which have failed to provide me with any relief despite acknowledging numerous acts of Government misconduct. For example, after my trial, my lawyers issued Freedom of Information Act Requests ("FOIA") and discovered that the Government fabricated the ballistics evidence which it used at trial to argue that I shot the agents in cold blood. Once we revealed this egregious misconduct, the Government has had to admit on several occasions in open

Court and before the Parole Commission that it could not prove I shot the agents and that it could not prove who shot the agents.

Despite the Government misconduct recognized by the Courts, I remain in prison. When we exposed the Government misconduct, the Government stopped arguing that I "shot the agents," and began arguing that my conviction should be upheld on aiding and abetting grounds, even though the only two people I could have aided and abetted, Robert Robideau and Dino Butler, were acquitted on self-defense grounds. In the Robideau and Butler trials, the Court allowed them to present evidence to show that they where shooting in self defense at unknown assailants who were shooting at houses occupied by women and children. In contrast, my case was moved to another Judge, Judge Benson, who prevented me from introducing evidence of self-defense and evidence of the war-like climate that existed on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation because of marauding groups of vigilantes hired by a corrupt tribal government, supported by the United States government.

Just as significant, no Court has ever explained how my conviction could be upheld on aiding and abetting grounds since I could not aid and abet myself, and I could not aid and abet my co-defendants since they were acquitted. So, just who did I aid and abet to warrant two consecutive life sentences? The Courts and the Government cannot answer that question. Yet, I remain in prison.

My case demonstrates the illegal means which our Government will utilize to ensure that I, a Native American, am punished for the death of two FBI agents, without regard to whether I did it, which I did not, and without regard to the deprivation of my rights. All the Government cared about was that someone was punished for an incident provoked by the FBI, the corrupt tribal government, and its private police, known as the GOON squad. And yet, I remain in prison.

The United States Government keeps me imprisoned to justify the continuing abuses against, not only Native American people, but anyone who seeks to fight criminal abuses such as those committed and/or aided by the FBI on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation between 1973-1976. This Country has waged, and continues to wage, war not just against Native Americans but against any form of domestic political dissent. Secret domestic intelligence programs, such as the well documented COINTELPRO program and the Patriot Act, have eroded and destroy the constitutional rights and liberties of all peoples of this Nation. But, most people would rather ignore injustice, then take a stand against injustice and face the wrath of our Government. What I was not allowed to introduce into evidence was the indisputable evidence that United States Government and a corrupt tribal government committed war crimes against the Oglala people during the so-called "Reign of Terror," from 1973-1976. Yet, these crimes have never been uninvestigated, and, if anything, they have been ignored and certain propagandists have revised history to say they never occurred, similar to those who espouse that the genocide of Native American people never occurred in the Americas. The one exception is the murder of Anna Mae Aquash which the United States Government began pursuing earnestly nearly 30 years after her death, in order to smear me to harm my chances at parole through the use of hearsay testimony and unsubstantiated innuendo. I unequivocally deny that I had anything to do with the murder of Anna Mae, and I condemn those who murdered her and those who seek to smear me and make me a patsy for the crime they committed.

The indisputable Government misconduct which led to my wrongful conviction represents a threat to the liberties of each and every one of us. Perhaps this is what ultimately struck the conscience of Judge Heaney (a judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit who despite the glaring evidence of Government misconduct, wrote a strained and legally embarrassing decision to deny my first habeas petition), and compelled him to write a letter supporting my request for presidential clemency.

As recently as the fall of 2003, the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit stated:

Much of the government's behavior at the Pine Ridge Reservation and in its prosecution of Mr. Peltier is to be condemned. The government withheld evidence. It intimidated witnesses. These facts are not disputed.

As my lawyers wrote in a recent brief, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has repeatedly recognized specific instances of FBI misconduct in my case: The Eighth Circuit found that the FBI withheld critical ballistics evidence which raised questions "regarding the truth and accuracy of [FBI agent Evan] Hodge's testimony." The Eighth Circuit acknowledged that the FBI withheld critical evidence which was "newly discovered evidence indicating [that the government's ballistic's expert] may not have been telling the truth," and that the evidence withheld by the FBI created "inconsistencies casting strong doubts upon the government's case."

The Eighth Circuit also addressed the government's coercing of witnesses and extracting perjurious affidavits including the three fabricated affidavits of Myrtle Poor Bear which were used to extradite me from Canada. The FBI knew that Ms. Poor Bear was mentally incompetent. Yet, they had her sign three fabricated affidavits which falsely stated that she was my girlfriend and that she saw me kill Agents Coler and Williams. Poor Bear never knew me, and she was never at the Jumping Bull Compound on June 26, 1975, or any other date that I am aware of. The Eighth Circuit described the Myrtle Poor Bear episode as follows:

In February and March, 1976, Myrtle Poor Bear signed three affidavits which related her eyewitness account of the murders of the two agents on June 26,

1975. Two of these affidavits were considered by Canadian officials in the extradition proceedings. In testimony given outside of the presence of the jury at the trial, Poor Bear disclaimed virtually every allegation contained in the affidavits. She testified that she had been forced to sign the affidavits, which were prepared by FBI agents Price and Wood, under threats of physical harm.

The Eighth Circuit court recognized that "[t]he Poor Bear … testimony was certainly consistent with [my] theory [that the FBI framed me by manufacturing evidence and inducing witnesses to testify in accordance with its theory of the murders.]" Even in the face of this fraud, one of the prosecutors, Lynn Crooks, belligerently stated on television in 1990 that, even if he knew the affidavits were false, he still would not have hesitated to provide them to the Canadian prosecutor.

The FBI's illegal tactics in its war on the American Indian Movement and me

I was a member of the American Indian Movement who, like many others, was subjected to a number of Counterintelligence (COINTELPRO) type activities by the FBI. "COINTELPRO" is the FBI acronym for a series of covert action programs directed against political domestic groups. This program was investigated and condemned by a Congressional hearing in the 1970s. With this unauthorized program, the FBI engaged in covert actions designed to 'disrupt' and 'neutralize' target groups and individuals," engaged in political dissent. One of the COINTELPRO type tactics used by the FBI and, in particular against AIM, was the infiltration of the legal defense by paid informants, violating attorney-client privilege. We have recently discovered evidence that the FBI did this in my case.

Recently discovered evidence

In the face of Court expressions acknowledging and condemning the Government misconduct, the Courts continue to
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allow the FBI to engage in wrongful behavior by allowing them to withhold more than 140,000 documents which are located in FBI Field Offices throughout the country. Despite the passage of over 30 years, the Courts have justified the FBI's behavior by ruling that the Informant Files in my case must be protected because the release of such documents could impact the war on "international terrorism." Such a ludicrous and unfathomable reason can only undermine any remaining confidence we could possibly have that our system is based on justice and fairness.

With respect to AIM, and me in particular, we now know that the FBI used confidential informant sources to compromise attorney/client communications they illegally used to develop strategies for conviction. We recently discovered FOIA documents establishing that the FBI utilized Douglas Durham, a paid FBI confidential source who infiltrated the highest levels of AIM and was exposed on March 7, 1975, in my extradition proceedings from Canada. As one Court recognized, "Mr. Douglass Durham, infiltrated the American Indian Movement under instructions of the FBI, won the confidence of Dennis Banks and other leaders of the movement, occupied a series of high level positions in the organization."

These FOIA documents show that the FBI utilized Durham not only to provide information to William Halprin, the Chief Prosecutor from Canada, against me in connection with the extradition proceedings, but also as an "expert adviser on AIM." Halprin requested Durham's involvement "to enable him to utilize the source [Durham] to refute statements made by Peltier's defense." To purportedly avoid legal liability, Durham was told by the FBI not to execute any affidavits or to travel to Canada. "Durham has been instructed to provide information requested by Crown Attorney [and]. … If recontacted by Halprin, he would cooperate fully and would keep Omaha [FBI] advised of developments."

As my attorneys recently wrote, the Courts have indicated that this type of conduct crosses the line:

The informant, Douglass Durham, had worked in various undercover capacities prior to the Wounded Knee incident. His relationship with the FBI began in

March 1973 when he supplied the FBI office in Des Moines, Iowa, with copies of photographs he had taken in a one-day visit to Wounded Knee. He later served in various leadership positions within AIM, including national security director and national administrator. He became a close companion of AIM leader Dennis Banks during the period including the Banks-Means trial in St. Paul. Throughout this period of intimate affiliation with AIM and its leaders, he was supplying information to the FBI.

In analyzing this issue, the Eighth Circuit described the troubling conduct by the FBI:

Were we concerned on this appeal with the question of whether the convictions of Dennis Banks and Russell Means, tried in St. Paul, could be upheld, we would have another case. There is evidence in the record and FBI files to indicate that Durham was privy to numerous conversations between Banks and his lawyers, that he was present in St. Paul during the course of the trial, and that he was in constant communication not only with Banks and the other defendants during the trial, but with the FBI. As the record here is devoid of that type of close proximity to the defense of these appellants and as no prejudice has been shown, we refuse to set aside the convictions of the appellants because of the activities of the informants.

The FBI permitted informants to attend both my trial and that of my co-defendants. In an FBI internal memo, the FBI discussed the circumstances under which informant sources could be approved to go to our trials: "If approved by FBIHQ, sources should be specifically instructed to refrain from being parties to Defense Litigation strategies. Furthermore, they should be instructed that in the event they are unexpectedly placed in the position of being parties to such discussions, they should, where their informant status will not be compromised, leave such discussions immediately."

Durham himself acknowledged that this caution was little more than a wink and a smile. In the Wounded Knee Trials, Douglas Durham was similarly advised by the FBI not to engage in any activity that would violate confidences of the defense, nor to engage in any activities or relate to the FBI any information that had to do with defense tactics, or any legal aspect of the operations of AIM or the defense at that point. In spite of the advice he allegedly received from the FBI, Mr. Durham testified in the United States Senate about the 1974 trial of AIM leader Dennis Banks: "If Dennis and I were sitting in a room and an attorney would walk in and start talking, I couldn't jump up and say, 'I can't be here, the FBI won't allow it.'"

In a Teletype dated July 7, 1975 from the Special Agent in Charge of the Buffalo Field Office of the FBI to the FBI Director and Mr. Richard Held, Special Agent in Charge, Pine Ridge, South Dakota. The FBI indicated that a confidential source, much like Durham was allegedly advised by the FBI not to engage in any activity that would violate any confidences of my defense.

The FBI however refuses to produce the name(s) of their informants and has been given unfettered discretion by the courts to keep this information from my legal team.

Despite our discovering this information, the Courts have let the Government be the arbiter of what documents to produce and what they can withhold. As such, the FBI has unfettered discretion to withhold documents from which it can be determined whether it engaged in misconduct, because it will not acknowledge it. As it is, the FBI deliberately failed to produce any documents from the time period of my trial in the exemplar of documents which it recently produced to the Court to allow it to determine whether the informant documents should be produced to me in an unredacted form. It is clear that it did so to prevent me from finding information they have hid that could affect my due process rights.

Indeed, a document recently produced by the FBI and recently introduced by my lawyers to a Magistrate Judge established that the FBI intentionally took actions to try to avoid producing documents in discovery in my case. But again, this seems to have had no impact on the Court. The United States Federal Courts have recognized overwhelming evidence of FBI misconduct in my case which has already been revealed, yet it has continued to allow the FBI to use exemptions under FOIA to shield its illegal tactics in this case, depriving me of my rights to a fair trail. I urge all of you who believe in justice to join my fight and cry out for the production of all documents related to my case. Why is the FBI still withholding documents? Why won't they produce all documents to me? To me the answer is obvious. I believe the answer is obvious to you also.

Leonard Peltier
# 89637-132
U.S.P. Lewisburg
P.O. Box 1000
Lewisburg, PA USA 17837

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Condolences for William (Billy) Beane Family

Condolences for William (Billy) Beane Family

The Leonard Peltier Defense Committee and Leonard Peltier offer their condolences to the William ( Billy) Beane family. William Beane, Lakota elder passed away on Friday, December 22, 2006 at 6am. As Leonard stated today, "Billy was always willing to help others and stood strong in the struggle. He will be missed."
Wake to be held at 3pm on December 27, 2006 at Billy Mills Hall.
Respectfully,
Leonard Peltier Defense Committee

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UPDATE LEONARD PELTIER CAMPAIGN IN IRELAND PART II

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