[News] friends of John Graham: Arlo Looking Cloud trial examined

[News at freedomarchives.org]

Arlo Looking Cloud found guilty
<http://www.grahamdefense.org>http://www.grahamdefense.org

VANCOUVER, British Columbia - The much-anticipated trial of Arlo Looking 
Cloud, a Native American man charged with the murder of a Canadian 
aboriginal woman, Anna Mae Pictou-Aquash, concluded Friday, February 6th, 
with a verdict of "guilty".

The body of the native rights activist and member of the American Indian 
Movement was found on February 24, 1976, lying in a ravine in rural South 
Dakota. It was first ruled to be death by exposure, and later determined 
that she had suffered a bullet wound to the head.

The trial left more questions than answers, and for some a sense of 
disbelief that such a historic case could resolve so quickly.

"My concern with the trial is that it covers a murder which happened 28 
years ago, and only required three days of testimony," said Bob Newbrook, a 
retired police officer who was involved with the arrest of Leonard Peltier. 
"If we thought the court would be a crucible for truth, we
were very much mistaken."

"It was a typical South Dakota kangaroo court," said John Graham, the 
co-accused in this case. Graham has always maintained his innocence. He is 
living in Vancouver under house arrest, fighting extradition to the U.S. 
"What happened to Arlo proves there is no chance of a fair trial in the U.S."

Looking Cloud's public defense attorney, Tim Rensch, called only one 
witness during the trial - FBI Special Agent David Price - who he 
questioned for a mere ten minutes to counter the Prosecution's 23 witnesses.

While Looking Cloud entered a plea of "not guilty", his Defense chose not 
to challenge the validity of Looking Clouds alleged confessions, which 
witnesses recounted with frequent contradictions. The Defense asserted that 
while he admitted to being present at the crime scene, he was
unaware that Anna Mae would be murdered and was therefore not responsible 
for her death.

"I was approached by Vernon Bellecourt and Arlo Looking Cloud's family to 
get into this case," said well-known attorney Terry Gilbert of the Centre 
for Constitutional Rights in New York. "They were unhappy with the local 
lawyer for a number of reasons, principally because he admitted that his 
client was present when Anna Mae's murder took place, and told the press this.

"There were few motions and no competency motion," observed Gilbert. 
"Looking Cloud was a homeless alcoholic for more than 20 years and 
vulnerable to manipulation by the detective in Denver who was trying to 
make this case. I wrote Judge Pearsoll and offered to be appointed as 
co-counsel. He refused."

Looking Cloud did not take the stand at any time during the trial. A 
videotaped confession was played, during which Looking Cloud admitted to 
being under the influence of alcohol.

An FBI agent who was among the first at the crime scene testified that the 
body was found clothed in moccasins and a dress. This caused the 
Prosecution to interject, reminding their own witness that the body was 
found wearing blue jeans. The agent said he must have been mistaken.

Of the 23 witnesses called by the Prosecution, most simply recounted 
contradictory versions of Looking Cloud's alleged confessions.

One recounting described Arlo driving to the scene of the crime but staying 
in the car, while another described Arlo walking to where Anna Mae was 
allegedly shot. Other versions described Anna Mae as being tied up, while 
videotaped testimony showed Arlo flatly denying she had been tied up at all.

Anna Mae's eldest daughter, Denise Maloney, testified that in April 2002, 
she had received a phone call from Richard Two Elk who was the first person 
to claim hearing Looking Cloud's confession. Two Elk presented himself as 
Looking Cloud's brother. Paul DeMain, a journalist, allegedly vouched for 
Two Elk and convinced Maloney to hear Looking Cloud's confession, who was 
then put in the phone.

The Looking Cloud trial revealed, however, that Two Elk was not Arlo's 
brother. Two Elk's inconsistent and hostile testimony appeared to bring 
little value to the Prosecution's case, and at times inspired outright 
laughter from the gallery.

Another highly anticipated witness was Kamook Banks, the ex-wife of 
prominent American Indian Movement (AIM) activist Dennis Banks. Her 
testimony was barely relevant to Arlo Looking Cloud, instead condemning 
Leonard Peltier for allegedly bragging that he had killed two FBI agents 
during an earlier conflict between the FBI and members of the American 
Indian Movement.

The Prosecution asserted her testimony was required to demonstrate the 
knowledge Anna Mae possessed about the AIM leadership, thus showing motive 
for their ordering her execution.

Upon cross examination, however, it was revealed that Kamook Banks had 
received $42,000.00 (USD) from the FBI to assist in building their case.

In a news release on February 7th, 2004, Barry Bachrach, the attorney 
representing Leonard Peltier asked, "Who was on trial? The majority of the 
testimony presented had nothing whatsoever to do with Arlo Looking Cloud, 
but prominent members of the American Indian Movement.

"There was not one iota of proof presented to support many witnesses' 
'beliefs'. And for every witness presented, there are any number of other 
individuals who could be called to appear and who would tell very different 
stories," he stated.

"The public didn't hear about the shoddy investigation the FBI conducted 
into the death of Anna Mae Aquash, either. It took them 28 years to bring 
someone - anyone - to trial? The FBI is better than that. Everybody knows it."

The trial did serve as evidence to John Graham and his supporters that the 
FBI is continuing its campaign to brutalize and incarcerate members of the 
American Indian Movement, perhaps in an effort to cover up their own
complicity in crimes of the past.

"I feel now, more than ever, that John must not be extradited," said 
Jennifer Wade, a well-known human rights advocate and founding member of 
BC's Amnesty International. "This feeling is based on all that has gone on 
in the Dakotas, with respect to the Leonard Peltier trial, and now the 
trial of Arlo Looking Cloud which shows that a conviction can be achieved 
on unreliable hearsay with so many discrepancies."

In light of the Looking Cloud trial, the John Graham Defense Committee and 
the Friends of John Graham are jointly calling upon Canada's Minister of 
Justice Irwin Cotler to stop extradition procedures against John
Graham.

They are also calling for a complete and independent investigation into the 
FBI's involvement in the death of Anna Mae Pictou-Aquash, and the scores of 
malicious deaths in and around the Pine Ridge Reservation which remain 
uninvestigated.

More information on John Graham and the defense committee can be found at 
their website, <http://www.grahamdefense.org>www.grahamdefense.org.

For more information contact:

Matthew Lien, John Graham Defense Committee
(867) 633-3513
<mailto:info at grahamdefense.org>info at grahamdefense.org

Joni Miller, Friends of John Graham
<mailto:johngraham at shaw.ca>johngraham at shaw.ca
www.members.shaw.ca/johngraham



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