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June 3, 2005<br>
Leonard Peltier Defense Committee<br>
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE<br>
<br>
PELTIER HEARING TO ADRESS LAKOTA NATION SOVEREIGNTY<br>
<br>
As Mark Felt, one of the main responsible FBI officers overseeing<br>
illegal counterintelligence programs targeting the American Indian<br>
Movement and other groups in the 60s and 70's, is hailed as a hero
for<br>
catalyzing the toppling of the Nixon administration, Leonard Peltier<br>
approaches his fourth decade of unjust imprisonment. <br>
<br>
Today, from the perspective of the U.S. government, everything is<br>
excusable in the war theatre, even as the world questions U.S.
policies<br>
and actions that point unequivocally to human rights abuses. A
puppet<br>
government, people murdered and terrorized, that was the climate in
the<br>
Pine Ridge reservation in 1975 when two FBI agents were killed in a<br>
shootout. Leonard Peltier and fellow warriors responded to the call
for<br>
protection from the Oglala Lakota people, but he was blamed for the<br>
deaths of the agents and is serving two consecutive life terms for
that.<br><br>
<br>
However, his defense team has been granted a hearing to correct his<br>
illegal sentencing. The basis for this motion is that the United
States<br>
District Court lacked subject matter jurisdiction under the statutes<br>
upon which Mr. Peltier was convicted and sentenced. The statutes
in<br>
question require that the crime take place "within the special
maritime<br>
and territorial jurisdiction of the United States". Since the
deaths of<br>
the agents occurred on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation which is<br>
neither "within the special maritime [or] territorial jurisdiction
of<br>
the United States", the Peltier defense team is asking the Court
to<br>
grant Mr. Peltier's motion and vacate the illegal sentences imposed
upon<br>
him. If the Court does not recognize the Pine Ridge Reservation
as<br>
sovereign "then one must wonder, what does sovereignty mean?"
stated<br>
Barry Bachrach, attorney for Leonard Peltier. "Sovereignty seems to
be a<br>
concept that is given merely lip service. It is raised when the<br>
government does not want to get involved, and infringed when the<br>
government wants to take action." As Bachrach further stated,
"This<br>
hearing is important because Mr. Peltier was never charged with
crimes<br>
over which the United States had jurisdiction. The history of the<br>
constitution, and the statutes implicated, unequivocally establish
that<br>
Mr. Peltier was not convicted under the Indian Crimes Act, which is
the<br>
only possible authority under which the government could have tried
and<br>
convicted Mr. Peltier. Whereas here, the court had no jurisdiction
to<br>
convict Mr. Peltier under the crimes for which he was convicted,
those<br>
convictions must be set aside as a matter of law."<br>
<br>
The hearing will take place on Wednesday June 15th, 2005 at 2:00 PM
at<br>
the Quentin N. Burdick U.S. Courthouse in Fargo, North Dakota (655
1st<br>
Ave. North - 4th Floor, Courtroom 1).<br>
<br>
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:<br>
RUSS REDNER, LPDC DIRECTOR, 915-533-6655 or TOLL FREE 866-534-6151<br>
BARRY BACHRACH, LPDC ATTORNEY, 508-926-3403<br>
RAQUEL ROBLES BURNET, LPDC HEADQUARTERS, 785-842-5774<br>
<br>
THE COURT DOCUMENTS WILL BE AVAILABLE SOON FOR VIEWING AT:<br>
<a href="http://www.freeleonard.org/" eudora="autourl">
www.freeleonard.org</a> and
<a href="http://www.leonardpeltier.org/" eudora="autourl">
www.leonardpeltier.org<br>
</a></font><x-sigsep><p></x-sigsep>
<font size=3 color="#FF0000">The Freedom Archives<br>
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San Francisco, CA 94110<br>
(415) 863-9977<br>
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