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<h1><font size=4><b>President Obama, please grant Peltier
clemency</b></font></h1><font size=3>September 2, 4:04 PM
<img src="http://image.examiner.com/img/greydot.gif" alt="[]"> Deborah
Dupre'<br><br>
Six-time Nobel Peace Prize nominee, American political prisoner Leonard
Peltier was unsuccessful at his hearing on 28 July, 2009, the first full
parole hearing held in the case since 1993. Parole was denied so is
petitioning President Obama for Executive Clemency.<br><br>
A worldwide outpouring of support for Peltier's release has included
Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Nobel Peace Prize winners Nelson Mandela and
Rigoberta Menchu, the U.N. High Commissioner on Human Rights, the 14th
Dalai Lama Tenzin Gyatso, the European Parliament, the Belgian
Parliament, the Italian Parliament, the Kennedy Memorial Center for Human
Rights, Rev. Jesse Jackson and several American Indian nations and
organizations including the National Congress of American Indians and the
Assembly of First Nations according to
<a href="http://Peltier%E2%80%99s%20support%20over%20the%20years%20have%20been%20from%20Archbishop%20Desmond%20Tutu,%20Nobel%20Peace%20Prize%20winners%20Nelson%20Mandela%20and%20Rigoberta%20Menchu,%20the%20U.N.%20High%20Commissioner%20on%20Human%20Rights,%20the%2014th%20Dalai%20Lama%20Tenzin%20Gyatso,%20the%20European%20Parliament,%20the%20Belgian%20Parliament,%20the%20Italian%20Parliament,%20the%20Kennedy%20Memorial%20Center%20for%20Human%20Rights,%20Rev.%20Jesse%20Jackson%20and%20several%20American%20Indian%20nations%20and%20organizations%20including%20the%20National%20Congress%20of%20American%20Indians%20and%20the%20Assembly%20of%20First%20Nations.">
<i>Native American Times.</a></i> <br><br>
Over 500 VIP and celebrity
<a href="http://www.freepeltiernow.org/support.htm">Peltier supporters
have requested his release.</a><br><br>
In addition to concerns about fairness of his conviction, parole was
sought by Peltier and his lawyer based on his good conduct record in
prison and arrangements made by the Turtle Mountain tribe to receive him
into their community on his release. <br><br>
In 1976, Indigenous activist Leonard Peltier was arrested and illegally
imprisoned for a crime he did not commit according to
<a href="http://freepeltiernow.blogspot.com/2009/09/solidarity-with-leonard-peltier.html">
Friends of Peltier</a> organization.<br><br>
Amnesty International “regretted the US Parole Commission’s decision not
to grant Leonard Peltier parole despite concerns about the fairness of
his 1977 conviction for murder. <br><br>
The organization called for the immediate release on parole of the
activist, who is serving two consecutive life sentences and has spent
more than 32 years in prison.” (<i>Press Agency Emmegi,
<a href="http://www.reporterfreelance.info/2009/08/usa-denial-of-parole-to-leonard-peltier-after-more-than-32-years-in-prison-disappointing/">
USA: Denial of parole to Leonard Peltier after more than 32 years in
prison</a>, disappointing, </i>August 22,2009<i>)<br><br>
</i>"Why should Americans care about this case?" the Friends
group asks.<br><br>
"The very same government tactics used to bring about Peltier's
wrongful conviction are being applied todaynot for the sake of
"national security," as is claimed, but simply to quash
dissent," according to Arthur J. Miller, a co-coordinator for the
Tacoma Leonard <i>Peltier</i> Support Group.<br><br>
The group is appealing to President Obama to grant Executive Clemency to
Peltier.<br><br>
The United States Courts of Appeal have repeatedly acknowledged
investigative and prosecutorial misconduct in this case but, by their
decisions, refused to take corrective action. A model prisoner, Leonard
also has been denied fair consideration for parole and Executive
Clemency.<br><br>
The
<a href="http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/Peltier_Clemency2008/">
petition</a> to President Obama is below.<br>
************************************************<br>
President Barack Obama<br>
The White House<br>
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue<br>
Washington, DC 20500<br><br>
<i>Dear Mr. President,<br><br>
Leonard Peltier, an innocent man, was convicted for the 1975 shooting
deaths of two agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. U.S.
prosecutors have repeatedly admitted that they did not and cannot prove
Peltier's guilt and the appellate courts have cited numerous instances of
investigative and prosecutorial misconduct in this case. As late as
November 2003, the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals acknowledged that
"Much of the government's behavior at the Pine Ridge Reservation and
its prosecution of Mr. Peltier is to be condemned. The government
withheld evidence. It intimidated witnesses. These facts are not
disputed."<br><br>
The courts claim they lack the power to right this wrong. But, as
President, you can.<br><br>
In this case, your concern should be for equal treatment. From the time
of Peltier's conviction until the mid-1990s, according to the Bureau of
Justice Statistics, the average length of imprisonment served for
homicide in the United States ranged from 94 to 99.8 months. Even if you
were to take Peltier's two consecutive life sentences into account at the
higher end of this range, it is clear that Peltier should have been
released a very long time ago. His continued imprisonment after over 30
years appears to be nothing less than revenge for a crime Mr. Peltier did
not commit. Personalized and politically motivated vengeance of this kind
cannot be tolerated. The concepts of justice and good government require
that you act to correct this wrong.<br><br>
Peltier has served his time. Even by the government's own definition, he
has already been imprisoned for a lifetime. In that time, he has missed
the simplest things of ordinary life -- having dinner with friends,
taking walks in the woods, gardening, children's laughter, dogs barking,
the feel of rain on his face, the sound of birds singing... winter and
summer and spring and fall. He has missed seeing his children and
grandchildren grow up. They suffer, too. Mr. Peltier is now a
great-grandfather. How many more generations must suffer this
tragedy?<br><br>
After careful consideration of the facts in Mr. Peltier's case, we have
concluded that Leonard Peltier does not represent a risk to the public.
First, Mr. Peltier has no prior convictions and has advocated for
non-violence throughout his prison term. Furthermore, Mr. Peltier has
been a model prisoner. He has received excellent evaluations from his
work supervisors on a regular basis. He continues to mentor young Native
prisoners, encouraging them to lead clean and sober lives. He has used
his time productively, disciplining himself to be a talented painter and
an expressive writer. Although Mr. Peltier maintains that he did not kill
the agents, he has openly expressed remorse and sadness over their
deaths.<br><br>
Most admirably, Mr. Peltier contributes regular support to those in need.
He donates his paintings to charities including battered women's
shelters, half way houses, alcohol and drug treatment programs, and
Native American scholarship funds. He also coordinates an annual gift
drive for the children of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation -- a
successful program that, in 2006, expanded to include other reservations
throughout the country.<br><br>
Leonard Peltier is widely recognized in the human rights community for
his good deeds and in turn has won several human rights awards including
the North Star Frederick Douglas Award; Federation of Labour (Ontario,
Canada) Humanist of the Year Award; Human Rights Commission of Spain
International Human Rights Prize; and 2004 Silver Arrow Award for
Lifetime Achievement. Mr. Peltier also has been nominated for the Nobel
Peace Prize six times.<br><br>
Leonard Peltier is over 60 years old and his health is deteriorating. He
has suffered a stroke which left him partially blind in one eye. For many
years, Peltier had a seriously debilitating jaw condition which left him
unable to chew properly and caused consistent pain and headaches. Today,
Mr. Peltier continues to suffer from diabetes, high blood pressure, and a
heart condition. He risks blindness, kidney failure, stroke, and
certainly premature death given his diet, living conditions, and health
care.<br><br>
We, the undersigned, say enough is enough, Mr. President. Do the right
thing. Grant Executive Clemency to Leonard Peltier right away.<br><br>
Thank you for giving fair consideration to Leonard Peltier.<br>
<hr>
</i>The group requests supporters sign the
<a href="http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/Peltier_Clemency2008/">
petition </a>and to Call the White House Comment Line: <br>
202-456-1111 / 202-456-1112 to say, "Mr. President, Free Peltier
NOW!"<br><br>
For more information about Peltier, watch the free movie narrated by
Robert Redford,
<a href="http://www.whoisleonardpeltier.info/index1.htm"><i>Incident at
Oglala.</a><br><br>
<br><br>
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