Washington, DC (December 16, 2024) – The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) and Indigenous leaders has sent President Joseph R. Biden a letter urging him to grant clemency to Leonard Peltier, an 80-year-old Indigenous activist who has spent nearly five decades in federal prison.
“Mr. Peltier’s case is a stark example of systemic racism and injustice within the criminal legal system,” said NACDL President Christopher A. Wellborn of Rock Hill, S.C. “Despite mounting evidence of his innocence and declining health, he remains incarcerated. It’s time to rectify this historic wrong.”
Holly Cook Macarro, who leads Government Affairs for the NDN Collective, the Indigenous-led organization leading the effort to gain clemency for Peltier, echoed Wellborn’s sentiments. “The injustice of Leonard Peltier’s long incarceration has inspired many voices to step forward and call for his release. President Biden has the opportunity to cement his historic legacy in Indian Country as our greatest President and right a historic wrong by granting clemency to Mr. Peltier,” said Macarro.
NACDL and the NDN Collective urge President Biden to carefully review Peltier’s case and grant his clemency petition to bring justice to a member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa and boarding school survivor who has devoted his life to fighting for the liberation of Indigenous Peoples and send a powerful message of compassion and understanding.
Wellborn’s letter to President Biden states:
“Mr. Peltier's conviction has been widely criticized as flawed and unjust. Despite the government's admission that it could not definitively prove his guilt, he remains incarcerated. This prolonged imprisonment, particularly for an elderly man in declining health, is a profound injustice.
“The support for Mr. Peltier's release is broad and deep, extending from Native American communities to human rights advocates worldwide. Renowned figures such as Nelson Mandela and Pope John Paul II have called for his freedom. Even within the U.S. government, there is long-standing and growing recognition of the need for justice in this case. As your friend and fellow statesman, the late Sen. Daniel K. Inouye, stated to CBS 60 Minutes on September 22, 1991: ‘I think if you add up all the evidence and if all the truth came out that the affidavits were fabricated, that the ballistic information will show that this gun was not in any way involved – I think a reasonable jury would have found him not guilty.’ But whatever history may make of the questionable jury verdict, surely compassion dictates that Mr. Peltier poses no danger to society and no good comes from his strangely prolonged imprisonment…. I implore you to act with courage and compassion and release Leonard Peltier. His freedom would be a beacon of hope for countless others who have suffered injustice.”
Contacts
Jonathan Hutson, NACDL Senior Director of Public Affairs and Communications, 202-480-5343 or jhutson@nacdl.org
The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers is the preeminent organization advancing the mission of the criminal defense bar to ensure justice and due process for persons accused of crime or wrongdoing. A professional bar association founded in 1958, NACDL's many thousands of direct members in 28 countries – and 90 state, provincial and local affiliate organizations totaling up to 40,000 attorneys – include private criminal defense lawyers, public defenders, military defense counsel, law professors and judges committed to preserving fairness and promoting a rational and humane criminal legal system.
