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September 12, 2024

Amnesty Asks Biden to Grant Clemency to U.S. Political Prisoner Leonard Peltier, Who Turns 80 Today
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Amnesty International is calling on President Biden to grant clemency to
Indigenous leader and political prisoner Leonard Peltier, who turns 80
years old today, after nearly a half-century in prison for a crime he
says he did not commit. Peltier has always maintained his innocence over
the 1975 killing of two FBI agents in a shootout on the Pine Ridge
Reservation. His conviction was riddled with irregularities and
prosecutorial misconduct. In a letter to President Biden, Amnesty
International USA wrote, "You have the opportunity to rectify a case
that has long troubled human rights advocates and Indigenous Peoples
worldwide." Vigils and other actions are being held today in Washington,
D.C., and around the country.


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