Convicted murderer Leonard Peltier freed from prison

The Native American activist left a federal Florida prison on Tuesday after former President Joe Biden commuted his two consecutive life sentences. The 80-year-old spent nearly 50 years in prison after he was convicted of killing two FBI agents in the mid-1970s. The NDN Collective, an Indigenous activism group, insisted Peltier was wrongfully incarcerated and led the charge petitioning for Peltier’s release.

The group planned to celebrate Peltier’s release in North Dakota on Wednesday with a live-streamed community event, according to a statement from the group. The NDN Collective followed through on its commitment to bring Peltier back to his homelands, the group’s founder and CEO Nick Tilsen said. Advocates planned to thank Peltier for his legacy by serving a community meal, Tilsen added. Amnesty International USA Executive Director Paul O’Brien praised Peltier’s release, pointing to human rights concerns about the fairness of his trial, as well as his long-term confinement. It’s good Peltier is out of prison, but he shouldn’t be kept under house arrest, O’Brien said in a Tuesday statement.

How did Peltier kill two FBI agents? Special Agents Jack Coler and Ronald Williams were on South Dakota’s Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in June 1975 to arrest a man accused of various charges including assault with a deadly weapon, according to the FBI. The pair began following and tried to stop a red and white car that matched the description of their suspect’s vehicle. Unbeknownst to the agents, their suspect was not in the car. Three men were in the car, including Peltier, who had an outstanding arrest warrant for attempted murder and fleeing police.

When Williams and Coler tried to pull the vehicle over, the three men got out and opened fire on the agents. Witness testimony showed that residents of a nearby tent encampment heard the shots and joined in the fight totaling at least seven people firing upon Williams and Coler. Evidence crews counted 125 bullet holes in the vehicle, which does not include the rounds that hit agents, shattered windows, or were never recovered, the FBI reported.

If several men were firing, how was Peltier singled out? Pathologists found that Williams and Coler were ultimately killed by a .223-type bullet shot at close range. Witness testimony showed that Peltier was the only shooter present with a gun of that caliber, the FBI noted.

Despite Biden’s clemency, former FBI Director Christopher Wray opposed Peltier’s release in a letter denying Peltier’s parole application in June 2024. Over a dozen federal judges have considered the evidence and legal arguments around Peltier’s case and still consider his claims meritless, Wray wrote. The former FBI director cited the brutality of the crimes and described Peltier executing two special agents with a firearm at close range. Peltier is right where he belongs for committing cold-blooded murder, Wray added.

Dig deeper: Read my previous report for more about Biden’s last-minute pardon of Peltier and his siblings.