News Release
North Dakota Democratic-NPL
At the North Dakota Democratic-NPL State Convention – which was held March 24th through 27th – delegates added the following resolution to the Party Platform and Resolutions, “Be it resolved; the Dem-NPL requests Mr. Leonard Peltier receive immediate release and be granted clemency.”
This comes after the Democratic National Committee (DNC) Native American Caucus released a statement on March 16, 2022 making a similar request writing, “The continued imprisonment of Leonard Peltier, a citizen of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa, is one of the great miscarriages of justice in modern history. Mr. Peltier has been imprisoned for over 46 years. He has remained imprisoned despite the admission by James Reynolds, the United States Attorney whose office handled the prosecution and appeal of his case, that his prosecution was unjust, and prosecutors were unable to prove that he had committed any offense on the Pine Ridge Reservation… Our relative Mr. Peltier, currently held at the Coleman Federal Correctional Complex in Florida, is now an elder and suffers from severe health conditions, including diabetes and a lethal abdominal aortic aneurysm. As the Native American Caucus of the Democratic National Committee, we join the National Caucus of Native American State Legislators and the National Congress of American Indians in urging President Biden to immediately grant Mr. Peltier clemency and release. It is a matter of justice and compassion. It is time for our relative and elder, Mr. Peltier, to live out his final days among his people.”
North Dakota State Representative Ruth Buffalo, who serves as secretary and treasurer of the Democratic National Committee Native American Caucus said, “It’s heartening to see an outpouring of support for clemency and release for Mr. Peltier. This support includes former U.S. Attorney James H. Reynolds, whose office handled the criminal prosecution and appeal of Mr. Peltier. He joined a movement that has earned the support of human rights leaders around the world in recognizing the injustice of the continued incarceration of Mr. Peltier. It’s time to end the senseless suffering of our Elder Leonard Peltier.”
