President Biden on Monday commuted the life sentence of controversial activist Leonard Pelletier, who was accused of killing two FBI agents, within the final hour of his term.
“The President commutes the life sentence imposed on Leonard Pelletier and will serve the remainder of his sentence on home confinement. ) has been in prison for “century'','' the White House said in a statement.
The commutation is different from a pardon, and the White House statement treats it as committing the crime for which Pelletier was convicted.
Pelletier was an activist with the American Indian Movement (AIM) who was involved in a shootout on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota in 1975 that killed FBI agents Ronald Arthur Williams and Jack Ross Koller. He was one of several people.
Pelletier is the only person convicted in connection with their deaths. Two of his fellow activists were also charged with murder, but were acquitted due to evidence that Pelletier's defense was not allowed to present.
The trial and conviction have long been controversial and criticized as unfair by Pelletier's supporters. They pointed to key witnesses admitting she lied about both witnessing the murder and her relationship with Pelletier, as well as jurors who were seated despite admitting bias against Native Americans.
Pope Francis, Amnesty International and the late Nelson Mandela have all called for Pelletier's release, as has one of the federal prosecutors on Pelletier's trial.
Mr. Peltier has been denied parole multiple times, including last year, and without the president's action this would likely have been his last chance to avoid death in prison. The FBI continues to speak out against his release or pardon, with FBI Director Christopher Wray calling him a “relentless killer” during his recent parole application.
