Leonard Peltier Contracts COVID in Federal Prison in Florida

 Indigenous activists and allies gathered today to demand the release of Leonard Peltier who has contracted COVID 19 

Peltier is an Indigenous activist wrongfully imprisoned and incarcerated in Coleman Correctional Institution about an hour north of Tampa. His trial and conviction for killing three FBI agents is one of the most unjust in American history, and a former FBI prosecutor on his case even called for his clemency in 2017. Justice groups from around the world and public figures from Nelson Mandela to Robert Redford have called for his release.

After decades of demands for his release and already existing health problems, the 77-year-old caught COVID-19 last week. Around 20 people gathered on Monday to demand Peltier be released from prison and be transported to a hospital to receive proper care.

LEONARD PELTIER: Trump Just Like The Other Presidents, NO COMMUTATION

Leonard Peltier

Well, to be fairs, there are hours left, and I'll amend the post and apologize, but just as Barack Obama disappointed us on a commutation for Leonard Peltier, so shall Donald Trump.   

From an earlier Time magazine article, his daughter Kathy spoke out:
My father was ultimately extradited from Canada 40 years ago, convicted of the agents’ killings and sentenced to two consecutive life sentences based on testimony that the FBI has admitted they knew was perjured.

and...

Obama Running Out the Clock on Leonard Peltier: Kathy Peltier:Leonard Peltier Is My Father, He Deserves Clemency

TICK TOCK, PRESIDENT OBAMA, one week left to do the right thing.

I've known Kathy Peltier and her mother Anne for about 7 years, working with them on a special project.  I'm honored to help widen the reach of her TIME magazine article about her father Leonard Peltier.

Leonard Peltier now 71

Here's a MONEY QUOTE:

My father was ultimately extradited from Canada 40 years ago, convicted of the agents’ killings and sentenced to two consecutive life sentences based on testimony that the FBI has admitted they knew was perjured.

and...
My worst fear is that my father will die in prison, and that I will never know him as a free man. Clemency for my father would mean our family would get to spend what’s left of his life together for the first time. That freedom would also mean that he can get the help and treatment he truly needs. The truth is, I don’t know how much longer he will be alive. But I do know that even a week with him would mean the world to me. And I know that to watch him die in prison, without clearing his name, would devastate our family even more than the past four decades have.

My father and our family have lived with this injustice for far too long. At this moment, only the president can decide his fate. I hope that President Obama will grant Leonard Peltier clemency before it’s too late.