From: "LPDC" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Date: Wed, 16 May 2001 14:21:44 -0500 To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: URGENT ACTION URGENT PELTIER ACTION - STRIKE WHILE THE IRON IS HOT - DEMAND INVESTIGATIONS Dear Friends, Recent revelations of FBI misconduct have prompted Senator Charles Schumer of New York and Senator Charles Grassley of Iowa to call for "top to bottom" investigations of the FBI. (Grassley is a strong critic of the FBI). Let's voice our support for investigations and push for the inclusion of the Peltier case. Write and call your local Representative and your two Senators, and cc your letters to Senator Schumer and Senator Grassley. To find out who your Rep. and Senators are, and how to contact them, look them up on these sites: www.senate.gov www.house.gov or call the switch board: 202-224-3121. Below is a sample letter. (If you are in New York or in Iowa, and either Schumer or Grassley is one of your Senators, adapt the letter by thanking them, encouraging them, and urging them to include Peltier in any push for investigations.) Here are the addresses to cc your letters to: Senator Charles Schumer United States Senate Washington, DC 20510 Senator Charles Grassley United States Senate Washington, DC 20510 Dear Senator/Congressman _____________, I am writing to express my firm support for "top to bottom" investigations of the FBI as called for by both Senator Schumer and Senator Grassley. There is an obvious pattern of FBI misconduct involving the withholding of evidence and obstruction of justice which must be examined and halted. Such conduct puts in jeopardy our nation's concepts of democracy, open government, and equal justice. I am especially concerned with the FBI's treatment of Leonard Peltier, the Native American rights activist who Amnesty International calls a "political prisoner" who should be "immediately and unconditionally released." Mr. Peltier has been imprisoned for over twenty-five years, following his highly controversial conviction of the 1975 murders of two FBI agents. During Mr. Peltier's trial, the FBI and U.S. Prosecutors emphatically swore that every FBI document had been handed over to the defense. Yet, years later a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit would force the release of over 12,000 FBI documents which had in fact been withheld. Had the jury been able to consider much of this evidence at trial, I have no doubt that Mr. Peltier would be free today. Among the documents was a formerly concealed ballistic test, which proved that the fatal bullets could not have come from the gun tied to Mr. Peltier at trial. The exposure of the test prompted the U.S. Prosecutor to admit during subsequent oral arguments, "we can't prove who shot those agents". Yet, a new trial was denied on technical grounds, even though the court found that, "There is a possibility that the jury would have acquitted Leonard Peltier had the records and data improperly withheld from the defense been available to him in order to better exploit and reinforce the inconsistencies casting strong doubts upon the government's case." The judge who authored the denial now supports Mr. Peltier's release. To make matters worse, the FBI continues to withhold over 6000 documents pertaining to the Peltier case today. We are convinced that these files contain even more critical information. We also note that Mr. Peltier's conviction is deeply rooted in the Pine Ridge "Reign of Terror." During this period, the FBI cooperated with vigilantes who killed over 60 members and supporters of the American Indian Movement and terrorized, assaulted and battered scores of others. Given all of the above, I am asking you to press for a thorough and bi-partisan investigation of the FBI, which will include a comprehensive examination of the Peltier case, including the subpoena of 6000 FBI documents still withheld today. Thank you for your time and consideration to this matter. Sincerely, __________ c.c. Senator Grassley; Senator Schumer Leonard Peltier Defense Committee PO Box 583 Lawrence, KS 66044 785-842-5774 www.freepeltier.org To subscribe, send a blank message to < [EMAIL PROTECTED] > To unsubscribe, send a blank message to < [EMAIL PROTECTED] > To change your email address, send a message to < [EMAIL PROTECTED] > with your old address in the Subject line _________________________________________________ KOMINFORM P.O. Box 66 00841 Helsinki Phone +358-40-7177941 Fax +358-9-7591081 http://www.kominf.pp.fi General class struggle news: [EMAIL PROTECTED] subscribe mails to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Geopolitical news: [EMAIL PROTECTED] subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] __________________________________________________
