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The FBI Agents Association (FBIAA) released a statement ripping former President Joe Biden for his last-minute move to commute the sentence of Leonard Peltier, a Native American who murdered two FBI agents decades ago.

The FBIAA — which represents more than 14,000 active and former FBI agents — characterized Biden’s decision to allow Peltier to serve out the rest of his sentence in home confinement as a stab in the back to the bureau and its employees. Peltier was convicted in 1977 for the 1975 murders of FBI Agents Jack Coler and Ronald Williams at the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. He sought to get out of prison repeatedly before Biden, on the final day of his presidency, commuted his sentence.

“The FBI Agents Association (FBIAA) is outraged by then-President Biden’s decision to commute the sentence of Leonard Peltier, a convicted cop killer responsible for the brutal murders of FBI Special Agents Jack Coler and Ronald Williams. This last-second, disgraceful act by then-President Biden, which does not change Peltier’s guilt but does release him from prison, is cowardly and lacks accountability. It is a cruel betrayal to the families and colleagues of these fallen Agents and is a slap in the face of law enforcement,” the FBIAA said in its statement. “Agents Coler and Williams gave their lives in service to this nation, and their families continue to bear the heavy burden of that sacrifice. The loss of these heroes is felt as deeply today within the FBI family as it was in 1975. Leonard Peltier has never expressed remorse for his actions. Special Agents Coler and Williams were stolen from their families, robbed of the chance to share precious time and milestones with their loved ones. Leonard Peltier should not have been granted a mercy he so cruelly denied to the Coler and Williams families.”

“The profound sacrifice made by Agents Coler and Williams should be honored, not diminished. FBIAA remains steadfast in our commitment to preserving their legacies, and we look forward to working with new leadership in Washington to protect the public, honor our heroes and leave cop killers where they belong — in prison,” the statement concludes.

Peltier executed the two agents at close range after getting into a shootout with them. He fled the scene before he was captured, tried, convicted and imprisoned. Peltier later managed to escape prison before eventually being apprehended again.

In his statement announcing the commutation for Peltier, Biden pointed to Peltier’s advanced age, long tenure in prison to date and deteriorating health as reasons for the commutation. During his incarceration, Peltier evolved into something of a cause célèbre for someactivists who believe he was treated unfairly by the justice system or served time as a political prisoner.

Outgoing FBI Director Chris Wray, in a June 2024 letter to then-acting chair of the U.S. Parole Commission Patricia K. Cushwa, said Peltier does not deserve parole. Wray also said that Peltier’s convictions and status had been reviewed.

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“I write on behalf of the entire FBI family to express our adamant opposition to Leonard Peltier’s latest application for parole. Peltier is a remorseless killer who brutally murdered two of our own before embarking on a violent flight from justice,” Wray wrote in the letter to Cushwa. “His crimes also include a post-conviction escape from federal custody, during which he and his crew fired shots at prison employees. Throughout the years, Peltier has never accepted responsibility or shown remorse. He is wholly unfit for parole. To release Peltier now would significantly ‘depreciate the seriousness of his offense’ and ‘promote disrespect for the law.’”

(Featured Image Media Credit: Screen Capture/CSPAN)

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