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On Friday, Native American activist and longtime political prisoner Leonard Peltier was denied parole. As a result of the decision by the Parole Commission, Peltier, imprisoned since 1977, will continue to serve two consecutive life sentences for his conviction of the murders of two FBI agents. Long considered a political prisoner, on July 28th of this year, the 64 year-old was granted his first parole hearing in fifteen years. Peltier’s defense attorney, Eric Seitz, based his arguments on parole law by saying that his client had no documented misconduct in prison in the last 10 years and would be reincorporated into society at the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa reservation. U.S. Attorney Drew Wrigley, who first announced the Parole Commission’s decision, called the prisoner “unrepentant.” Peltier continues to maintain his innocence in the execution-style killings of FBI agents Jack Coler and Ronald Williams that occurred during a shoot-out in South Dakota’s Pine Ridge Reservation in 1975. Peltier, who ahead of his upcoming 65th birthday is reportedly in poor health, will not be eligible for parole again until July 2024 by which time he will be 79 years old.

GUEST: Mike Kuzma, part of Leonard Peltier’s legal team, coordinated efforts to obtain Peltier’s files under FOIA