Utoo Radio with Other News Sources - July 2, 2024 - Indigenous activist Leonard Peltier, who has spent most of his life in prison since his conviction in the 1975 killings of two FBI agents in South Dakota, has been denied parole.

The U.S. Parole Commission announced that Peltier won't be eligible for another parole hearing until June 2026.

Peltier is serving life in prison for the killing agents during a standoff on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. He was convicted in 1977.

Peltier's attorney, Kevin Sharp, vowed to appeal, arguing that Peltier was wrongly convicted and that the health of the 79-year-old was failing.

The fight for Peltier's freedom is embroiled in the Indigenous rights movements, and his name remains a rallying cry.

The FBI and its current and former agents dispute the claims of innocence.

Peltier was a member of the American Indian Movement (AIM), which began in the 1960s and quickly became a national force.

His latest parole hearing was in June at a high-security lockup in Florida.

His relatives have long argued that Peltier should remain behind bars, and a clemency request is pending before President Joe Biden.