Atlanta
Friday, July 31, 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Atlanta - On Tuesday, July 28, 2009, former FBI Agent in Charge
Joseph H. Trimbach read a statement to Leonard Peltier, an inmate
serving two consecutive life sentences at the Lewisburg Federal
Penitentiary in Pennsylvania. Peltier was convicted of aiding and
abetting the 1975 double murders of two young Agents under Trimbach's
supervision, Ron Williams and Jack Coler. Peltier's parole hearing,
his first full hearing since 1993, was believed to be his last chance
to convince Board members that he has fulfilled the conditions of his
parole. Peltier sat motionless and stared at the floor as Trimbach
read a prepared statement that said Peltier's only real chance for
parole is for him to finally accept responsibility for his actions,
saying that "Healing is possible only if you acknowledge your guilt,
ask for forgiveness, and show remorse for the terrible crimes you
committed. It is not too late. You must acknowledge the truth" Here
is Trimbach's full statement:
Statement of Joseph H. Trimbach, Special Agent in Charge, FBI (retired)
In Opposition to Parole for
LEONARD PELTIER
Reg. No. 89637-132
United States Penitentiary
Lewisburg, PA
July 28, 2009
I would like to thank the Parole Commission for giving us this
opportunity to make a statement in opposition to parole for Inmate
Peltier. I am here representing only myself and my son, John. We do
not represent any group or organization. The opinions and
recommendations are ours alone. The facts presented are as we know
them to be, and as we set forth in our book, American Indian Mafia,
An FBI Agent's True Story About Wounded Knee, Leonard Peltier, and
the American Indian Movement.
Our book sets the record straight on matters pertaining to Inmate
Peltier as well as the leadership of the American Indian Movement.
[It also exposes many of the falsehoods found in books about Leonard
Peltier, such as Peter Matthiessen's, In the Spirit of Crazy Horse.]
On June 26, 1975, I was in my office in Minneapolis when I learned
that there was gunfire at the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota,
some 600 miles away. I assembled my SWAT teams and flew to Rapid
City. We were met there by George O'Clock, the 60-year-old supervisor
in that resident agency. As I stepped off the plane, George came up
to me with tears streaming down his checks. He could barely speak. He
looked up at me and said, "Boss, they killed them" He was talking
about two of my Agents, Ron Williams and Jack Coler, both 28-years-old.
The Rapid City Resident Agency was a close-knit group of about a
dozen Agents. They worked and socialized together. They were like
family. Several years ago, we interviewed, for our book, one of the
Agents who had been assigned there. He told me that his grief over
the loss of these two friends was something he would carry with him
to his grave.
Agent Williams had a brilliant future in the FBI and was scheduled to
come to Headquarters for training as a squad supervisor. Jack Coler,
the father of two young children, was assigned to the Denver Division
and was on loan to my office. He was a former police officer, and an
outstanding Agent.
On that fateful day in June 1975, we flew to the Pine Ridge airstrip
and were driven to the scene of the shooting. The gunfire had not
ended. We immediately came under fire from shooters in a small
building. They escaped out the rear of the building and into the
woods before we had a chance to surround them. We pursued them in our
vehicles until the terrain made this impossible. We then proceeded on
foot as the fugitives fled west. Inmate Peltier and his associates
shot at us. I almost became a casualty myself. A bullet hit the dirt
just a few feet from where I was running. We could not see the
shooters because we were looking directly into the setting sun. I was
forced to call off the chase for fear that more of my Agents would be
killed pursuing the fugitives in the dark.
John and I attended the murder trial of another American Indian
Movement gunman named Arlo Looking Cloud, in February 2004. Ka-Mook
Nichols, former wife of American Indian Movement founder Dennis
Banks, testified that a few months after the murders, Inmate Peltier
bragged to her and her sister, that he shot Agent Williams. According
to Ka-Mook's testimony, Inmate Peltier said, "The motherfucker was
begging for his life but I shot him anyway" Ron Williams died with
his right hand held up in a futile effort to stave off the rifle
bullet he knew was coming. He had been trying to tie a tourniquet on
the upper arm of Jack Coler who was in deep shock and bleeding to
death from a severe gunshot wound that nearly severed his right arm.
Williams had also been shot and was obviously in great pain. Neither
Agent posed a threat to anyone. Inmate Peltier shot both Agents in
the face from a distance of just a few inches away.
Some people have referred to these killings as a shootout. Actually,
this was more like an ambush from 200 yards away, followed by the
deliberate cold-blooded execution of two wounded law enforcement officers.
No one in the FBI, and certainly no one in my office, knew that
Peltier was on the reservation. The Agents were not there to arrest
him. Ron and Jack were looking for Jimmy Eagle, a local resident
wanted on a felony assault charge. In fact, the Agents had been in
the area the day before, asking about Eagle. Inmate Peltier knew
these men were FBI Agents when he opened fire on them. He thought
they had come to arrest him, as there was an outstanding felony
warrant on Inmate Peltier.
Inmate Peltier continues to deny his involvement in these murders,
despite the massive evidence against him. In so doing, he has done
substantial harm to our criminal justice system by polluting the
minds of many well-intentioned but gullible people, particularly
students, who believe his lies. He has inspired falsified books to be
written (Peter Matthiessen's In the Spirit of Crazy Horse) and a
falsified documentary to be produced (Robert Redford's "Incident at
Oglala"). By claiming to be a political prisoner, illegally convicted
by the FBI, Inmate Peltier promotes disrespect for law and order and
hatred for America. He has poisoned the minds of many Native
Americans with his lies and his defense fund schemes.
In a recent blog posting on behalf of Inmate Peltier, the article
opened with the words, "May death be upon you, FBI" To my knowledge,
Inmate Peltier has never disavowed these dangerous words. In our
view, with his present mindset, he presents a clear, present, and
continuing threat to law enforcement, particularly the FBI.
Inmate Peltier, the issue of your guilt was decided over 30 years ago
in a courtroom and you continue to pay the price for the crimes you
committed. But now could be the time for healing and closure. Healing
is possible only if you acknowledge your guilt, ask for forgiveness,
and show remorse for the terrible crimes you committed. It is not too
late. You must acknowledge the truth. You have an opportunity to make
a positive contribution to society. Ours is a forgiving country, but
you have to ask for forgiveness. And you need to cooperate fully with
authorities on other matters under investigation, including the Anna
Mae Aquash murder.
The path you have chosen over the last three decades has only
succeeded in keeping you behind bars. I want you to consider this
very carefully because this might be your last chance. So I'm asking
you to search your heart and conscience. Do the right thing. Accept
responsibility for your actions. And you must ask Ron's mother and
Jack's widow for forgiveness.
In conclusion, we believe that releasing Inmate Peltier, based on his
claim of innocence, runs contrary to the findings of the Federal
Circuit Court judges, all of whom concluded that he is guilty.
Furthermore, if Inmate Peltier is released without acknowledging his
guilt, we can expect him to give speeches on reservations and college
campuses asserting the lie that he was a political prisoner. We
believe it is unacceptable to grant parole to an unrepentant killer
who refuses to ask for forgiveness from family members deprived of a
son, a husband, and a father.
James Simon
Trimbach & Associates, Inc.
Atlanta
770-883-5086
.
1 comments:
I will always belive leonard is not guilty.I do know how native americans are treated and I know the goverment lies but God will be asking questions. luvlakoda
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