Dear Supporters:
On September 2nd Peltier
sent a message that he recently underwent triple bypass surgery.
Bypass surgery is a fairly
common procedure today with approximately 200,000 performed yearly.
Jack Coler and Ron Williams were
both in their late twenties when they became victims of an unprovoked attack by
AIM cowards and were brutally murdered by Leonard Peltier in 1975. Let’s not
lose sight of the fact that Peltier was convicted of murder and aiding and
abetting and his conviction and sentence, having gone through many appeals, has
never been changed. Peltier’s public statements over the years have only helped
reinforce his remorseless guilt. (You’ve heard them before so there’s no need
to repeat them here again).
Jack and Ron, had they not
been mercilessly cut down in their prime, would have faced the normal aging
process just as Peltier is now. Although they were both in excellent physical
condition and would no doubt have taken care of their health, issues do arise.
What Jack and Ron didn’t have was the opportunity to finish their careers and
enjoy a well-deserved retirement and all the years with their spouses,
children, and grandchildren. Peltier robbed them of that wonderful opportunity
they so deserved.
Peltier, soon to be 73,
received this operation courtesy of the U.S. Bureau of Prisons and the American
taxpayers. For that, he should be grateful and thankful the procedure was
successful and that he will only mildly suffer during recovery. Jack and Ron,
victims of point-blank gunshots to the face, had no chance to survive. Instead,
both suffered a horrible death.
As with the vast majority of
Peltier messages, there’s always the push for money.
This one, like most others,
begs for donations, made through his website, to “fund his legal struggle.” The
website offers that the uninformed can donate through PayPal.
To go back a few years—July 4,
2004 to be precise—Peltier’s “Defense Committee” lamented that Peltier had been
suspended from PayPal for violating its “offensive material policy.” They
complained, “Designating Leonard Peltier as being ‘notorious for committing
murderous acts,’ PayPal has now deprived us of our online fundraising
capability.” That was then.
Peltier’s committee
subsequently relocated and changed its website and personnel (which has
happened many times over the years) and was able to worm its way back into the
PayPal system.
PayPal’s Acceptable Use Policy
has changed slightly over the years but still contains the provision preventing
“the financial exploitation of a crime” which may have been part of the reason
Peltier was removed in 2004.
PayPal encourages users to report potential violations
of this policy. For example, a double convicted murderer using PayPal to raise
money. If users have a question about whether a type of transaction may violate
the Acceptable Use Policy, they can email PayPal's Compliance Department at: aupviolations@paypal.com
Also, there has been much
discussion and debate over the years about Peltier soliciting “tax-deductible”
donations. Sometimes he had donations filtered through third party operations.
At other times, Peltier dropped the “tax-deductible” claims, although he would
never publicly admit the reasons. We have a suspicion why it was dropped in the
past.
(The latest Peltier website,
[link available on the NPPA home page], does not mention tax-deductible donations.
However, a review of the website material still shows that it is replete with
the same fabrications, falsehoods, myth and in some areas, outright lies that
have been proven false time and again. All of which have been extensively
reviewed and refuted on the NPPA website.*)
Yet, as recent as just nine
months ago, this was posted on the Internet:**
“2016
Human rights week for Leonard Peltier, December 4-10 in Washington, DC.
We need your help like never before. Please make a tax-deductible donation.
No amount is too small. Please also widely share this fundraiser.
The Peltier Defense Committee is a project of the Indigenous Rights Center,
a 501(c)(3) tax exempt organization (Tax ID # 81-1252535).”
This appears to be in violation
of IRS regulations. Funneling money through other entities to make it appear they
are legitimately tax-deductible should raise some concerns and questions.
The Internal Revenue Code is
clear enough:
“A section 501(c)(3) must not
be organized or operated for the benefit of private
interests, such as the creator or the creator’s family, shareholders of the organization, other designated individuals, or
persons controlled directly or indirectly by such private
interests. No part of the net
earnings of the section 501(c)(3) organization may inure to the benefit of any private shareholder or individual. A private shareholder or individual is a person having a personal
and private interest in the activities of the
organization.”
It shouldn’t be surprising
that the ‘Director’ information for the Indigenous Rights Center, 202 Harvard Dr., SE #5, Albuquerque, NM,
87114 revealed that the Directors are/were Delaney Bruce, Peter Clark, Kari A.
Boushee and Peltier’s son, Chauncey Peltier.
Leonard Peltier successfully
recovered and his health may improve after the recent bypass surgery.
Jack and Ron were murdered and
have been dead for 42 years.
“In the Spirit of Coler and
Williams”
Ed Woods
*For example, from the Peltier
homepage: “People are commonly set free due to a single
constitutional violation, but Peltier—innocent and faced with a staggering
number of constitutional violations—has yet to receive equal justice.” Reality
check: If there were one Constitutional violation we would likely not be
discussing Leonard Peltier today, or ever.
Also, as the Court of Appeals stated: “It is only where the trial court
excludes relevant evidence without sufficient justification that the
defendant‘s constitutional right to compulsory process is violated.” http://www.noparolepeltier.com/585.html
Suffice to say that Peltier’s claims do not stand up to
scrutiny.
(Last accessed
9/8/17: Posted by ILPDC Co-Director Peter Clark. It should be noted that the
ILPDC (and its predecessor committees) have publicly stated that Leonard Peltier
approves all postings, press releases, etc.)
