LEONARD: Political Prisoner

We interview Native American author Louise Erdrich, who attended Leonard Peltier’s murder trial in her hometown of Fargo, North Dakota, in 1977. The 2021 Pulitzer Prize Winner for Fiction analyzes where it all went wrong for Peltier, while sharing how the experience affected her concept of justice, a theme which became a hallmark of her literary career. Along the way, Louise reads from her correspondence with Leonard, revealing new details about their friendship, before laying out what his fr...

We explore what went down in the federal courthouse in Fargo to convince Leonard that he’d been railroaded into a life behind bars with help from author Louise Erdrich, filmmaker Kevin McKiernan, and attorneys Kevin H. Sharp and Bruce Ellison, among others. Hear how Peltier’s wrongful conviction was orchestrated by a hanging judge in cahoots with the FBI. Support the show

On February 6th, 1976, a tip led Canadian police to the Mountain Cree Camp School in Alberta where one of America’s Most Wanted was hiding out with a few of his friends – and at least one government operative. Hear how Peltier’s luck finally ran out despite the efforts of his legal team and an international coalition of native peoples that was helmed by his adopted mother, Ethel Peason, an honored member and leader of the Kwagiulth Nation on Vancouver Island. Support the show

We dissect the murder trial of Bob Robideau and Dino Butler who were acquitted by an all-white jury of twelve in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, after a period of intense deliberations that almost resulted in a hung jury and retrial. This is the story of how an all-star defense team, a celebrity peanut gallery, and a plucky community organizing effort combined to produce one of the most unlikely legal victories in the history of the United States. Support the show

Under increasing scrutiny to avenge their fallen brothers, the FBI fans out across the country and tracks down the Jumping Bull fugitives one by one. Through a combination of illegal searches, physical violence, and coerced confessions, the Bureau builds a circumstantial case against Dino Butler, Bob Robideau and Leonard Peltier, who are indicted on charges of first-degree murder around Thanksgiving in 1975. Only one of those men is not in custody at the time, and he is caravaning up the West...