One of the most enduring mysteries of the American Indian Movement and the aftermath of the Wounded Knee occupation is the murder of Anna Mae Aquash. Aquash was a Mi'kmaq from Nova Scotia, Canada, who came to South Dakota in 1973 to join AIM in the Wounded Knee occupation and stayed to fight for American Indian rights on the reservations. On February 24, 1976, her body was found by a rancher on the side of Highway 73 near Wanblee, South Dakota. An autopsy conducted by the BIA's medical practitioner, W. O. Brown, concluded "she had died of exposure." A subsequent autopsy conducted by Dr. Garry Peterson of Minneapolis revealed she had been shot by a .32 caliber bullet in the back of the head, which Brown somehow missed. Two main theories exist to explain who murdered Aquash. One story asserts that AIM killed her because they suspected she was working with federal agents. The other story suggests the FBI was complicit in her death. The story ended there until very recently.
Two years ago, the trial of Arlo Looking Cloud, a former AIM activist, ruled that he was complicit in her murder. A second man, John Graham, was also charged with first-degree murder and has been fighting extradition from Canada. Two weeks ago he was ordered to return to the United States to stand trial. The Mitchell Daily Republic reports:
A Canadian man has lost two rulings in his attempt to avoid extradition to the United States to stand trial for the 1975 slaying of fellow American Indian Movement member Anna Mae Pictou Aquash.
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Graham, a native of the Yukon, has been free on bail in Vancouver, British Columbia, under house arrest.
In March 2005, a judge ordered him committed for extradition. Last month, Canadian Minister of Justice Vic Toews affirmed that decision.
After both rulings, Graham was allowed free on bail, with several conditions.
If Graham’s request for judicial review, or appeal, is accepted, the British Columbia Court of Appeal would consider the rulings from the judge and the minister of justice. If Graham loses there, the only other option is the Canadian Supreme Court, said Christian Girouard, spokesman for the Canadian Department of Justice in Ottawa.
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Aquash’s death came amid clashes in the mid-1970s between federal agents and AIM. Aquash was among the AIM members who occupied Wounded Knee, S.D., for 71 days in 1973.
U.S. prosecutors have said AIM leaders ordered Aquash’s killing because they suspected she was a government informant. AIM leaders denied the accusation and blamed the government for her death.
Another man, Arlo Looking Cloud, was convicted in 2004 in the slaying. In a videotaped interview, he said he helped drive Aquash from Denver to Rapid City and eventually to the Badlands. Looking Cloud and others have said that’s where Graham shot her.
Graham has acknowledged he was with Aquash before she was killed but has denied having anything to do with the murder. He has said he’s the victim of a witch hunt.
It will be interesting to see what his trial reveals about this case.
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