A historical court in Washington cleared Nisqually Chief Leschi for the death of a military soldier 150 years ago.

The special court said Leschi should not have been convicted and hanged for the incident because it occurred during a period of war. Leschi had been fighting to protect his tribe's rights from encroachment.

Members of the Nisqually Tribe, especially his descendants, cheered the decision. They said it was necessary to correct a historical wrong.

Get the Story:
Historical court clears Chief Leschi's name (The Seattle Post-Intelligencer 12/11)
Historic Nisqually chief exonerated (The Seattle Times 12/11)
Chief convicted, hanged in 1858 still revered by Northwest tribes (AP 12/11)
Chief exonerated, 150 years later (AP 12/11)
Chief Leschi exonerated for history books (The Olympian 12/11)
Indian Chief Hanged in 1858 Is Cleared (AP 12/12)
pwnyt

Relevant Links:
Chief Leschi information - http://www.leschi.bia.edu/leschiinfo.htm

Related Stories:
Nisqually Chief Leschi gets rehearing on murder (12/06)
Editorial: Court must exonerate Nisqually Chief Leschi (03/16)
Editorial: Lawmakers right to clear Chief Leschi (3/8)
Nisqually chief's execution called 'black mark' (2/19)
Bill to clear Nisqually chief gets hearing in Wash. (2/18)
Leschi descendants work to clear chief's name (09/15)