American Indian Movement activist Anna Mae Pictou-Aquash is seen in this photo on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. Photo © KM/SIPA Press
The Sunday magazine of The New York Times has published a lengthy feature on the murder of American Indian Movement activist Anna Mae Pictou Aquash. Aquash was killed on the Pine Ridge Reservation in December 1975. Her body was found in February 1976 but it took authorities nearly 30 years to bring charges against two people who were deemed responsible. Arlo Looking Cloud, a member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, is serving a life sentence for the murder. He was found guilty in federal court in February 2004 and lost subsequent appeals. John Graham was indicted in federal court for the murder but the case was dismissed because he successfully argued that neither he, nor Aquash, were members of a federally recognized US tribe. He was later charged in state court and is serving a life sentence after being convicted in December 2010. Dick Marshall, a member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, was charged with aiding and abetting the murder in federal court. He was acquitted. Thelma Rios, also Oglala Sioux, pleaded guilty in state court for her role in the crime but did not serve time in prison. She died in February 2011. Get the Story:
Who Killed Anna Mae? (The New York Times Magazine 4/27)
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