PIERRE South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley announced Monday that the Canadian Ministry of Justice has reconsented to the extradition of John Graham, who was convicted in the 1975 kidnapping and murder of Annie Mae Aquash in South Dakota, meaning the defendant will remain in state custody.
Having personally prosecuted this case as both a (U.S.) attorney and as South Dakotas attorney general, I understand the pain experienced by Annie Maes family, Jackley said. The decision to continue to hold John Graham responsible for Annie Maes murder is a significant victory for South Dakotas tribal communities, who have long dealt with missing and murdered indigenous persons.
Aquash was an American Indian Movement activist who participated in AIMs 1973 occupation of Wounded Knee. Members of an AIM faction that included Leonard Peltier and John Graham accused Aquash of being a government informant. She was kidnapped from Denver, Colorado, by Graham, Arlo Looking Cloud, and Theda Clarke, driven to Rapid City, and then to the Badlands of South Dakota, where Graham executed her.
Graham left the country and relocated to Canada, but was eventually extradited to the U.S. and tried for Aquashs murder. He was convicted by a jury in December 2010 and his conviction was affirmed by the South Dakota Supreme Court in May 2012. In May 2013, Graham sought to overturn his conviction through a writ of habeas corpus filed in Pennington County. That request also was denied by the state Supreme Court.
In Canada, Graham argued that he was not given the opportunity to speak at the extradition process. A Canadian appeals court ruled that Graham was entitled to but not afforded notice and opportunity to be heard during the extradition process. The court set aside the extradition and remanded to the Canadian Ministry of Justice for reconsideration of the request for extradition. The ministry reconsented to the extradition.
Graham remains in custody in the South Dakota Penitentiary at Sioux Falls.
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