Feature-length documentaries by independent film-makers. Incident at Oglala. Michael Apted's film is a chilling account of the events of the morning of 26 June 1975 in Pine Ridge Reservation, South Dakota. What happened then led to one of the biggest manhunts in FBI history. On that date two FBI special agents, Jack Coler and Ron Williams , supposedly following a red pick-up truck, drove onto the reservation. A shoot-out occurred in which both the agents and a native American were killed.
Of the four men eventually indicted, one was released because the evidence was
"weak" and two others were acquitted. The fourth man, Leonard Peltier , was later extradited from Canada and convicted on two counts of murder in the first degree - even though the testimony which led to his extradition was perjured and evidence against him was contradictory. Robert Redford not only narrates Incident at Oglala but also played a vital role in getting the documentary made. Active in Native American affairs since the early 60s, Redford visited Peltier in prison in and although he still couldn't decide whether he was innocent or guilty, he was convinced the man had not had a fair trial.
Series editor Andre Singer