Protesters carry a large painting of jailed indigenous activist Leonard Peltier during a Plymouth, Mass., march. (Steven Senne/Associated Press)

“Peltier is a remorseless killer, who brutally murdered two of our own,” former FBI Director Christopher Wray wrote in a letter to Biden on Jan. 10. “Mr. President, I urge you in the strongest terms possible: Do not pardon Leonard Peltier or cut his sentence short. It would be shattering to the victims’ loved ones and undermine the principles of justice and accountability that our government should represent.”

Wray said he had received letters from the slain agents’ relatives saying it would be devastating if he were released.