Canadian on Death Row in US Seeks Clemency

DEER LODGE, Mont. (AP) — Family members of a Canadian on a U.S. death row tell Montana parole officials that he has changed and deserves to live. But relatives of the men he killed say Ronald Smith is the "scum of the earth" and should be put to death.

Smith is asking the Montana Parole Board to recommend commuting his sentence to life in prison for the 1982 murders of Harvey Mad Man and Thomas Running Rabbit.

The case pits Blackfeet tribal members who want the death sentence upheld against a Canadian government asking that Smith's life be spared.

Smith's sister, Rita Duncan, told the parole board Wednesday that he has educated himself and is a helpful inmate.

An aunt of the victim, Camille Wells, says Smith "does not deserve to breathe the same air."