Biography
Rita Steinhagen was a sister of St. Joseph who helped establish housing and support programs in Minneapolis. Jailed in 1998 following the School of the Americas protest at Fort Benning.
Photo credit
Sister Rita Steinhagen at the November 1997 School of the Americas protest. Photograph by Michael J. Bayly, who identifies Steinhagen in his account of taking the photograph; portrait crop from the documentary image, with no AI editing.
The April 27, 1998 petition by clemency counsel Debra K. Hannula places this defendant among the January 1998 Fort Benning illegal-re-entry convictions before Judge Elliott, carrying six months and a $3,000 fine. Its January 22 trial/sentencing account differs by one day from an earlier January 21 news report, so the new sentencing field uses month precision rather than choosing an unresolved day. The individual biography confirms March 23, 1998 prison entry. The biography describes her medical-technology work, creation of services for runaway youth and homeless families, and assistance to survivors of torture in Minneapolis. These records concern a request for clemency; they do not establish that a pardon or commutation was granted.
Clinton Presidential Library, individual biography PDF page 45; petition pages 27–32.
