比尔·理查森因许多事情而闻名，他是新墨西哥州前州长、驻联合国大使和克林顿政府的能源部长，但他最重要的职业成就之一是努力释放在国外被错误拘留的美国公民。
理查森75岁时在他的避暑别墅去世在马萨诸塞州的查塔姆，他创建的促进国际和平与对话的组织理查森全球参与中心周六宣布。
布兰妮·格里纳
这位连任两届的民主党州长和他在新墨西哥的理查森全球参与中心(Richardson Center for Global Engagement)组织努力确保篮球运动员布兰妮·格里纳获释，他在被拘留10个月后于2022年12月从俄罗斯监狱获释。美国用WNBA之星交换了被定罪的俄罗斯军火商维克托·布特。
理查森全球参与中心透露，在她获释时，它一直在与格林纳的家人合作，该组织的成员多次前往莫斯科，努力确保她的获释，并与俄罗斯同行和俄罗斯驻华盛顿大使馆官员进行接触
理查森在一份声明中说:“通常，我们为让我们的美国同胞回家与家人团聚而付出的代价是不体面的，但这是正确的——对我们的美国同胞、他们的家人和我们的国家来说。”声明当时。
理查森和他的组织与白宫国家安全小组合作释放格林纳，并努力确保海军陆战队老兵保罗·惠兰的释放。
“我们仍然非常关心保罗·惠兰，并承诺继续努力让他安全返回，就像过去四年一样，”理查森中心在格林纳获释时表示。
在ABC新闻的一份声明中，布列塔尼·格林纳和她的妻子切雷尔·格林纳对理查森的去世表示哀悼。
“我们惊悉比尔·理查森大使逝世。我们为他的家人和朋友祈祷，”这对夫妇说。“我们将永远感激他为帮助我从俄罗斯回家所做的一切。我们赞扬他多年来不知疲倦地代表许多其他被错误拘留的美国人的家庭。”
在这张2008年1月3日资料照片中，民主党总统候选人新墨西哥州长比尔·理查森在爱荷华州得梅因的党团会议上讲话。
大卫·李尼曼/美联社，文件
特雷弗·里德
该组织说，理查森和他的团队去年还努力确保前海军陆战队队员特雷弗·里德获释。
“在这一努力中，我们与俄罗斯同行进行了多次接触，最近以私人人道主义使命前往莫斯科，与俄罗斯领导人会面，讨论特雷弗和保罗·惠兰的释放问题，”理查森中心当时在一份声明中说。
里德在俄罗斯被监禁了近三年，每天23小时被关在小如壁橱的隔离牢房里，被安置在精神病病房，并被送往一个强迫劳动营，他形容自己的样子和感觉就像“来自中世纪”他告诉ABC新闻。
丹尼·芬斯特
理查森和理查森中心在2021年宣布，他们帮助美国记者丹尼·芬斯特从缅甸的一所监狱中获释。
芬斯特已经被当局拘留当时他正准备登上飞往马来西亚吉隆坡的航班。
该组织称，理查森在与缅甸敏昂兰将军进行面对面会谈后，获得了芬斯特的释放。
理查森在声明中说:“这是你希望完成这项工作的那一天。”。“我们非常感激丹尼终于能够与他的亲人重新联系，尽管困难重重，他们一直在为他辩护。”
理查森因其作为外交官和囚犯谈判者的工作而四次获得诺贝尔和平奖提名。
American citizens former Gov. Bill Richardson helped free from abroad
Bill Richardson was known for many things, the former governor of New Mexico, ambassador to the United Nations and energy secretary under the Clinton administration, but one of his most significant professional achievements was working to free wrongfully detained American citizens abroad.
Richardsondied at 75 at his summer homein Chatham, Massachusetts, the Richardson Center for Global Engagement, the organization he founded to promote international peace and dialogue, announced on Saturday.
Brittney Griner
The two-term Democratic governor and his Richardson Center for Global Engagement organization in New Mexico, worked to secure the release of basketball player Brittney Griner, who was released from a Russian prison in December 2022, after being detained for 10 months. The U.S. swapped the WNBA star for convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.
The Richardson Center for Global Engagement revealed at the time of her release it had been working with Griner's family and the organization's members had traveled to Moscow several times in efforts to secure her release, engaging with their Russian counterparts and Russian Embassy officials in Washington, D.C.
"Often, the price we pay for bringing our fellow Americans home to their families is unseemly, but it is the right thing to do -- for our fellow Americans, their families, and for our nation," Richardson said in astatementat the time.
Richardson and his organization worked with the White House National Security team on Griner's release, and made efforts to secure the release of Marine veteran Paul Whelan.
"We remain very concerned for Paul Whelan and committed to continue to work on his safe return, as we have been for the last four years," the Richardson Center said at the time of Griner's release.
In a statement to ABC News, Brittany Griner and her wife Cherelle Griner, expressed their condolences over Richardson's passing.
"We were sad to learn of Ambassador Bill Richardson’s passing. Our hearts and prayers go out to his family and friends," the couple said. "We will be forever grateful for all of his efforts to help bring me home from Russia. We applaud his years of tirelessly representing many families of other wrongfully detained Americans."
Richardson and his team also worked to secure the release of former Marine Trevor Reed last year, the organization said.
"In this effort, we have had many engagements with our Russian counterparts, and have recently traveled to Moscow, on a private humanitarian mission, to meet with Russian leadership and discuss Trevor’s and Paul Whelan’s release," the Richardson Center said in a statement at the time.
Reed had been imprisoned in Russia for nearly three years, thrown in isolation cells as small as a closet for 23 hours a day, placed in a psychiatric ward and sent to a forced labor camp he described as looking and feeling like something "out of medieval times,"he told ABC News.
Danny Fenster
Richardson and the Richardson Center announced in 2021 they helped free American journalist Danny Fenster from a prison in Myanmar.
Fenster had beendetained by authoritiesin Myanmar as he was preparing to board a flight to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Richardson obtained Fenster's release after face-to-face meetings with Myanmar's Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, the organization said.
"This is the day that you hope will come when you do this work," Richardson said during the announcement. "We are so grateful that Danny will finally be able to reconnect with his loved ones, who have been advocating for him all this time, against immense odds."
Richardson was nominated four times for the Nobel Peace Prize for his work as a diplomat and prisoner negotiator.
