Martin Luther King Jr: The Case Reviewed

Welcome back ladies and gentlemen. Thank you ONCE AGAIN for taking the time out of your day to read this thirteenth case review. In this case review we will be delving deep into the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. Without further wait, I present to you, the death of a dream:

Martin Luther King Jr: The Case Reviewed

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And when this happens, when we allow freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual:

Free at last! Free at last!

Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!

~Martin Luther King Jr. August 1963- Lincoln Memorial, Washington D.C
I have a dream

At approximately 6:00 P.M on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee. The United States of America and possibly the world felt the loss of yet another great man for peace and unity... Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated on his balcony at the Lorraine Motel. The assassin was a man by the name of James Earl Ray, a petty thief, highly prejudice and former convict. James escaped from prison with his infamous and quite possibly one of the most well known escapes in which he placed himself in a large bread box, covering himself with a false bottom and having his friend cover the crate with the actual loaves of bread. The box was placed into the bread truck with the other bread boxes and then the truck drove away, allowing James to escape through the false door in the bread box. And a year later assassinated Martin Luther King Jr. Or so the official story goes, but what really played out? Was James Earl Ray the actual shooter? Was he the real assassin? Was James Earl Ray the fall guy? And if he was who was the assassin and who ordered the hit? And most importantly... why?

The Crime Scene/Investigation

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The Lorraine Motel, the scene of the crime.

At around 6:00pm, a bullet struck Dr. King in the jaw and exited out shattering many vertebras in his neck and rendering dead within seconds. Dr. King fell to the ground and his fellow friends surrounded him. Eventually, emergency responders arrived and they transported Dr. King to St. Joseph Hospital, sadly, at 7:05 p.m Dr. King was pronounced dead from the injuries that he had sustained. Dr. Francisco's autospy report reveals the following, according to the official report:

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House Select Committee on Assassinations: The Official Report

Dr. King was struck by one bullet. The assassin? Unknown for the time being. However, Detective Edward E. Redditt and Patrolman Willie B. Richmond were two undercover detectives who were assigned to watch over Dr. King due to the tension around the Memphis area at the time. Not only that, but at least five units were within a two mile radius of the Lorraine Motel and another unit was in the Fire Station. Redditt was pulled from his assignment after having been threatened by an anonymous caller who threatened his family. As a result Redditt was not there. But Richmond was still on duty and took his surveillance at the Fire House down the street. Richmond witnessed King falling to the balcony floor and Richmond alerted all units to report to the Lorraine motel.

Patrolman Morris was the first patrolman directed in the direction of the assassin, by Kings friends and civil rights staff. Kings staff had stated that the shot had come from the rear of a boarding house across the street from the hotel. Patrolman Morris ran to the rear of the building where he encountered another officer from another unit already there and what is interesting is that this officer's identity, (the one that Patrolman Morris encountered) is still highly disputed. Two more officers would arrive and they discovered footprints in the ground. Patrolman Dollahite proceeded to the front of the building where the shots were fired and discovered that the assassin had to travel down the street toward a Canipe's Amusement Company building. Dollahite went toward the building and discovered a green blanket covering a blue suitcase and a box containing a rifle and a scope. Commander Gormley met up with Dollahite and stated that the owner of the Company had told him that a white man had dropped the case off and left in a white mustang.

This brings us to problem number 1:

There was no All Points Bulletin released- This of course would have been extremely useful, since Memphis is only a few minutes away from Arkansas and Mississippi. If an all points Bulletin was released Mississippi and Arkansas would have been aware of an assassination and could have caught the white mustang with the well dressed man that dispatchers reported from Memphis. However, while Memphis and all of Tennessee were looking for the white mustang and the man; Mississippi and Arkansas were both unaware of any white mustang and a well dressed man and of course, the assassination of Dr. King.

Sadly by this time Ray was LONG gone. On June 8, 1968 more than a year later, British officials in London arrested James Earl Ray (It is also important to mention George Ramon Sneyd and Eric S. Galt were also real people and strange enough bore striking physical features that matched James Earl Ray, including having a scar on the right side of their faces just like Ray did and they all lived in Toronto.) However, before jumping a year ahead, let’s go back to 1967 and see where the investigation continued.

The investigation continued at the Bessie Brewer's Rooming House, where the shots had been fired. Brewer (the owner) stated that a John Willard had received a room from her that overlooked the Lorraine Motel. Willard had asked for a room that had a "view" of the Motel, after being assigned a room that did not have an open view of the hotel. Bessie descirbed Willard, to the best of her memory, as a well dressed man, 5 feet 11 inches tall, about 30-40, and weighing around 170-180. Charles A. Stephens and William Anchutz, both residenst of the Rooming house at the time, both stated that they had heard a shot. Stephens had heard a gunshot from the bathroom at the rear of the building and witnessed a man fleeing. Anchutz heard the shot and also witnessed a man fleeing from the building. Both men witnessed a man fleeing that matched the description of Willard.

Ray eventually, stopped using the alias of Willard and in turn began to use the alias of Eric S. Galt. The white mustang was later found in Atlanta and fingerprints from the vehicle were run and the results came back as the escaped convict, James Earl Ray. Rays fingerprints were then matched up with the fingerprints found on the rifle (Remington Gamester Model 760 .30-06 caliber rifle with a scope) in front of the Canipe's Amusement Company. The only rationale conclusion? James Earl Ray assassinated Dr. King.

James Earl Ray was arrested June 8, 1968 and then extradited back to the United States to face trial and return to prison.

This brings us to problem 2: Where did Ray get the money to travel all over the world? It seemed like he never ran out of money at all and it seemed that his finances never ran dry. (After the assassination Ray was known to have been to Atlanta, Georgia; Lisbon, Portugal; London, England (twice, possibly three times); and he was headed to Brussels, Belgium).

Upon Rays return to Memphis, he was represented by Arthur J. Hanes Sr. Hanes stated:

"From August 1967 when he met Raoul in Montreal, down to King's death, he moved at Raoul's direction. ...He delivered the rifle to Raoul, and then from about 4:30 to nearly 6 he sat downstairs in Jim's Grill drinking beer, waiting for Raoul. He says it was Raoul who fired the shot, and ran down the stairs, and threw down the rifle, zipper bag, and jumped in the Mustang where Ray was waiting, and the two drove off together...........

I believe some of it. Unless Ray is a complete damned fool, I don't see how he could have made the decision to kill King. Before King was killed, Ray was doing all right.... Why would he jeopardize his freedom by killing a famous man and setting all the police in the world after him? I have to believe either he didn't do the killing, or if he did, he did it because he was caught in a conspiracy and couldn't get out."

Which brings us to problem number 3: What was Ray's motive for the assassination? Apparently, Ray did not have much of a motive. He had never met King before and therefore, did not truly have any "beef" with Dr. King. Yet what would drive Ray to assassinate King?

And problem number 4: Who is Raoul? A mysterious person, yet who is he? And what was his motive for the killing? Apparently, as stated by Hanes, this Raoul not only fired the shot, but was the director of the entire plot.

Judge Preston Battle met with Ray and Ray stated that he had killed King and that he wanted to plead guilty. This would get Ray 99 years and would allow him to avoid the death penalty, which his lawyers were most concerned about. Ray selected for a post conviction hearing, based on the thoughts of his lawyers who told Ray that there was no possible way that they could get him off. Ray never went to trial for the assassination of King.

Continued:

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Evidence of a Conspiracy

1- There was no All Points Bulletin released This of course would have been extremely useful, since Memphis is only a few minutes away from Arkansas and Mississippi. If an all points Bulletin was released Mississippi and Arkansas would have been aware of an assassination and could have caught the white mustang with the well dressed man that dispatchers reported from Memphis. However, while Memphis and all of Tennessee were looking for the white mustang and the man; Mississippi and Arkansas were both unaware of any white mustang and a well dressed man and of course, the assassination of Dr. King.

2- Where did Ray get the money to travel all over the world? An never ending supply of money? Or so it seemed. Was Ray paid for the assassination and if so who hired the hit on Dr. King?

3- What was Ray's motive for the assassination? Clearly nothing that jumps out at anyone. While many say he did it for fame and popularity, that does not seem like a clear motive either. Ray broke out of prison and was on the run. He never sought popularity before in his younger days, yet all of a sudden he wants to be somebody? Probably not the best motive.

4- Who is Raoul? A possible handler for James Earl Ray? Ray's accomplice? The assassin? Who truly knows, perhaps James made him up to protect himself from the chair. Either way, Raoul remains a mystery person to this day.

5- It took the FBI close to two weeks to identify the fingerprint on the rifle as James Earl Ray The FBI only had around 700 samples to sift through. This could mean that the print was not that well preserved or that the print was later added on once a suspect was just pulled.

6- Judge Joe Brown, a Tennessee Judge who reviewed the MLK case had the assassination rifle tested ruled that 12 out of the 18 test bullets that were fired through the supposed assassination rifle, had markings different from the markings on the bullet that killed Dr. King. Which means that the bullet recovered from Dr. King could NOT be matched to the murder weapon. Therefore, a switch of guns was made or planted.



7- James Earl Ray was a terrible shooter in his stint in the army How can a terrible shooter make the greatest shot of his life from a rather difficult location?

8- Charles Stephens the only witness to actual see Ray exit the bathroom, was INTOXICATED at the time and later stated that he did not get a good look at the man. Also, it is very odd that the FBI paid off Charles bar tabs which totaled nearly $30,000 and after doing so, Charles stated that the man was James Earl Ray.

9- Grace Walden, a witness who would later step forward stated that James Earl Ray was not the man running from the bathroom.

10- Dr. Kings Missing Protection. The day of his assassination his police protection was drastically reduced to one police officer, who was in the fire house across the street.

11- A Question of time

-- Less than two minutes after the fatal shot was fired, a bundle containing the 30.06 Remington rifle allegedly used in the assassination and some of Ray's belongings was conveniently found in the doorway of the Canipe Amusement Company next door to the boarding house. Ray would have had to fire the shot that killed Martin Luther King from his contorted position in the bathroom, exit the sniper's nest, go to his room to collect his belongings and wrap and tie it all in a bundle, leave his room, run down the stairs and out of the boarding house, stash the bundle next door, and then get away from the scene unnoticed -- all within two minutes!

MLK

12- The missing trees

Witnesses at the scene believed the shot was fired from the bank of trees behind the boarding house, and not from the boarding house itself. A couple days later, all of those trees were cut down and the entire area behind the boarding house was cleaned up by order of Memphis city officials.

* One witness, who was sitting just in front of the bank of trees, said he heard a rifle fired directly behind him at ground level, and not from the boarding house. Two people at the fire station said that a boy came in and related much the same story, but the young man apparently left before police could question him.

.edu

13- Who moved Dr. Kings room? A day before Dr. King arrived in Memphis a man, claiming to be with Dr. King stated that he needed Dr. Kings room to be moved to the top floor balcony and to this day no one knows who this man was. All of Kings aids were surprised to learn that there room was moved.

My Theory/Closing Statements

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Men often hate each other because they fear each other; they fear each other because they don't know each other; they don't know each other because they cannot communicate; they cannot communicate because they are separated.

The most famous person in Civil Rights history and quite possibly one of the greatest human being of all time. Dr. King personified the very idea of freedom, peace and hope. His marches of peace proved a point that no one could have ever imagined; they proved that peace really can work. However, his life was cut short by an assassin's bullet, much like the other great speakers of his day, JFK, RFK, Malcolm X and many others. The body count in the 1960's grew and in some ways exploded out of control. But what the assassin did not anticipate in each and every one of these assassinations was the IDEA of what these men had to offer. It is very difficult to kill an idea and in some ways it is impossible. You can kill the man, but the idea still lives on. This is very true to this day; Dr. King's ideas on peace still ripple through the minds and hearts of many. They have, in some ways, reached every mountain side and hilltop, but sadly ideas are much harder to practice then they are to know and understand.

On April 4, 1968, the world was forced to realize that peace has a cost. However, in his death his idea lived on. There were no large racial riots, no major destruction, no gigantic racial turmoil. The black community, the white community, the Asian, the Hispanics, and every other creed and nationality, every religion and every culture felt the loss of Dr. King. His idea reminded us that even if we have an excuse for violence, if we are pushed to the brink that we still have a choice: We can merge together as a community and unify with one another or we can divide and kill each other. For the preservation of ourselves we made the right choice back then, we chose to stop the bloodshed and accept what had happened. Because Dr. Kings Idea told us the values that we needed to remember. It taught us that we are all brothers, because as I exhale it is inhaled by others; in this action we all learn that we are none of us alone. At anytime we should be able to communicate with each other, to be able to rationally discuss our differences and our issues. To be able to strengthen our communities not with violence or power, but with unity, communication and trust. To break the chains of our violent tendencies which we are so eager to use and justify and in this way and when this happens we will truly be free at last.

Dr. King knew this; to unify the people they must realize that violence is not the way to salvation, but the road to destruction. By showing the masses how to accomplish unity and trust among each other, through the use of peace was a major problem for the powers that be. Unity would not help them, but slow their plans down. All throughout history we see that the powers that be are the strongest when division or conflict is instigated or when we are in the middle of conflict. World War II is a great example of this, through the division of the world many things happened here and chaos reigned for a long time. In fact the White House was almost over thrown in all the choas,The White House Coup. Dr. King saw what was happening the road for the power holders to gain absolute control was only and can only be accomplished through division. We can see this today, it is everywhere. The only way to stop Dr. King was to assassinate him and the Powers that be did; however, they failed to realize that his Idea would live on the way it did. And thus began the conspiracy....



James Earl Ray, a man that was a petty criminal to begin with, broke out of jail, was free, and then assassinated the Civil Rights Leader with no real motive. Not to mention that James Earl Ray’s criminal career was not about violence. In fact, Ray never harmed anyone before this in any of his past crimes. While he did commit armed Robbery he never physically touched anyone. Dexter King, Dr. Kings son, firmly believes that Ray is innocent. The building blocks of a conspiracy were discovered and hinted upon in the official report, stating: " (that there may have been a) small-scale conspiracy involved." HSCA- Findings. Sadly no members or theories were presented as to who the conspirators may have been. Upon closer inspection we do not have to travel far to find possible connections and perhaps the ones behind the assassination. Lyndon Johnson, J. Edgar Hoover, and many others.

Continued:

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The above is taken from the official report of the House Selection Committee of Assassinations and in it we see doubts of how Ray was able to accomplish eluding the police and how he was able to pull off this type of operation by himself. Including this interesting statement:

"(This) would indicate that a rather sophisticated operation was at work, and this would not fit in, as Mr. McKinney has stated, with the background of Ray as we know him..."

Not to mention that many high profile people were being assassinated left and right by seemingly NORMAL citizens turned well trained assassin. Pulling off some miraculous shots from vantage points that were too good to be true. Problem 7 addressed James Earl Ray's shooting skills, which were less than impressive. Problem 3 addressed his lack of motive for the assassination. Yet Ray is not the focus of this investigation; while he does play a major role, observing the outside of the case often leads to more clues then the actual focus of a case. Patrolman Morris encountered a strange and unknown officer behind the boarding house. The officer was alone and his identity is still disputed. Who was this man? Perhaps he was a police officer, but his response time was unusually fast. He beat Patrolman Morris, when Morris was the first responder to where the assassin was said to be. How did this man miraculous appear where the assassin was said to be before anyone had told him and then his identity is unknown? Perhaps he was a cop or perhaps he was a cleaner, a look out even, who knows, but this man was up to something very strange.

The all points bulletin was not released right away; this allowed the assassin to escape without much of a fight. Having the decision to stay in Tennessee, go to Arkansas or head to Mississippi both were only under 30 minutes away. What I find most odd, was Kings Security detail being depleted on the day of the assassination. Not only that, but Dr. King was threatened multiple times and the police even received threats on Kings Life. Not to mention that a bounty for the sum of $100,000 was posted for the assassination of King. Who directly posted the bounty is unknown; however, speculation ranges from the Klan to the White Knights of Mississippi. A bounty that large would pay for extensive travels that Ray was on during his time. In fact this was also introduced in the official report:

Sarasota Herald Tribune In fact Ray is cited by multiple sources that he had contacts and that he was greatly interested in the bounty on Kings head. During Rays prison stay he told his cell mates that there was a bounty on the head of MLK. Of course, where the news of this came from is unknown. But according to this:

What we came up with was the possibility of a race-based conspiracy in St. Louis where a $50,000 bounty had been offered on Dr. King's life involving two men, Sutherland and Kaufman. It was only a possibility; we couldn't prove it and both of them were dead before our investigation started. But we were able to trace Kaufman to the Grapevine Tavern in St. Louis, where he used to hold meetings of the American Party. The tavern was owned by James Earl Ray's brother, John. Was it possible that the $50,000 bounty was discussed in the tavern and heard by John Ray, and that John Ray then conveyed it to James Earl? Yes. Were we ever able to say definitively that John Ray was the conduit from the Kaufman group to James Earl? No.

Ray-Connections

What I find interesting is that John Ray was arrested on charges as well, but subsequently released because the Justice Department felt the case was not prosecutable; however, the case was very prosecutable because they had records, witnesses and of course sworn testimony from the courts in which he was found perjuring. But he was released. Connections with White Supremacist groups, but that is only for the money and since racial tensions were so high back then it could only mean one thing. A White supremacy group hired the hit.... Sadly, the rabbit hole goes a bit further, because this would be the PERFECT alibi for the true powers at work, because sadly even though the Klan’s ideology reached far into the police world and all over at that time. They did not have the authority over the police, because that authority belonged to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

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In an article:FBI tracked King's every move We discover that the FBI was following King so closely that it was scary. They had tabs on him, phone conversations, details on Kings sex life, and his speeches. The purpose of all this, according to Hoover was:

"explore how best to carry on our investigation [of King] to produce the desired results without embarrassment to the Bureau," which included "a complete analysis of the avenues of approach aimed at neutralizing King as an effective Negro leader."

Neutralizing King? Very interesting, also it is important to mention that Hoovers hate for King was well known and as we all know; Hoover usually got his way. With wiretaps and other information this would and does explain problem 13- Who moved Dr. Kings room?. Well if you have the correct information, I assume it would easy to pose as one of Kings aids. Also, the connections with the FBI help solve problems 10- Dr. Kings Missing Protection. and problem 1- There was no All Points Bulletin released. Since the FBI had control of these police departments at the time it made it easy for them to control and do as they pleased. Of course what was there motive? They were losing power, but not only the FBI, but the entire Powers that be Organization. The President of the United States at the time, LBJ wanted to stay and continue the War with Vietnam. King saw the division that the war was putting on the country and spoke against it. And in doing so, received many threatening letters from the FBI, such as:

“…The American public, the church organizations that have been helping—Protestants, Catholics and Jews will know you for what you are—an evil beast. So will others who have backed you. You are done. King, there, is only one thing left for you to do. You know what it is. You have just 34 days in which to do (this exact number has been selected for a specific reason, it has definite practical significance). You are done. There is but one way out for you. You better take it before your filthy fraudulent self is bared to the nation.”

According to the Jowers trial official report (The Jower Trial was well documented; however, it has several huge holes that cannot be substantiated and therefore cannot be speculated upon as truth for this case).

1) The large hedges where witnesses saw the sniper were torn out by city workers the next day, a blatant destruction of evidence and tainting of a crime scene.

2) Several (untested) police and (black) firemen were reassigned mysteriously the day before the killing, so that they would not be in the vicinity of the assassination.

3) Members of the US 20th Special Forces Group, an 8 man sniper team, were alleged to have been present in Memphis that day.

4) Members of the 111th Military Intelligence Group based at Fort McPherson in Atlanta, Georgia were alleged to be in Memphis that day.

5) The FBI admitted there was no trace of gunpowder residue on the window sill which the government claims was used by the shooter.

6) The metallurgical tests of the bullet do not match the bullets recovered with the alleged murder weapon.

Jowers Trial Jowers Trial review

With the threat of YET another person for peace and a threat to unify the United States at a time in which turmoil was necessary for the Powers that Be. Especially since the Vietnam War caused much division among the masses at that time. Seeing that their plans were in much jeopardy the orders for the hit were called. Whether Ray shot the fatal shot, is highly speculated; however, he was present in Memphis at that time. Ray also failed polygraph tests when he said that he did not kill MLK. Ray, in my opinion, was a co-conspirator. Ray admitted by his own admission that it was not him, but someone else who shot MLK while he waited in his car. This would leave him with a guilty conscience, allowing him to fail the polygraph test when asked if he killed MLK. Because in some ways he felt that he did it. The true killers have yet to be identified; however, Ray definitely did not fire the shot that killed MLK. With all the evidence that has come forth and all the expert testimonies MLK was definitely killed by a conspiracy by the Powers that Be.

Martin Luther King Jr. fell victim, just like so many others did. He fell victim to his cause. A cause for peace. A cause in which has yet to be fulfilled, but a cause that continues to have a strong beating heart. A cause that has and will never be forgotten.

As always a Tribute to the victim:

Liked this case review? Check out some others:

Series 1

Marilyn Monroe: The Case Reviewed

OJ Simpson: The Case Reviewed

Anna Nicole Smith: The Case Reviewed

The Black Dahlia: The Case Reviewed

The Zodiac Killer: The Case Reviewed


Series 2

Princess Diana: The Case Reviewed

Jack The Ripper: The Case Reviewed

Lord Lucan: The Case Review

The Lockerbie Bomber: The Case Reviewed


Series 3

John F. Kennedy: The Case Reviewed

Robert F. Kennedy: The Case Reviewed

Natalee Holloway: The Case Reviewed

And now Martin Luther King Jr: The Case Reviewed

_________________________________________________________

Thank you ladies and gentlemen for your continued support! I hope that you enjoyed this case review, because soon the Great Clean of the 1960's will be produced.... Prepare yourselves.

~TheMythLives

Nice work again Myth! I'm still reading it, but this paragraph stood out...

The body count in the 1960's grew and in some ways exploded out of control. But what the assassin did not anticipate in each and every one of these assassinations was the IDEA of what these men had to offer. It is very difficult to kill an idea and in some ways it is impossible. You can kill the man, but the idea still lives on. This is very true to this day; Dr. King's ideas on peace still ripple through the minds and hearts of many. They have, in some ways, reached every mountain side and hilltop, but sadly ideas are much harder to practice then they are to know and understand.

When I listen to King's speech about the mountain, it strikes deep. It's been featured on lot of music (Masters at Work being the best IMO). It resonates to this day...'Free at last, free at last, thank God Almighty, free at last!' That he died in such a way makes it more powerful. He lived his last years knowing he was a dead man walking and still marched on and remained in the public eye. He's a legend



EDIT: The best video had German subtitles and kinda gave him a Nuremberg association! This one's a poor edit...

[edit on 20-2-2010 by Kandinsky]

I would have loved to listen to those speeches in person, but alas, I was not alive lol.

Great work Myth this is one of those stories that I fear we never get the real truth out of.

~Keeper

reply to post by TheMythLives


Great work but I feel you could've added more details about the case such as a diagram of building and where the hedges were and from where the alleged shooter shot through, type of gun, ballistic detail etc just a suggestion. Nonetheless brilliant S&F

Edit to add: Please take my suggestions as constructive only. I very much enjoy reading your threads and I felt they could be made more good than they already are

[edit on 20-2-2010 by December_Rain]

Originally posted by December_Rain
reply to post by TheMythLives

 

Great work but I feel you could've added more details about the case such as a diagram of building and where the hedges were and from where the alleged shooter shot through, type of gun, ballistic detail etc just a suggestion. Nonetheless brilliant S&F

Edit to add: Please take my suggestions as constructive only. I very much enjoy reading your threads and I felt they could be made more good than they already are

[edit on 20-2-2010 by December_Rain]

Dr. Cyril H. Wecht, MD, JD, president of the Coalition, and former president of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, notes that,

"Regardless of the legal status of the case, we must push Congress and the Clinton administration to release all government files pertaining to the death of Dr. King and the subsequent investigation by federal agencies and the House Select Committee on Assassinations. It is unjustified that these files remain locked away while files pertaining to the murder of John F. Kennedy are being released. We need full disclosure in all major political assassinations."

Coalition Demands Release of King Assassination Files, Public Review of Evidence 1997

The whole killing has been shrouded by conflicting interests since day one. Details are open to question and veracity is, as usual, questionable...'blind eyes' may have been turned? Who knows...

reply to post by Kandinsky


Thank you for addition and clarifying From that I believe if the "powers" wanted the investigation to be over with correctly it would have happened already.

Great thread, Myth! It was a shame that this man had to die for what he believed in. He spoke the truth, and was a martyr for it. However, I am in the boat which believe elements of our government were behind the assassination of Dr. King. One needs to look no further than in the direction of J Edgar Hoover. It is no surprise that the man had a vendetta against the civil right leader.

Under the direction of Attorney General Robert Kennedy, the FBI stepped up its observation of King in 1962 and 1963. Kennedy at one time asked the FBI to develop a plan for covert bugging and electronic surveillance, but later backed down and told the FBI to stop its activities toward King. At the time, Kennedy was concerned about King's ties to the communists and socialists who were actively trying to recruit the American under classes. King himself reportedly attended a Communist Party education program and gave the closing address at one seminar in the 1950s.

Without Kennedy's knowledge, the FBI began an illegal counterintelligence program regarding King and the SCLC. "The program was intended to discredit and neutralize the civil rights leader," the FBI post-assassination report said. Hoover was greatly afraid of communists and was convinced that the reds were attempting to "infiltrate" black society to woo them to the communist side. Having watched Castro — who exhibited no communist leanings while he led his revolution — Hoover was determined not be fooled again when his advisors reported that communist attempts to win support among blacks were met with failure.

www.trutv.com...

That is one instance when the disagreements began between Hoover and Dr. King. However, it escalates as the rest of the article shows. Hoover ran his department like a despotic ruler, and used government resources for personal use, namely, his FBI. That in it of itself is an illegal act. It is no mystery that he had blackmail through illegal wiretaps and surveillance operations on many prominent political leaders of the time, and with out a doubt if he was threatened legally or politically, he would have used the information for his own benefit.

However, there was an awakening taking place among the populace during those years, and a serious look at the current status-quo was being made with the help of the leaders at the time. Essentially, hypocrisy was brought to bear and it severely challenged the political establishment. So, apparently the establishment thought that by shooting the messenger the movement dies with them in one swoop. However, the same ideals championed by Dr. King and his contemporaries who met the same fate live on. As has been said before, they can kill the messenger but can't kill the message.

Things just don't add up with the official story: all these mystery men that may have been involved, the perceived tainting of evidence, hinderance of MLK security detail, and on and on . . . These discrepancies were as plain as day to any investigator or prosecutor, and should have been followed-up immediately, but yet they were not. Some one had undue control and manipulation of the investigation and orchestrated the tempo and over-all effectiveness of such an endeavor. Only someone with extreme power and influence could have pulled off such a grand operation on such a large scale. However, we will never know the facts and a definitive conclusion will remain distant and out of reach with time. Keep up the good work, and looking forward to the next installment.

[edit on 20-2-2010 by Jakes51]

reply to post by TheMythLives


As always....

Yet another well developed thread.
This will make for great reading later this evening.

I have enjoyed all your contributions to ATS.
S & F

reply to post by Kandinsky


Thank you for the kind words my friend I appreciate your contributions that you make to ATS as well! Of course you already knew that..lol.. But anyway, what you said here:

He lived his last years knowing he was a dead man walking and still marched on and remained in the public eye.

Was so true! He knew, but that did not stop him. He had one goal in mind, to make peace happen and to let freedom live.


reply to post by tothetenthpower


Well thank you my friend As always, I appreciate your continued support that you continue to provide me It has truly been an honor to be a friend.


reply to post by December_Rain


No, I understand. But those photos were not possible to find or at least I could not find them. Also the hedges are gone and as far as I know there was no photo's of before they were cut down. Of course, I am probably wrong..lol.. But I do not know. I covered the type of gun, the ballistics, where the shooter shot from, I just did not have the pictures of the hedges. I appreciate the input and will keep it in mind for future cases.


reply to post by Jakes51


Exactley right my friend! Which is why I pinned Hoover to this. It just made the most sense and it all seemed to point to the FBI Director. Of course, a lot of things back then pointed to him. As always Jake thank you for the excellent edition and your continued suupport!


reply to post by SLAYER69


Thank Slay I look forward to your thoughts after you finish!

[edit on Feb 20th 2010 by TheMythLives]

reply to post by TheMythLives


Another well thought-provoking thread, TheMythLives, bravo indeed.

Martin Luther King Jr was killed simply to shut the man up because he was against many injustices.

Our nation was one of the biggest places where racism was not only encouraged by Government, it was propagated via it in many ways, and no matter anyone's particular thoughts on racism, it is an evil and vile as well as disgusting habit.

I am happy to have never been raised as a racist and belligerent idiot.

I was taught the N-word, you know which one that is, meant an ignorant person.

To me, it has never meant anything having to do with someone's color, ever.

I highly recommend this book to you and everyone else on this thread, TheMythLives.

The COINTELPRO Papers: Documents from the FBI's Secret Wars Against Dissent in the United States

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/cb91c2a4e86b.jpg[/atsimg]

Amazon Review :

Product Description

Readers anxious about the future of civil liberties under George W. Bush can trace the lineage of political repression meted out by the FBI in the last half century.

The original FBI memos reproduced here expose the Bureau's secret, systematic, and sometimes savage sabotage of progressive political activity.
The authors examine the treatment of the left from the 1950s Communist Party through the 1980s Central America solidarity movement.

About the Author

Ward Churchill is a member of the Governing Council of the Colorado chapter of the American Indian Movement, Coordinator of American Indian Studies for the University of Colorado/Boulder, and author of From a Native Son.

Jim Vander Wall is an active supporter of the struggles of Native People for sovereignty and has written several articles on FBI.

He is co-author, with Ward Churchill, of Agents of Repression: The FBI's Secret Wars on the Black Panther Party and the American Indian Movement (1988) and an editor of New Studies on the Left.

James Earl Ray to me was nothing more than a man sent on a mission via J. Edgar Hoover, as a cut-out, to give the Federal Government deniability, in order to propagate the race war, and blame racism for the refusal of society to change.

Whether you believe James Earl Ray shot M.L.K. Jr. or not, you have to agree COINTELPRO is wrong.

Quote from : Wikipedia : COINTELPRO

COINTELPRO (an acronym for Counter Intelligence Program) was a series of covert, and often illegal, projects conducted by the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) aimed at investigating and disrupting dissident political organizations within the United States.

The FBI used covert operations from its inception, however formal COINTELPRO operations took place between 1956 and 1971.

The FBI's stated motivation at the time was "protecting national security, preventing violence, and maintaining the existing social and political order."

According to FBI records, 85% of COINTELPRO resources were expended on infiltrating, disrupting, marginalizing, and/or subverting groups suspected of being subversive, such as communist and socialist organizations; the women's rights movement; militant black nationalist groups, and the non-violent civil rights movement, including individuals such as Martin Luther King, Jr. and others associated with the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the Congress of Racial Equality, the American Indian Movement, and other civil rights groups; a broad range of organizations labeled "New Left", including Students for a Democratic Society, the National Lawyers Guild, the Weathermen, almost all groups protesting the Vietnam War, and even individual student demonstrators with no group affiliation; and nationalist groups such as those "seeking independence for Puerto Rico."

The other 15% of COINTELPRO resources were expended to marginalize and subvert "white hate groups," including the Ku Klux Klan and National States' Rights Party.

The directives governing COINTELPRO were issued by FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, who ordered FBI agents to "expose, disrupt, misdirect, discredit, or otherwise neutralize" the activities of these movements and their leaders.

It did far more damage to the F.B.I. and America than it did in stopping anyone.

It is our Government who will not change using dirty and nasty tactics however.

Martin Luther King "I have a dream"


If we are a nation divided, we are a nation easily misled, and easily ruled.

Divide and Conquer : Political Ideology of the Power Elite, Selling The Peace, War Is The Motive

[edit on 20-2-2010 by SpartanKingLeonidas]

My family and I have lived in Memphis before, during, and after MLK and we have no doubt whatsoever JER did not kill MLK.

reply to post by TheMythLives


Thank You for your case reviews. When I want something good to read I go to one of those. The one on Natalie Holloway really made me think, there was information in there that I never heard from the media and I followed that case closely.

reply to post by Iamherefornow


I am glad that you enjoyed it my friend I am also glad that you enjoyed the Holloway case review. I really enjoyed doing that one and putting the evidence out there so to speak. Anything to help! Thank you for your support.

reply to post by DontDoIt


I would LOVE to hear more. It is so cool when we get members from the area. Do you remember anything that made you believe this conclusion? How was it after the assassination and before? Was there anything strange? Would love to hear from ya

Have you done one for the little girl who went missing in Portugal? Madeline McCann? I would love to hear your thoughts on that one.

It wasn't too long before J. E. Ray died that (I believe it was) Dexter King, MLK's son, met with J. E. Ray while he (Ray) was still in prison. At the meeting, Ray swore that he did not kill MLK, and the junior King indicated that he believed Ray's pleas of innocence.

I'm too lazy to try to dig up the videotape though.

11- A Question of time
-- Less than two minutes after the fatal shot was fired, a bundle containing the 30.06 Remington rifle allegedly used in the assassination and some of Ray's belongings was conveniently found in the doorway of the Canipe Amusement Company next door to the boarding house. Ray would have had to fire the shot that killed Martin Luther King from his contorted position in the bathroom, exit the sniper's nest, go to his room to collect his belongings and wrap and tie it all in a bundle, leave his room, run down the stairs and out of the boarding house, stash the bundle next door, and then get away from the scene unnoticed -- all within two minutes!

I just have a major problem with this simply because it's making a lot of assumptions. It's assuming the location the shooter shot from, as well as the time of the bundle being made. I haven't seen a picture of the bundle, but if the rifle isn't wrapped up, or if it wasn't tied, it's more likely that it was made before the shooting took place. Heck, even if the rifle was wrapped and tied with the other items the bundle could've been all prepared and the shooter could've just placed the rifle in the bundle with the other items and then wrapped and tied it in a matter of seconds.