Conspiracy theories about the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., a prominent leader of the civil rights movement, relate to different accounts of the incident that took place on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee. King was assassinated on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel, the day after giving his final speech "I've Been to the Mountaintop". Claims soon arose over suspect aspects of King's assassination and the controversial role of the assassin, James Earl Ray. Although his guilty plea eliminated the possibility of a trial before a jury, within days, Ray had recanted and claimed his confession was forced. Suspicions were further raised by the confirmation of illegal surveillance of King by the FBI and the CIA, and the FBI's attempt to allegedly prompt King to commit suicide.
In 1979, the United States House Select Committee on Assassinations (HSCA) concluded that there was a likelihood of conspiracy in the assassination of King and that Ray may have served as a scapegoat. In 1999, a mixed-race jury at a Memphis civil suit reached a unanimous verdict that King was assassinated as a result of a conspiracy involving the U.S. government, a person named Raoul, among others.[1] After the verdict, Coretta King said: "There is abundant evidence of a major, high-level conspiracy in the assassination of my husband." The jury found the mafia and various local, state, and federal government agencies were "deeply involved in the assassination. ... Mr. Ray was set up to take the blame."[2][3]
- ^ "Conspiracy Trial – The Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change". www.thekingcenter.org. Archived from the original on 2018-03-31. Retrieved 2018-12-13.
- ^ "Who killed Martin Luther King Jr.? His family believes James Earl Ray was framed". Washington Post. Archived from the original on 2020-03-31. Retrieved 2018-12-13.
- ^ "50 years later, conspiracies still swirl around Martin Luther King's death". Evansville Courier & Press. Archived from the original on 2019-08-02. Retrieved 2018-12-13.