Donald Smith: James Earl Ray's Murder Case

Dr. King was killed by one shot fired from in front of him. The prosecution alleged that from the bathroom window at the rear of a room at 422 1/2 South Main Street, Memphis, Tenn. James Earl Ray purchased murder weapon used in Dr. King's shooting and transported it from Birmingham, Ala., to Memphis, Tenn. Upon his arrival in Memphis, James Earl Ray rented a room at 422 1/2 South Main Street. Ray then waited until the optimal moment

Gun related violence has long since been apart of American history dating all the way back to colonization, western cowboys of the 19th century all the up to today’s modern era. The revolver has long since been a staple of American portrayals in pop culture. On June 21, 1968 TIME magazine debuted its weekly issue with the cover dawning a cartoon hand and smoking revolver accompanied by brightly contrasting colors. The image comes weeks after Senator Robert Kennedy was assassinated in the lobby of a Los Angeles hotel. Nearly three months prior to that atrocity, Martin Luther King Jr was shot and killed standing on the balcony of a motel room in Memphis, Tennessee. That same year, American households were still gripping to the striking images

Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated on April 4, 1968 in Memphis, Tennessee. James Earl Ray was originally the prime suspect and was brought in for a trial two months after the death. Based on the advice of his attorney, to avoid a possible death penalty Ray admitted to the murder of MLK. 3 days later he recanted his plea and said he didn't commit the murder.

At around 4 a.m. on January 31st outside of an Atlanta nightclub where a post Super Bowl party was winding down, an argument broke out between two groups. The altercation escalated from verbal to physical when one man struck another over the head with a champagne bottle. The actions to take place in the following chaotic moments were fast and furious, and it seems no two eyewitnesses saw the same thing. What is conclusive about the outcome is that a limousine sped away, gunshots were fired at it, and Jacinth Baker and Richard Lollar died from multiple stab wounds. If convicted along with his two friends, Ray Lewis of the Baltimore Ravens will go from three-time All-Pro to lifetime inmate.

On April 4,1968, Martin Luther King Jr. was shot by James Earl Ray, an escaped fugitive. On the ten year anniversary of King's death, a labor union organizer and civil rights leader, Cesar Chavez, wrote an article concerning his idea of nonviolent resistance. Chavez believes that nonviolence is a powerful technique as nonviolence exploits people and does not always work. Chavez used ethos and pathos to appeal to his audience and to develop his argument about nonviolent resistance.

When it comes to the assassination of the nobel peace prize winner and powerful civil rights leader, Martin luther king jr most people believe the case was closed after the police charged the man who supposedly committed the crime. With the supposed felon james earl ray put behind bars after pleading guilty to the murder the people were content, although most did not believe he worked alone. I am amongst the group of people who are curious if there is more to the murder, such as if the governmant was behind it.

What if I told you a man that killed one of the most well-known African American icons of the 20th century could have been stopped? James Earl Ray killed Martin Luther King Jr. on the date of April 4, 1968 in Memphis, Tennessee. He used up a large sum of government money in his lifetime including, housing, incarceration, and feeding him. James committed many crimes but none as horrific as murder. If he would have been killed when he was deployed in Germany this nation would be much different.

At the time of Dr. King’s murder, James Earl Ray was an escapee from the Missouri State Prison, and he was serving a prison sentence for armed robbery (Safferstein, 2015). Ray was on the run for almost year before renting a room on April 3, 1968 at the Bessie Brewer’s Rooming House, which was located across the street from Dr. King’s motel (Safferstein, 2015). The next day on April 4, 1968 James Earl Ray committed one of the most infamous crimes in the history of the United States, assassinating Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. with a high-powered rifle (Safferstein, 2015). According to eyewitness accounts, Ray was observed running from the Bessie Brewer Rooming House leaving a blanket-covered package in front of a nearby building, and he fled the scene in a white Mustang (History.com Staff, 2009). Subsequently, when the package was located by authorities it contained the following items: a high-powered rifle equipped with a scope, a radio, some, clothes, a pair of binoculars, a couple of beer cans, and a receipt for the binoculars

Martin Luther King was born in Atlanta, Georgia, on January 15, 1929. Martin Luther King was assassinated on April 4, 1968 in Memphis Tennessee. The question is was Martin Luther King assassination justified? Martin Luther King assassination wasn't justified. His assassination wasn't justified because they probably killed him because of hate, racism, and he was giving black people the right to stand up for themselves. Martin Luther King was shot standing on a balcony outside his second floor room at the Lorraine Motel. Martin Luther King had a good role in the civil rights movement. Martin Luther King worked with a number of civil rights and religious groups to organize the March on Washington for jobs and freedom.

On April 4, 1968 just after 6 p.m. a single shot rang out striking Martin Luther King Jr. dead. He was standing on the balcony of his hotel room at the Lorraine Motelin Memphis, Tennessee. Martin Luther was in Memphis to support a workers’ strike. He was about to go to dinner before he was shot, he was pronounced dead at the Memphis

Martin Luther King Jr died on April 14, 1968. He was shot and killed by James Earl Ray from a bathtub in a shared bathroom. James shit Mlk and fled from the area and they later found him on July 19, 1968 in london and extradited him back to the United States and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He also did a lot of illegal things but this was his big one and he later died in

In the same year James Earl Ray had escaped from the Missouri State Prison where he was to serve 20 years for armed robbery. In 1968 King appeared in Memphis to help with the Sanitation Workers Strike. On April 4, 1968 King exited his room at the Lorraine motel with his colleagues and was shot in the chest by James Earl Ray who was positioned across the parking lot in a small window. King died immediately, but even if he had survived the bullet had severed his spinal cord which would have left him paralyzed. James Earl Ray was able to get away and the man hunt for King’s assassin had begun. When the news spread around the United States more than one hundred cities broke into a violent

Modern day hero, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (United States), lived in Chicago (1966), Atlanta, Pennsylvania, and Montgomery. He worked for civil rights and gave his “I Have a Dream” speech and was shot in Memphis Tennessee standing on a balcony (April 4, 1968 shortly after 6 P.M.) at the age 39. He strongly believed and was a leader for the civil rights movement. Him and his dad both originally had the name Michael but his dad decided to change both of their names to Martin after the Christian Protestant (Martin Luther). He was also a political (civil rights) activist, or someone who gets involved in a political process to promote something. He suffered at least one fatal gun shot that

James Earl Ray had an extensive criminal history, and when he committed the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, he was a fugitive who escaped prison (Saferstein, 2015). Approximately one year prior to the assassination, James Ray was incarcerated in the Missouri State Prison for armed robbery when he broke-out (Saferstein, 2015). Dr. King was in Memphis supporting sanitation workers

By 1968, the years of demonstrations and confrontations were beginning to wear on Martin Luther King Jr. He had grown tired of marches, going to jail, and living under the constant threat of death. He was becoming discouraged at the slow progress of civil rights in America and the increasing criticism from other African-American leaders. Plans were in the works for another march on Washington to revive his movement and bring attention to a widening range of issues. In the spring of 1968, a labor strike by Memphis sanitation workers drew King to one last crusade. On April 3, he gave his final and what proved to be an eerily prophetic speech, “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop,” in which he told supporters at the Mason Temple in Memphis, "I've seen the promised land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight that we, as a people, will get to the promised land." The next day, while standing on a balcony outside his room at the Lorraine Motel, Martin Luther King Jr. was struck by a sniper's bullet. The shooter, a malcontent drifter and former convict named James Earl Ray, was eventually apprehended after a two-month, international manhunt. The killing sparked riots and demonstrations in more than 100 cities across the country. In 1969, Ray pleaded guilty to assassinating King and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He died in prison on April 23, 1998.