Assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. |
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Martin Luther King, Jr.
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| Location | Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Date | April 4, 1968 6:01 p.m. (Central Time) |
| Target | Martin Luther King, Jr. |
| Weapons | Remington 760 Gamemaster |
| Perpetrators |
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Martin Luther King, Jr., a prominent American leader of the civil rights movement and Nobel Peace Prize winner, was fatally shot at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 4, 1968, at the age of 39. King was rushed to St. Joseph's Hospital, where he died at 7:05 that evening. He was a prominent leader of the African-American Civil Rights Movement who was known for his use of nonviolence and civil disobedience.
James Earl Ray, a fugitive from the Missouri State Penitentiary, was arrested and charged with King's murder. He was sentenced to 99 years in the Tennessee State Penitentiary. He died in prison at the age of 70.
The King family and others believe that a United States government conspiracy killed King, as Loyd Jowers said in 1993. They believe that Ray was a scapegoat. In 1999, the King family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Jowers for $10,000,000. During the trial, both the King family and Jowers gave evidence accusing the government of a conspiracy. The government agencies that were accused could not defend themselves or respond, because they were not named as defendants. Based on the evidence, the jury concluded that Jowers and "others were part of a conspiracy to kill King."
Contents
Assassination
On Thursday, April 4, 1968, King was staying in room 306 at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis. The motel was owned by businessman Walter Bailey and was named after his wife. Reverend Ralph Abernathy, a colleague and friend, later told the House Select Committee on Assassinations that he and King had stayed in Room 306 at the Lorraine Motel so often that it was known as the "King–Abernathy Suite".
According to Rev. Samuel Kyles, who was standing several feet away, King was leaning over the balcony railing in front of Room 306 and was speaking with Rev. Jesse Jackson when the shot rang out. King was struck in the face at 6:01 p.m. by a single .30-06 bullet fired from a Remington Model 760 rifle. King fell backward onto the balcony, unconscious.
Abernathy heard the shot from inside the motel room and ran to the balcony to find King on the deck, bleeding profusely. Andrew Young, a colleague from the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, first believed King was dead, but found he still had a pulse.
King was rushed to St. Joseph's Hospital, where doctors opened his chest and performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation. He never regained consciousness and died at 7:05 p.m. According to Branch, King's autopsy revealed that his heart was in the condition of a 60-year-old man rather than that of a 39-year-old such as King, which Branch attributed to the stress of King's 13 years in the civil rights movement.
Shortly after the shot was fired, witnesses saw a man, later believed to be James Earl Ray, fleeing from a rooming house across the street from the Lorraine Motel. Ray had been renting a room in the boarding house. Police found a package dumped close to the site that included a rifle and binoculars, both with Ray's fingerprints. Ray had purchased the rifle under an alias six days earlier.
Afterward
Civil disorder, including riots, happened after King's murder in at least 110 U.S. cities. Washington, Chicago, and Baltimore had the most damage.
On June 10, 1968, James Earl Ray was arrested in London at Heathrow Airport. Ray was extradited to the United States and charged with killing King. On March 10, 1969, Ray told the court he was guilty, and was sentenced to 99 years in the Tennessee state penitentiary. Ray later tried many times to take away his guilty plea and be tried by a jury, but he was unsuccessful.
The United States House of Representatives Select Committee on Assassinations was created in 1976 to look into the assassinations of John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr., and the shooting of Governor George Wallace. The Committee investigated until 1978, and put out a final report in 1979. About the King assassination, the Committee decided:
- James Earl Ray did kill King, with one rifle shot
- "There is a likelihood" that this was the result of a conspiracy (probably between Ray and his brothers)
- The U.S. government was not part of this conspiracy
In 1999, Coretta Scott King, King's widow, and the rest of King's family won their wrongful death lawsuit against Loyd Jowers and "other unknown co-conspirators" (other people who were part of the conspiracy). Jowers claimed to have received $100,000 to arrange King's assassination. The jury of six whites and six blacks found Jowers liable for King's murder. They also found that governmental agencies were part of the assassination plot.
James Earl Ray died in prison on April 23, 1998, at the age of 70.
In 2000, the Department of Justice completed the investigation about Jowers' claims. They did not find evidence to support the accusations about conspiracy. The investigation report recommends no more investigation unless some reliable new facts are presented.
The Lorraine Motel is now a civil rights museum.
Images for kids
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Destruction after the 1968 Washington, D.C., riots
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Garment workers listen to King's funeral service on a portable radio (April 9, 1968)
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The tomb of Martin Luther King and Coretta Scott King, located on the grounds of the King Center in Atlanta
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The former "New Rebel Motel" where James Earl Ray stayed before shooting King
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The former boarding house room from which Ray is believed to have fired
See also
In Spanish: Asesinato de Martin Luther King para niños
