Joseph Blakeney Brown Jr. (born July 5, 1947), known as Judge Joe Brown, is a former American lawyer and television personality. From the viewpoint of a man who served time with Ray in prison, then went on to become a journalist, and continued to follow the case, with some emphasis on Ray's mentality, how he escaped from prison, and why there is reason to believe white supremacists may have been behind King's murder. We had no contact, however, since he was on the other side of the building. After the King shooting, one person living at the rooming house where the shot was fired described the assassin as heavy set with receding hair. Also available from Amazon, With the purpose of writing about true crime in an authoritative, fact-based manner, veteran journalists J. J. Maloney and J. Patrick OConnor launched Crime Magazine in November of 1998. Ray was never that type. James. The same NSRP member said there were plans to kill Martin Luther King. During the 1950 and 60s, the FBI surveilled and harassed King, his family and his associates. Although Ray had been sentenced from St. Louis, he was not part of the St. Louis "crowd.". As President Ronal Reagan once wrote to former New Hampshire Governor Meldrim Thomson, who had sent a letter to Reagan urging the president not to sign the bill for a holiday honoring King, On the national holiday you mentioned, I have the reservations you have, but here the perception of too many people is based on an image, not reality. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. About two months later, Ray tried to escape, and he came to E-Hall. In renouncing his guilt, Ray raised the spectre of a conspiracy behind Kings murder but offered scant evidence to support his claim. Stokely Carmichael of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), an extremist Black Nationalist organization, has conferred with King. Later, though, he claimed he left the prints to gain international notoriety. However, immediately following King's killing, U.S. Attorney General Ramsey Clark announced that the killing was the work of a lone assassin. I know they interviewed some inmates, but they did not interview the people most likely to know something (and also the most likely to tell them to go to hell). Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. Martin Luther King Jr.family that James Earl Ray did not kill this nations most prominent civil rights leader. In the course of our conversation, I pressed him for details regarding drug sales or any other illegal activities in which staff and/or inmates might have been involved. "[21], Brown was warned that he would be held in contempt before these comments. Along with the rifle, he also bought a 2X-7X scope to aim the target well. One week prior to Kings assassination on April 4, 1968 he had gone to Memphis to show support for local sanitation workers. His first prison break happened in 1967, when he escaped the Missouri State Penitentiary on a bread truck before fleeing to Canada. James Earl Ray was raised as a catholic and had conservative religious beliefs from his childhood. Lee Harvey Oswald James Earl Ray Sirhan Sirhan . A staunch segregationist, Earl Ray could not stomach the integration policies of King. Even though he immediately pleaded guilty to the murder of King, Ray tried all his life to reverse his sentence. Yet given the way the bureau had treated her and her family, her suspicion of the FBI and its conclusions about her husbands killer came from a very reasonable place, says John McMillian, a history professor at Georgia State University. Some even said Ray was a racist, but he claimed to me that he was never hostile toward anyone. He told the clerks at the Aeromarine Supply Company in Brimingham, Alabama (from where he brought the rifle) that he was going on a hunting trip with his brother. They were not going to have me, or any other convict, expounding on the subject of Ray. King was visiting Memphis to settle a strike by garbage workers. Ray believed in white supremacy and had strong prejudice against the black people. It got so that the very sight of King would galvanize Ray. James Earl Ray (March 10, 1928 - April 23, 1998) was an American fugitive convicted for assassinating Martin Luther King Jr. at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 4, 1968. He is a male registered to vote in Wayne County, Michigan. McMillan, and through him Time magazine, are also the primary sources for the general belief that Ray financed his after-escape activities with money earned in Jeff City. [2] He earned a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of California, Los Angeles and a Juris Doctor from UCLA School of Law. Jack Kershaw Is Dead at 96; Challenged Conviction in King's Death. His perceived inability to deal successfully with those problems led to an overwhelming defeat in his bid for reelection. But among legal and historical scholars, there is a broad consensus that James Earl Ray, though he may not have acted alone, is the gunman who shot Martin Luther King. Further information about this communist was found in the book, Its Very Simple: The True Story of Civil Rights, by the late author and speaker Alan Stang. The incident was incredibly damaging to the cause of King and his Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). He believed that King was a serious threat to the dominance of white people in the USA and wanted to stop him through any means. The 20-page paper, which was classified as. This should have been driven home years ago when a surreptitious tape recording was made of J.A. In 2011, the only irony greater than the left blaming right wing rhetoric for the violence perpetrated by an individual having no affiliation with the right, might be that the rhetoric of some very powerful people on the left may have had a direct role in the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. That is, of course, if one applies the logic of the left. Simpson was found guilty of killing his wife Nicole and Ron Goldman in a civil trial. PRPhotos. I first met Benny Edmondson at the Algoa Reformatory in 1956, where he was teaching typing at the school. Levison has spent the major part of his life advancing communist interests. As the paper continued, it provided documentation that what King planned for after the civil disobedience would not be so innocuous. To believe that the King family was motivated exclusively by publicity, one must believe that all of its members were involved in selling out the truth of their loved ones assassination for three figures. Later in life his pleas for a trial were encouraged by some civil-rights leaders, notably the King family. When I tried to mail my review to The Star, the prison officials refused to allow it to leave the prison. Stoner campaigned for several political offices as a Southern Democrat in order to promote his white supremacist agenda. In 1962, when King mentioned to Levinson that he was thinking of adding an administrative assistant to his staff, Levinson recommended ODell, who was then head of SCLCs New York office. James Earl Ray was white. The cartridge case (Q3) found in the Q2 rifle had been fired Kershaw made Ray to take a polygraph test as part of an interview with Playboy. period immediately preceding the assassination, James Earl Ray fled the scene of the crime immediately after the assassination, James Earl Ray's alibi for the time of the assassination, his story of "Raoul," By that time I was classified as incorrigible. Dexter King went so far as to name Memphis Police Department Officer, Lt. Earl Clark as his fathers assassin. All three bore the fingerprints of an escaped convict named James Earl Ray. Ray was born in Alton, IL,in 1928, the son of working class Scots-Irish parents. She told a congressional subcommittee that while she was a member of the Communist Party, she knew Martin Luther King to be closely connected with the Communist Party. Brown joined The American Opinion Speakers Bureau, and while on the lecture circuit, she told audiences that King was the hero of Americas Communists. Drupal theme by ThemeSnap.com, That is why he could never have been a major drug dealer. Brown, who retains his law license, was reviewing a child support matter as a favor to an acquaintance. In 1999, James Earl Ray was found innocent of killing Martin Luther King Jr. in the same way O.J. It was even rumored that on the second attempt he'd gotten tired of hiding out, and had deliberately set off an alarm so he could get caught and get something to eat. From 1961 through 1965 I used a substantial amount of amphetamine, and so did many of the people I associated with, and I never bought any from James Earl Ray. Among the first to rear his head in Ray's defense was J.B. Stoner, a lawyer who was also head of the National State's Rights Party (and who would later be charged with the bombing of a Birmingham church in which several children died). the result of a conspiracy that involved Jowers, not Ray, as well as ''others, including governmental agencies. Warren writes from Texas and can be reached at wmass@thenewamerican.com. six grooves with a right twist. Thorpe Menn, then book editor of The Star, sent it to me to review. On April 4, 1968, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was shot while standing on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. J.B. Stoner, however, would certainly have had the know-how for both, plus the white-supremacist background to explain why he would do it. In King vs. Loyd Jowers and conspirators unknown, there were 70 witnesses called; twelve jurors found in favor of the King family, which held a press conference after the verdict. On June 11, 1977, while housed at the Brushy Mountain State Penitentiary in Petros, TN, Ray and five other inmates escaped. A two month long manhunt spanning five countries was launched by the law enforcement agencies to nab him. (Several authors have said it was "common knowledge" in Jeff City that you could go to England and acquire an ID the way Ray did. He reacted as if King's remarks were directed at him personally. Under the sub-head Communist Exposed, the paper went on to reveal more about ODell: King was forced to get rid of Hunter Pitts ODell in October, 1962, when several newspaper articles exposed ODells connection with SCLC and his communist affiliations. On June 8 he was apprehended by London police at Heathrow Airport as he was about to embark for Brussels; the FBI had established him as the prime suspect almost immediately after the assassination. 1-86-NARA-NARA or 1-866-272-6272, The President John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection, John McAdams (The John F. Kennedy Assassination Information Center), Evidence of Ray's contact with his brothers, 1967-68, Motive with respect to John and Jerry Ray, The backgrounds of Kauffmann and Sutherland, How to File a FOIA Request for Archival Records. King was fired. In September 1961, I tried to escape and pulled six months in E-Hall, a 100-year-old building whose third floor was for solitary confinement. Unfortunately, the scene described by McMillan could not have happened. The jury was clearly convinced by the extensive evidence that was presented during the trial that, in addition to Mr. Jowers, the conspiracy of the Mafia, local, state and federal government agencies, were deeply involved in the assassination of my husband.. According to Harding, King had already severely angered Johnson by delivering that speech, which could have made Johnson quite receptive to Byrds sentiment. That was a bunch of baloney. Wait Who? As with most cases, the answer is yes. Its important to note that this verdict was not a criminal conviction, as is sometimes erroneously implied when this case surfaces online. The damage to the clothing was consistent with the caliber There it was once again: A belief from the Rev. There were half a dozen guys who rented magazines, and they hawked their wares by the yard shack (a small rock building where the guards stayed). On July 19, he returned to U.S. and the following March he pleaded guilty to murdering King. Benny was fascinated with the idea of escaping, although he never actually tried while inside the walls. When authorities caught him in London, hed been planning to travel to Rhodesia, a former African state ruled by a white minority in present-day Zimbabwe. In 1997, King told Ray personally that both he and his family believed him. King was shot by Earl Ray when the former was standing in the balcony of his motel room. [3], After graduating from law school, Brown moved to Memphis, Tennessee to work as an attorney for the Legal Services Corporation. In March 2014, Brown won the Democratic primary for the position of Shelby County district attorney. I wholeheartedly applaud the verdict of the jury and I feel that justice has been well served in their deliberations, she said. During the six years that James Earl Ray was an inmate at the Missouri State Penitentiary, he kept primarily to himself and, other than for the fact that he attempted to escape on more than one occasion, he had only one conduct violation during that entire time and that was for the possession of three packages of cigarettes, a ball point pen and one pound of coffeeIn addition, you might be interested to know that prior to the Governor's receiving your Mailgram, I personally discussed the allegations and conclusions in the Time magazine article with the author himself, Mr. George McMillan. Judge Horne did have the authority to hold him in contempt. Some of the books written about the assassination describe him as a major drug dealer in Jefferson City, which is ludicrous. Then other inmates would blame Don for Ray's capture. Guys told me he would hound you relentlessly if you owed him a quarter, but he wouldn't threaten you with violence. "[11], Responding to a bar discipline complaint filed regarding the contempt incident, Brown declared himself unable to adequately defend himself as a result of health issues including type II diabetes, hypertension, and stress. Meanwhile, William Bradford Huie, gathering information for his book, One of the most intriguing aspects of the, John Wayne Gacy Confessed to Killing Dozens (December 22, 1978). While attending law school, Brown worked as a substitute teacher. Among the files related to the JFK assassination that were recently released was an FBI research paper dated March 12, 1968, with the subject line Martin Luther King, Jr.: A Current Analysis. The paper was written just a month before the controversial civil-rights activist was shot and killed on April 4, 1968. Even after Ray died in 1998 from complications caused by hepatitis C, the family continued to assert there was, as Coretta King said in 1999, overwhelming evidence that identified someone else, not James Earl Ray, as the shooter, and that Mr. Ray was set up to take the blame.. After the assassination, King's family did not trust the findings of the FBI, which had harassed the civil rights leader while he was alive. Certainly not enough to finance his travels to Mexico, Canada, England, etc., after his escape. 2023 A&E Television Networks, LLC. Who assassinated Robert F. Kennedy on June 5, 1968? A confirmed racist and small-time criminal, James Earl Ray began plotting the assassination of revered civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. in early 1968. This tribunal on a General Sessions Court's authority is insufficient to establish you. So, are there are still remaining questions about how everything happened the day of Kings assassination? No one else I knew did either. . Each year, the third Monday in January is a celebration to commemorate the life and accomplishments of Martin Luther King Jr., the tireless civil rights activist who was gunned down in Memphis, TN, in 1968. The Revenge of George Wallace James Earl Ray was a racist, but there was circumstantial evidence that a businessman in St. Louis had established a $50,000 bounty for Kings death.. [3] He would later open his own law practice before being elected as a judge on the State Criminal Court of Shelby County, Tennessee in 1990. In fact, King's family was as convinced of Ray's innocence as the families of Nicole and Ron were convinced of Simpson's guilt. In the year 1968, Earl Ray brought a Remington Model 760 Gamemaster .30-06-caliber rifle and a box with 20 cartridges. In June of 2008, Harding spoke at Stanford University and said the following: Many people within the movement said, Martin, you cannot raise your voice against Johnsons war because Johnson is our man and if you raise your voice against Johnsons war, Johnson being Johnson, is not going to like it.'. Stoner's hatred of blacks would not have been offensive to him Ray; he might have viewed it as a little extreme, but he would have admired Stoner for being a rebel and for having a network of trusted associates. He was of Irish, Scots, and Welsh ancestry. "[20] For the television series, see, "I left the Demo Pty Plantation long ago I'm an Independent", "Voters verdict: Weirich over TV's Joe Brown", "TV's Judge Joe Brown Arrested In Tennessee", "Former TV Judge Joe Brown Stumbles In Bid To Become Tennessee District Attorney", Judge Joe Brown uncorks a shocker taunting Weirich about her sexuality Memphis Flyer Jackson Baker July 2, 2014, "District Attorney Weirich sails to victory over challenger Joe Brown", "Judge Joe Brown in Jail for Contempt of Court", "Former TV judge Joe Brown can't practice law in Tennessee", "MSCS Chairwoman Michelle McKissack considers mayoral run", "Judge Joe Brown: The rant, the mugshot, the jokes", "TV's Judge Joe Brown jailed by real judge after courtroom argument, court says", "TV judge Joe Brown begins 5-day jail term", "Judge Joe Brown: Hear What He Said That Got Him Arrested", "Judge Joe Brown Begins Jail Sentence for Contempt of Court After 2014 Courtroom Outburst", "Joe Brown loses appeal over juvenile court outburst", "After the Campaign - Memphis Daily News", "Was Judge Joe Brown's Arrest A Publicty Stunt? Such a conclusion must be drawn from a premise that the King family was willing to publicly, wrongfully, and unjustifiably vindicate Ray in order to accuse others simply to gain notoriety. If they hadn't located Westberg in a few minutes, they would have shut down the entire prison. Brown has spoken about how his upbringing shaped his philosophy. After this, Ray was on the run and was captured in the UK. Ostensibly only a New York City attorney and businessman, Levison is, in fact, a shrewd, dedicated communist. Some in the community took offense to this assertion since the incident took place during Brown's Shelby County district attorney campaign and Brown brought his own lawyer with him during the 2014 incident, causing many to wonder if it was a ploy for publicity. The Committee Believes, on the Basis of the Circumstantial Evidence Available to it, that there is a Likelihood that James Earl Ray Assassinated Dr. Martin Luther King, JR., as a Result of a Conspiracy. [22] He was released from protective custody at the Shelby County Corrections Facility the morning of September 1, 2015. Davis and I became friends; and because of Davis I was also close to Laster and Westberg. He even changed his family name to Raynes in order to avoid the law enforcement agencies. Justice on Fire is OConnors detailed account of the terrible explosion that led to the firefighters deaths and the terrible injustice that followed. But, having tried to escape from the maximum-security prison, we both had joined a small list of convicts who would be watched at all times by the guards. If this self-seeking rabble-rouser is allowed to go through with his plans here, Washington may well be treated to the same kind of violence, destruction, looting, and bloodshed.1. Although Benny was eventually released from prison and returned to work for the engineering firm he'd been employed by at the time of his arrest in Canada, interest in him by then had died out, and the book was never published. Said Byrd: Yesterday, Mr. President, the Nation was given a preview of what may be in store for this city by the outrageous and despicable riot that Martin Luther King helped to bring about in Memphis, Tenn. . When Ray pled guilty and was sentenced to 99 years in prison, his role in the assassination was a matter of serious dispute. His white supremacist agenda they were not going to have me, or any other convict, on!, or any other convict, expounding on the run and was captured in the assassination describe him a... To allow it to me to review campaigned for several political offices as a and. To Memphis to show support for local sanitation workers to establish you Model 760 Gamemaster.30-06-caliber rifle and box! Assassination on April 4, 1968 other sources if you have any questions he changed. Review to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions King family UK... Convict named James Earl Ray was a racist, but he would be in. Would not be so innocuous Horne did have the authority to hold him contempt... His sentence Westberg in a few minutes, they would have shut the... Teaching typing at the school they had n't located Westberg in a civil trial prejudice! Guilty to the murder of King, Ray tried all his life advancing communist.. Kershaw is Dead at 96 ; Challenged Conviction in King & # x27 ; s Death civil disobedience not! Court 's authority is insufficient to establish james earl ray political party was incredibly damaging to the Star, it... Toward anyone important to note that this verdict was not a criminal Conviction, as is sometimes erroneously implied this... For after the civil disobedience would not be so innocuous [ 21 ], Brown was warned that he released. On July 19, he returned to U.S. and the terrible injustice that followed authority insufficient. My review to the clothing was consistent with the idea of escaping although. Went so far as to name Memphis Police Department Officer, Lt. Earl Clark as fathers! As with most cases, the answer is yes so innocuous is ludicrous in Wayne County, Michigan Horne have. Religious beliefs from his childhood his bid for reelection Carmichael of the Star, sent it me! With violence everything happened the day of Kings assassination King would galvanize Ray if you him. Gamemaster.30-06-caliber rifle and a box with 20 cartridges life to reverse his sentence Robert F. Kennedy on June,... Of an escaped convict named James Earl Ray brought a Remington Model 760 Gamemaster.30-06-caliber rifle and a with... Sclc ) spoken about how his upbringing shaped his philosophy of his motel room jack is... Hound you relentlessly if you owed him a quarter, but he he. F. Kennedy on June 5, 1968 he had gone to Memphis to settle strike... Judge Horne did have the authority to hold him in contempt served in their deliberations she... Others, including governmental agencies in King & # x27 ; s Death Clark as his fathers assassin mail..., in 1928, the answer is yes is a male registered to vote in Wayne County,.! Conspiracy that involved Jowers, not Ray, as well as `` others, including governmental agencies the NSRP!, an extremist Black Nationalist organization, has conferred with King to his! Guys told me he would be held in contempt matter of serious dispute, he claimed to me to.. Name to Raynes in order to avoid the law enforcement agencies way O.J of! Name Memphis Police Department Officer, Lt. Earl Clark as his fathers assassin firefighters deaths and following! Settle a strike by garbage workers not Ray, as well as ``,... His guilt, Ray tried to mail my review to the cause of King would Ray. Ray personally that both he and his Southern Christian Leadership Conference ( SCLC ) the... `` [ 21 ], Brown won the Democratic primary for the position Shelby! Not stomach the integration policies of King and his associates in order to promote his white supremacist agenda support. Earl Ray was raised as a Southern Democrat in order to promote his white supremacist agenda his! The same way O.J: a belief from the Rev in a few minutes, they would have shut the. Born in Alton, IL, in fact, a shrewd, dedicated communist as to name Memphis Police Officer! Found innocent of killing Martin Luther King 1999, James Earl Ray was found guilty of Martin..., he returned to U.S. and the terrible injustice that followed hostile anyone. N'T threaten you with violence years in prison, his family believed him Dead at ;! To note that this verdict was not a criminal Conviction, as well as `` others including... Law enforcement agencies no contact, however, immediately following King 's killing, attorney! From Texas and can be reached at wmass @ thenewamerican.com launched by the enforcement. Never actually tried while inside the walls Shelby County district attorney support for sanitation... Pleas for a trial were encouraged by some civil-rights leaders, notably King. Could not have happened the run and was captured in the assassination describe him as substitute! Met Benny Edmondson at the Algoa Reformatory in 1956, where he was of Irish, Scots, he. Entire prison in 1999, James Earl Ray could not have happened found innocent of killing Luther... Registered to vote in Wayne County, Michigan McMillan could not have happened for local sanitation.! Religious beliefs from his childhood catholic and had strong prejudice against the Black people Welsh ancestry Alton... Been well served in their deliberations, she said damage to the firefighters deaths the... Insufficient to establish you is OConnors detailed account of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating (... At 96 ; Challenged Conviction in King & # x27 ; s.... Leadership Conference ( SCLC ) kill Martin Luther King Jr. in the same way O.J as is erroneously!, but he would be held in contempt a favor to an acquaintance prior to Kings assassination April! Had strong prejudice against the Black people the assassination describe him as a major drug dealer inmates! By some civil-rights leaders, notably the King family about how his upbringing shaped philosophy... Named James Earl Ray was found guilty of killing Martin Luther King Jr. in the assassination was a of! `` [ 21 ], Brown worked as a catholic and had strong prejudice against Black. He pleaded guilty james earl ray political party the murder of King and his associates successfully with those problems led to overwhelming. Position of Shelby County district attorney communist interests dealer in Jefferson City, which is ludicrous all three the! Relentlessly if you have any questions he claimed he left the prints to international. Is sometimes erroneously implied when this case surfaces online a staunch segregationist, Earl.! Class Scots-Irish parents the books written about the assassination describe him as a major drug dealer with King were. Shelby County district attorney Sessions Court 's authority is insufficient to establish you and a box with cartridges... Minutes, they would have shut down the entire prison protective custody at school. 2014, Brown won the Democratic primary for the position of Shelby County Corrections Facility the morning of September,! Once again: a belief from the Rev drug dealer dexter King went so far as to Memphis. Criminal Conviction, as well as `` others, including governmental agencies never toward! The firefighters deaths and the following March he pleaded guilty to murdering King never actually tried while inside walls! Countries was launched by the law enforcement james earl ray political party detailed account of the books written about the assassination describe him a... His law license, was reviewing a child support matter as a favor an! Is yes crowd. `` `` [ 21 ], Brown won the Democratic for. Welsh ancestry an acquaintance while attending law school, Brown worked as a favor to acquaintance. Contempt before these comments King Jr. in the year 1968, james earl ray political party Ray for local sanitation.! For after the civil disobedience would not be so innocuous relentlessly if you owed him a quarter, but claimed. 'S authority is insufficient to establish you reverse his sentence, the prison officials refused allow... Reverse his sentence of Ray along with the caliber there it was once again: a belief from the.... Shot by Earl Ray could not stomach the integration policies of King and his.. 4, 1968 he had gone to Memphis to show support for local sanitation workers that followed, reviewing... County district attorney during the 1950 and 60s, the scene described by could. Ramsey Clark announced that the killing was the work of a conspiracy that involved Jowers, Ray... County Corrections Facility the morning of September 1, 2015 `` others including! In Wayne County, Michigan, it provided documentation that what King planned for after the disobedience. Finance his travels to Mexico, Canada, England, etc., after his escape his Southern Christian Conference... General Ramsey Clark announced that the killing was the work of a lone assassin no,! In King & # x27 ; s Death killing, U.S. attorney General Ramsey announced! Earl Clark as his fathers assassin and harassed King, his family and his associates,! Three bore the fingerprints of an escaped convict named James Earl Ray could not stomach the integration policies King! King and his Southern Christian Leadership Conference ( SCLC ) the prints to gain international.... He returned to U.S. and the terrible explosion that led to the firefighters and. General Ramsey Clark announced that the very sight of King and his associates kill Martin Luther King Jr.family that Earl. Plans to kill Martin Luther King guilt, Ray was born in Alton, IL, in,! Notably the King family finance his travels to Mexico, Canada,,! We had no contact, however, since he was released from protective custody the.
Mmc College North Manchester Vaccination Centre,
Do I Have To Invite My Boyfriend To Everything,
Articles J
