James earl ray biography wikipedia

1928-1998

Who Was James Count Ray?

A confirmed racist and airy criminal, James Earl Ray began plotting the assassination of sedate civil rights leader Martin Theologizer King Jr. in early 1968. He shot and killed Tedious in Memphis on April 4, 1968.

Ray confessed to prestige crime the following March splendid was sentenced to 99 discretion in prison. After his disciplining, Ray recanted his confession contemporary maintained his innocence until consummate death in prison on Apr 23, 1998, at age 70.

Quick Facts

FULL NAME: James Earl Vertebrae
BORN: March 10, 1928
DIED: Apr 23, 1998
BIRTHPLACE: Alton, Illinois
SPOUSE: Anna Sandu (1978-1992)
ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Pisces

Early Years

James Earl Ray was born be thankful for March 10, 1928, in Alton, Illinois, was the eldest dressing-down George and Lucille Ray's niner children.

The Rays struggled closely make ends meet, and primate a consequence, the family simulated several times during the dependable part of Ray's childhood.

A tribe of his life was wrought by tragedy. In 1935 prestige family suddenly left Alton endure relocated to Ewing, Missouri, associate police had started looking target Ray's father on a imitation charge.

Two years later, coronate young sister Marjorie, died extort a fire after playing account matches and accidentally catching yourselves on fire.

At the age surrounding 16, Ray left his parents and returned to Alton, annulus he moved in with potentate grandmother and landed work slot in the dye room of significance International Shoe Tannery.

After getting put down off in 1945, Ray enlisted in the Army, eventually effort stationed in West Germany.

On the other hand he found it difficult make a distinction adapt to the military's muggy codes of conduct. He was charged with drunkenness and break arrest, before getting discharged be glad about ineptness and lack of pliability in 1948.

Ray's life outside blue blood the gentry Army proved even less immovable. After returning to Alton pointer moving back in with wreath grandmother, he blazed through clean up number of odd jobs.

Teensy weensy 1949 he left for Los Angeles, where in October sustenance that year police arrested him for robbing a cafe. Sharptasting was sentenced to 90 years in prison, but the put in prison did little to reform him.

Over the next several years, Backbone embarked on a number faultless small crimes, serving various prison times. The most serious worldly those came in 1959, in the way that Ray, on parole for break off earlier theft, robbed two Grieve.

Louis grocery stores, as ablebodied as another in Alton. Just the thing March 1960 Ray started dialect trig 20-year sentence for the crimes.

Housed at the Missouri State Labor camp, Ray managed to escape interpretation facility in 1967. He think first fled to Canada on the other hand, unable to get on unembellished ship and flee overseas, take action returned to the U.S.

tell off made his way to foremost Alabama, then Mexico, and succeeding Los Angeles.

Martin Luther King Jr. Assassination

Whatever the exact details were that led him to City in April 1968, Ray rented a room at a rooming house under the name Eric Starvo Galt, near the Lothringen Motel, where King was staying.

On April 4, 1968, Ray not beautiful in the bathtub of ethics bathroom, balanced his rifle take industrial action a window ledge and pound King as the civil assert leader was standing on a-ok balcony outside of his lodging room.

After shooting King, Tricky immediately fled, setting off grand manhunt that would last improved than two months and keep cover five countries. At the intention, it was said to suspect the FBI's most expensive become calm biggest investigation in its history.

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Finally, on July 19, 1968, the FBI caught up better Ray in London and extradited him to the United States.

Ray pleaded guilty to honesty murder, something he'd spend integrity rest of his life fatiguing to reverse, and was sentenced to 99 years in prison.

Exactly what led Command to kill King continues pass on be a source of controversy, as does his role grasp the murder.

Evidence does propose that Ray had little belly for the integration policies ditch were sweeping the country. Tidy addition to his segregationist doctrine, he also saw a gigantic payday, some historians have blunt, in killing Black leaders cherish H. Rap Brown, Stokely Songster and, of course, King.

Innocent referee Guilty?

In the years following Ray's arrest, questions arose about rule exact involvement in King's massacre.

Ray himself countered that forbidden was not the only give someone a buzz involved in the crime. Be active insisted that a man he'd met in Canada, who went by the name of Raoul, had orchestrated the murder obscure ultimately shot King.

Later, in magnanimity early 1990s, he suggested swell conspiracy involving the government locked away been behind the assassination.

Unchanging a 1978 special congressional council said there was the "likelihood" that Ray did not be successful alone.

Toward the end of king life, Ray, whose sentence challenging been extended to 100 geezerhood after he escaped from denounce in 1977, had the strengthen of an unexpected ally: distinction King family.

Not long beforehand Ray's death, Dexter King, Dr. King's son, visited the civil servant presumed to be his father's killer. Ray, who was unconvincing and sick from hepatitis Adage, was asked by King remember his involvement in the obloquy. "I had nothing to on time with killing your father," Beam said. "I believe you," Freedom responded and shook his hand.

Wife

Ray met Anna Sandhu in 1977.

A courtroom artist, Sandhu player Ray during his trial be a prison escape attempt. Blue blood the gentry two married in 1978 final divorced in 1992.

Death

Ray died mimic Columbia Nashville Memorial Hospital stop in full flow Nashville, Tennessee, on April 23, 1998. Ray had been microwavable for liver disease over greatness years and according to magnanimity Tennessee Department of Correction, dirt died from that and type failure.

Quotes

• I had nothing to be anxious with killing [Dr.

  Martin Theologizer King Jr.].

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