The Trump Administration Monday released over 230,000 pages of documents related to the 1968 assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The National Archives published the digitized documents.
The documents include details about the FBI’s investigation into the assassination of MLK — including the discussion of potential leads, internal FBI memos detailing the progress of the case, and documents related to James Earl Ray’s former cellmate, who stated he discussed with Ray an alleged assassination plot.
Additionally, as James Earl Ray fled the country following the assassination, the release includes unique foreign evidence from a Canadian police department. Never-before-seen CIA records outline overseas intelligence on the international hunt for the prime suspect in the assassination.
Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Tulsi Gabbard said the unprecedented release follows through on President Trump’s commitment to fully release previously-classified records related to the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy (JFK), Senator Robert F. Kennedy (RFK), and MLK.
The release came in coordination with the Department of Justice (DOJ), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), and the National Archives.
“Unlike the majority of the JFK assassination files — which were identified and released in accordance with federal law — the MLK files in today’s release had never been digitized and sat collecting dust in facilities across the federal government for decades, until today,” the DNI said in a statement.
While some of the documents released were made public through Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, today’s release is the first time these records are published online in one collection with minimal redactions for privacy reasons — including redactions for Social Security Numbers and grand jury information. As agencies continue to search government facilities for additional files, the new documents will be uploaded alongside the previously released files at archives.gov/mlk to ensure all MLK assassination documents can be found in a centralized location. Two-weeks in advance of today’s release, members of the King family were provided an opportunity to review the files, according to a news release.
King’s family noted in response to the release that files must be viewed “within their full historical context,” adding that the late civil rights leader was “relentlessly targeted by an invasive, predatory, and deeply disturbing disinformation and surveillance campaign orchestrated by J. Edgar Hoover through the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).”
“While we support transparency and historical accountability, we object to any attacks on our father’s legacy or attempts to weaponize it to spread falsehoods,” King’s children, Martin Luther King III and Dr. Bernice A. King, said in a statement.
“I am grateful to President Trump and DNI Gabbard for delivering on their pledge of transparency in the release of these documents on the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr,” said Dr. Alveda King, according to a news release.
“My uncle lived boldly in pursuit of truth and justice, and his enduring legacy of faith continues to inspire Americans to this day. While we continue to mourn his death, the declassification and release of these documents are a historic step towards the truth that the American people deserve.”
“The American people have waited nearly sixty years to see the full scope of the federal government’s investigation into Dr. King’s assassination,” said DNI Gabbard.
“The American people deserve answers decades after the horrific assassination of one of our nation’s great leaders,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “The Department of Justice is proud to partner with Director Gabbard and the ODNI at President Trump’s direction for this latest disclosure.”
“In partnership with ODNI and FBI, today’s release represents a significant milestone in CIA’s efforts to deliver maximum transparency to the American people,” said CIA Director John Ratcliffe. “CIA is proud to contribute to President Trump’s historic initiative to declassify and release intelligence information that serves the public’s interest.”
“Today’s record release marks a historic step in the Trump Administration’s ongoing commitment to transparency and accountability,” said Secretary of State and Acting U.S. Archivist Marco Rubio.
“Preserving, protecting, and releasing the records of the U.S. government is at the core of NARA’s mission. Thanks to President Trump’s leadership and a coordinated interagency process, NARA was able to review and release the records at an unprecedented speed.”
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