The Trial of James Earl Ray - 1010 Words

The Trial of James Earl Ray â€Å"We knew in advance the parole hearing would be a smah, sham. just something for the media to distort [sic]† (Ray). These were the words written by James Earl Ray to my uncle in one of eight letters which was dated June 8th, 1994, in which they correspond with each other in regards to the case of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Personally, I believe that Ray’s case does not show true justice of the court system we have in place. His repeated denial of a real trial, despite support from the King family, suggests that he may have been innocent, and that the truth was being covered up. This shows how the court system can put someone who may be innocent into prison without even giving him or her a fair trial. This was not Ray’s first time being convicted of a crime. He had a long history of offenses in the past across many states. According to the CrimeLibrary website, his major crimes were committed after being kicked from the army. From the years of 1949 to 1958, Ray served about 6 years in prison for various forms of robbery and forgery. However, in 1959 his streak of short sentences ended when he was sentenced as a habitual offender after robbing a Kroger store, and he was sentenced to 20 years in prison (Gribben). At this point, it seemed as though Ray had learned his lesson, serving six years without any problems. However, once again, Ray would break his streak in April of 1967 by sneaking out of prison in a box containing bread from the stationShow MoreRelatedMartin Luther King Jr Essay1299 Words   |  6 Pagesweapon all came back to an escaped convict James Earl ray (history.com; Dr. King is assassinated). In May 1968, a massive search for Ray began and the FBI eventually determined that he had obtained a Canadian passport under a false identity. Two months after Martin Luther King Jr.’s death, Ray was arrested at a London airport trying to flee to Belgium and he was deported back to the US (history.com; Dr. King is assassinated). On March 10,1969, James Earl Ray pleaded guilty to King’s murder and wasRead MoreCase Study Template : James Earl Ray771 Words   |  4 Pagesby case Title: James Earl Ray What: James Earl Ray was a convicted a murderer who assassinated Martin Luther King Jr. He was sentenced to life imprisonment. He then died in prison after serving 29 years. There were some conspiracy theories, some believed that he had someone hired to shoot king. Ray suggested this theory while in prison. Who: Martin Luther King- Assassinated, leader in the civil rights movement. James Earl Ray-Convicted for shooting Luther. Percy Foreman- Rays attorney, made anRead More Martin Luther King Assassination Essay3823 Words   |  16 Pagesfact. The accepted story is a man named James Earl Ray was the assassin however, there are many contradictions to that conclusion. One must come to realize the accepted story is wrong, a cover up has deceived the public for over 30 years, James Earl Ray did not kill Martin Luther King; Martin Luther King was assassinated by a government conspiracy.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  To clarify the fact James Earl Ray is not an assassin one must look toward his reputation. James Earl Ray was born into a poor family and was theRead MoreThe Trials and Tribulations of Martin Luther King Jr1877 Words   |  8 PagesUnit 5 Project Kaplan University SS310-03 Exploring the 1960’s March 25, 2010 Abstract This paper is meant to describe the trials and tribulations as well as the influences and effects that the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. had on the 1960’s and beyond. Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King was born on January 15, 1929 as Michael Luther King but changed his name to Martin in 1934. King was brought up in a morally wealthy family as his grandfather and father bothRead MoreEssay on Leadership Skills of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.823 Words   |  4 PagesTennessee on April 4, 1968. Dr. King was in Memphis to help lead sanitation workers in a protest against low wages and intolerable working conditions. James Earl Ray was arrested in London, England on June 8, 1968, and returned to Memphis, Tennessee on July 19, 1969 to stand trial for the assassination of Dr. King. On March 9, 1969, before coming to trial, he entered a guilty plea and was sentenced to ninety-nine years in the Tennessee State Penitentiary. In recent years, events in the lives of theRead MoreHistory of Assassinations1037 Words   |  5 Pagesheadquarters to the county jail, when a guy named Jack Ruby, fatally shot Oswald. Oswald died two hours later in parkland hospital. People bel ieved that Ruby killed Oswald to keep him from revealing a larger conspiracy. According to history.com, â€Å"In his trial, Ruby denied the allegation and pleaded innocent on the grounds that his great grief over Kennedy’s murder has caused him to suffer ‘Psychomotor epilepsy’ and shoot Oswald Unconsciously†. People who witnessed the assassination was shocked and confusedRead More Deserving to Die Essay1384 Words   |  6 Pagesinterminable legal maneuvers that run up the costs†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (144). Lee argues that the major causes of the high cost are the redundant, â€Å"endless† appeals, time-consuming delays, bizarre court rulings, and legal histrionics by defense attorneys, after the trial and conviction of the criminal (i.e. post-conviction proceedings). Lee provided several examples of cases that were delayed again and again for various reasons, many with the convicted on death row years before finally being executed. Willie DardenRead MoreTh e Civil Rights Movement, By Martin Luther King s Assassination And The Poor People s March1522 Words   |  7 PagesTill, Emmett Till’s mother, graduated from her district school for coloured, Argo Community High School, in 1938 and had been the fourth ever to do so in its long history. Furthermore, they cannot access justice as observed in the infamous Scottsboro Trials were 9 Boys were convicted of rape. In court, not only the standard of proof has not been met, there a reasonable doubt and but the defense has compiled overwhelming evidence that showed no such event occurred. Only in 2013 19th April, Alabama GovernorRead MoreUnited States Use of Tageted Killing (TK) Essay1294 Words   |  6 Pagesthe Palestinians are the laws of war. These laws recognize only two statuses of people: combatants and civilians. Combatants are legitimate targets, but they also enjoy the rights granted in international law to combatants, including immunity from trial and the right to the stat us of prisoner of war. Civilians enjoy the protections and rights granted in international law to civilians during war. Inter alia, they are not a legitimate target for attack. The status of civilians, and their protectionRead MoreWayne Williams: Atlanta Child Killer Fiber Forensics Study1565 Words   |  7 Pagestime showing victims of the Atlanta killings. Photo from CNN Forensic Fiber Analysis Case Study The best-known, if not the best-reasoned fiber case in American legal history involving fiber evidence issues is the Wayne Williams trial growing out of the famous Atlanta murders of twelve African-American males in 1979-1980. The Williams case involved all of the subjects still in controversy as we enter the world of forensic science and forensic evidence in the 21st century (Kiely