NPR

Despite Swirl Of Conspiracy Theories, Investigators Say The MLK Case Is Closed

Fifty years after the murder of Martin Luther King Jr., alternate theories about his death continue to flourish. Three men who investigated the crime said they're confident in their conclusions.
James Earl Ray took the oath before a committee in Washington, D.C. investigating King's assassination.

Authorities have investigated the death of Martin Luther King Jr. five times since his murder in April 1968. Congress, district attorneys and the Justice Department all have concluded that James Earl Ray shot King as the civil rights icon stood on a motel balcony in Memphis.

That hasn't stopped conspiracy theories from flourishing.

Several of King's children said they can't believe a lone gunman killed their father, especially since he had been hounded by the FBI for years before his murder. Others in the civil rights movement that King led have expressed their doubts, too.

Three men who have investigated the crime over the past 50 years said

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