New calls sounded for probe into King slaying
5/29/1998 News media contact: Tim Tanton · (615) 742-5470 · Nashville, Tenn. NOTE: Photographs are available with this story.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UMNS) - The nephew of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. sat shoulder to shoulder with the brother of James Earl Ray, joined in mourning the man convicted of killing King and sharing a vow to continue pushing for answers about the slaying.
For Jerry Ray, King nephew Isaac Farris Jr. and other speakers, the May 28 memorial service of James Earl Ray was a time to talk about healing and justice. The Rev. James Lawson, the United Methodist pastor who organized the event, was among those who described Ray as "set up" for the crime and called for a deeper investigation into the April 4, 1968, slaying of the civil rights leader.
"The politics of the assassinations of the 1960s changed the face of this nation forever," Lawson said during his homily. "That's why the government and many of the academicians and the press do not want us to understand, because King's crucifixion is the key to understanding how in fact the forces of spiritual wickedness in this land sought to turn away from the struggle for justice and liberation and turn back toward the slavery of the past.
"If we are to make this land become whole again, then we must celebrate the life of James Earl Ray not as one who destroyed the dreamer, but as one whose own life was harassed and crucified by the forces of oppression in our land," Lawson said.
Ray, 70, died on April 23 of liver disease and his remains were cremated. His brother carried the ashes into the memorial service, and they will later be scattered in Ireland.
The service was held at Metropolitan Interdenominational Church, which has a predominantly African-American congregation. Blacks made up a significant amount of the crowd of 200 or so people at the service.
Ray had requested before his death that Lawson officiate at his funeral. Lawson, a civil rights leader in the 1960s and a friend of King's, was Ray's prison pastor. Lawson is pastor of Holman United Methodist Church in Los Angeles.
Throughout his nearly 30 years in jail, Ray had fought for a trial after recanting his guilty plea for King's shooting. In recent years, the King family had come forward and joined that call for a trial, receiving criticism in the process.
King's widow, Coretta Scott King, expressed sympathy for Ray's family in a statement read by Farris.
"We were saddened by the physical pain and suffering that James Earl Ray endured during the last months of his earthly life," she stated. "We also share with (the Ray) family a deep regret at the tragic failure of the criminal justice system to give him his day in court, which is the birthright of every American citizen. On this occasion, we renew our determination for a full investigation to seek out the truth about the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.
"And let me add, just in case anyone's wondering, we are saddened by the passing of James Earl Ray, but this by no means closes this issue," Farris said. "We will fight until we have no longer breath in our bodies for the truth to come out."
The family is calling for the creation of a truth and reconciliation commission that would have the power to grant amnesty to people who come forward with information about King's slaying, Farris said. Coretta Scott King and son Dexter King were to have met with President Clinton on May 28 about the issue and otherwise would have attended Ray's funeral service, Farris said. The Kings' meeting with Clinton was put on hold because of the situation in Pakistan, he said.
After the service, Farris said the King family has an "apparatus" that has investigated the shooting and uncovered some details. "We pretty much have the facts, but the facts will not be legitimized or credible until they are heard in the proper forum."
Jerry Ray voiced appreciation for the King family, and said they would continue to fight together to clear his brother's name. He criticized the state of Tennessee, which he said blocked his brother from receiving a liver transplant, and he blamed the Department of Justice and politics for preventing a fair trial.
In the eulogy, attorney William Pepper described Ray as "modest to the point of humility," a shy, self-effacing person who was an "inept" crook and knew nothing about guns. Pepper, a longtime friend of the King family, met Ray in 1978 and became his attorney in 1988, convinced of his innocence.
"James Earl Ray was not a racist," Pepper declared.
Ray grew up in poverty, served in the Army, and later resorted to crime only when he couldn't find work, Pepper said. When he was out of work, he "had the misfortune of going to the odd bar," and it was in such a bar in August 1967 that he met "Raoul," the lawyer said. Ray had escaped from prison and was in Montreal, and Raoul promised to help him get out of North America. Instead, Ray was led around the United States, finally ending up in Memphis, Pepper said.
During the eulogy, Pepper mounted a defense of Ray, citing what he viewed as evidence that the man was not King's killer. "One aspect after another of exculpatory evidence was ignored," he said.
Ray, who was sentenced to 99 years in prison, entered the guilty plea "under coercion and brainwashing," Lawson said.
The minister recalled Ray's efforts to have his conviction overturned. "I regret that he did not live to see that happen," Lawson said.
"He did suffer with courage and poise and dignity throughout the months of hepatitis," said Lawson, who visited Ray in prison for the last time on March 26. Ray's suffering has ended, but the suffering continues for his family and the King family, he said.
Holding the service for Ray at Metropolitan Interdenominational Church was "a statement to the fact that we're a community that's committed first and foremost to the ideals of Jesus Christ," said the Rev. Edwin Sanders, the "senior servant" or pastor of the church. Sanders was a youth in Lawson's Memphis congregation in the 1960s, and Lawson later became his mentor in the ministry.
"We see it also as being a very important time for healing," Sanders said.
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