Dr. King’s Killer to Get January Parole Hearing
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — James Earl Ray, serving 99 years in prison for the 1968 assassination of civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., has been granted a parole hearing in January.
Ray, 60, pleaded guilty to shooting King with a rifle in Memphis. He said he avoided a trial to escape a possible death penalty but now wants the case heard by a jury.
Ray became eligible for parole in November, Gretchen Faulstich, a member of the Parole Board, said. The hearing was continued until January, pending psychological and prison-record evaluations.
Ray was identified from fingerprints on a rifle, found near the Lorraine Motel, where King was killed as he stood on a balcony.
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