The US Department of Justice has released more than 240,000 pages of documents related to the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., offering fresh insight into the federal government’s surveillance of the civil rights icon and rekindling questions surrounding his 1968 murder.
The documents—many of which come from FBI files—were published on the website of the US National Archives. The agency said additional records will follow in a continuing effort to expand public access to one of the most consequential moments in American history.
King was assassinated on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee, where he had gone to support striking sanitation workers. His death marked a devastating blow to the civil rights movement at a time when he had broadened his focus to include economic justice and opposition to the Vietnam War.
The newly released files detail how the FBI, under Director J. Edgar Hoover, monitored and attempted to discredit King throughout the 1950s and 1960s. The Bureau falsely accused King of communist ties, wiretapped his phones, and sought to undermine his public influence—actions that the FBI has since acknowledged as a “shameful” example of agency overreach.
The King family, in a statement responding to the release, urged the public to approach the files “with empathy, restraint, and respect for our family’s continuing grief.” They condemned any attempt to exploit the documents for sensationalism or misinformation.
“During our father’s lifetime, he was relentlessly targeted by an invasive, predatory, and deeply disturbing disinformation and surveillance campaign,” said the family, including Martin Luther King III and Bernice King. “Now more than ever, we must honour his sacrifice by committing ourselves to the realisation of his dream—a society rooted in compassion, unity, and equality.”
The release comes amid a broader wave of government transparency regarding high-profile assassinations. Earlier this year, the Trump administration also unveiled thousands of documents related to the deaths of Robert F. Kennedy and President John F. Kennedy, fulfilling a campaign promise to shed more light on America’s most haunting political killings.
James Earl Ray, the man who confessed to King’s murder, later recanted his confession and maintained his innocence until his death in prison in 1998. In 1999, the King family filed a wrongful death civil suit that led to a jury concluding King was the victim of a conspiracy involving former Memphis police officer Loyd Jowers and unnamed government entities. The court’s verdict supported the family’s belief that Ray was framed.
Although a 2023 Justice Department report cast doubt on Jowers’ confession, the family continues to stand by the 1999 jury’s findings, describing them as a powerful affirmation of “our long-held beliefs.”
The release of the King files is likely to spark renewed public debate about the true circumstances of his assassination—and the government’s role in it.
Melissa Enoch
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