Who assassinated Martin Luther King?

Civil rights activist Martin Luther King was assassinated by habitual small-time criminal James Earl Ray. King was shot as he stood on the balcony of his Memphis, Tenn. motel room on April 4, 1968.

Following the shooting, Ray fled the country and was eventually arrested in London more than three months later. Following his extradition to the United States, Ray pleaded guilty to the murder and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. In the years following his admission, the killer recanted his guilt, stating he was not the one responsible for the slaying. Ray died in a Nashville prison on April 23, 1998.