James Earl Ray was convicted for the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.

James Earl Ray, an escaped convict and career criminal, was arrested in London in June 1968 after fleeing the United States. He pleaded guilty to the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. in March 1969, thus avoiding a jury trial and the possibility of the death penalty. Ray was sentenced to 99 years in prison and remained incarcerated until his death in 1998. His fingerprints were found on the murder weapon, and he was identified by eyewitnesses at the scene. Despite his guilty plea, Ray later retracted it, claiming he was coerced and maintained his innocence for the rest of his life.