U.S. Department of Justice
I. SUMMARY OF THE FINDINGS OF THE INVESTIGATION
A. Findings Regarding Jowers' Allegations
B. Findings Regarding Wilson's Allegations
D. Findings Regarding The King v. Jowers Conspiracy Allegations
E. Findings Of Earlier Official Investigations
II. DESCRIPTION OF THE INVESTIGATIVE PROCESS
III. SUMMARY OF FACTS RELATED TO THE ASSASSINATION
[On May 20, 2000, following the completion of this report, Loyd Jowers died. Reportedly, Jowers, age 73, who was suffering from lung cancer, died from a heart attack.]A. Introduction
B. The Origin Of Jowers' Allegations
1. Statements between 1968-1992
2. The Evolution of the Alleged Confession
3. Jowers' 1993 Televised Prime Time Live Appearance
4. Subsequent Statements
C. Analysis Of Jowers' Statements Since 1993
1. Statements Rejecting Conspiracy Claims
a. Statement under oath
b. Other repudiations
2. Contradictory Conspiracy Claims
a. The man who allegedly shot Dr. King
b. Disposal of the alleged murder weapon
c. Jowers' alleged hiring of a hit man
d. The purpose of the alleged conspiracy
e. The alleged additional co-conspirator
f. The alleged role of Memphis police officers
3. Summary of Jowers' Statements since 1993
1. The Murder
a. Jowers' alleged receipt of the assassin's rifle
(1) Implausibility of Jowers' knowing the time of the shooting
(2) Absence of corroborating evidence
(3) The alleged corroborating witness
(a) Contradictory statements
(b) Evidence refuting the account
(c) Other indicia of unreliability
b. The alleged shooting of Dr. King from behind Jim's Grill
(1) Absence of footprints behind Jim's Grill
(2) Absence of corroborating eyewitness evidence
(a) Eyewitness observations of activity in the brush
(b) Accounts of a man fleeing after the shooting
(3) Evidence that the assassin fired from the rooming house
c. Jowers' alleged concealment of the murder weapon
2. The Alleged Conspiracy
a. Liberto's alleged involvement
(1) Jowers and Liberto
(2) Alleged corroborating witnesses
(a) Liberto's alleged threat
(b) Liberto's alleged admission
(3) Liberto's alleged connection to the Mafia
(4) Jowers' alleged concealment of money for Liberto
(a) Jowers' financial condition
(b) Lack of corroboration by employees at Jim's Grill
b. Alleged involvement of Memphis police officers
(1) Alleged removal of police officers to facilitate the assassination
(a) Removal of security detail
(b) Presence of tactical units in the area
(c) Removal of police officer from surveillance post
(d) Removal of firemen from fire station
(2) Alleged meeting of police officers at Jim's Grill
(3) Alleged participation of the "Lieutenant"
3. Summary of Evidence regarding Jowers' Accounts
E. Jowers' Lack Of Cooperation
F. Analysis Of The Development Of Jowers' Allegations
1. Jowers' Motivation
2. The Promotion of Jowers' Story
A. Introduction
B. The Origin Of The Allegations
1. April 1968: The Discovery of Ray's Mustang
2. March 1998: Wilson's Public Disclosure
3. September 1998: Wilson's Meeting with Our Investigative Team
C. Analysis Of Wilson's Contradictory Statements
1. Belated Revelation of an Additional Document
2. When and Where Wilson Allegedly Viewed the Documents and Recognized Their Significance
3. Alleged Reason for Concealing the Documents
4. Alleged Disappearance of Certain Documents
5. Alleged Location of the Documents
6. Conclusions about Wilson's Contradictory Statements
1. Wilson's Alleged Presence at Ray's Car
2. Wilson's Alleged Taking of Documents from Ray's Car
3. Wilson's Claims about the Doors of Ray's Car
4. Wilson's Purported Reason for Opening Ray's Car Door
5. Wilson's Claim regarding the Interior of Ray's Car
6. Wilson's Claim that He Participated in the Search of Ray's Room
7. Conclusions regarding the Evidence
E. Implausibilities In Wilson's Account
1. Wilson's Purported Motive for Tampering with Ray's Car
2. Wilson's Purported Motive for Public Disclosure after 30 Years of Silence
F. Scientific Testing And Analysis Of The Documents
1. Description of the Documents
2. Results of Scientific Testing and Analysis
a. Origin and age of the documents
b. Authorship of the documents
c. Absence of latent fingerprints
d. Scientific analysis of the torn page from the 1963 Dallas telephone directory
G. Suspicious Circumstances Relating To The Torn Page From The 1963 Dallas telephone Directory
H. Consideration Of Wilson's Belated Revelation Of An Additional Document
I. James Earl Ray's Comments About The Wilson Documents
J. Wilson's Conduct During Our Investigation
1. Wilson's Refusal to Provide the Documents
2. Wilson's Refusal to Provide Information and Accept Immunity
3. Conclusions Regarding Wilson's Failure to Cooperate Fully
VI. RAOUL AND HIS ALLEGED PARTICIPATION IN THE ASSASSINATION
A. Introduction
B. Suspects During The First 25 Years Following The Assassination
C. The Most Recent Allegations Regarding Raoul
1. Raoul's Alleged Participation in the Assassinations of Dr. King and President Kennedy
2. Searching for and Identifying Raoul
3. The New York Raul
a. The suspect photo array and identifications
b. The New York Raul could not speak English
c. The New York Raul's full-time employment and presence in his community
d. Evaluation of allegations relating to Dago
e. Conclusions regarding the New York Raul
D. Implications Of The New York Raul's Not Being Raoul
E. Ray's Contradictory Statements About Raoul
1. Ray's Description of Raoul
2. Purchase of the Alleged Murder Weapon
3. The Day of the Assassination
a. Ray's alibi
b. Ray's initial meeting with Raoul on the afternoon of the assassination
c. Ray's activities on the afternoon of the assassination
4. Conclusions about Ray's Contradictory Statements
F. John Ray's Allegation Regarding Raoul
G. Conclusions About Raoul's Alleged Participation In The Assassination
VII. KING V. JOWERS CONSPIRACY ALLEGATIONS
B. Evidence Alleging The Involvement Of The Federal Government
1. Hearsay Evidence
2. Eyewitness Testimony
3. Analysis Of The Evidence Alleging The Involvement Of The Federal Government
a. Allegations of CIA and FBI involvement in a conspiracy
b. Allegations of a government conspiracy to silence Ray
c. Allegation of a conspiracy involving the President and Vice President
d. Allegations of military involvement in a conspiracy
(1) Allegations regarding the military that are relevant to Jowers' claim
(2) Other allegations regarding the military
C. Evidence Alleging The Involvement Of Dr. King's Associates
1. Dr. King and the Lorraine Motel
2. Dr. King's Security
3. Dr. King's Presence on the Balcony
D. Conclusions Regarding The King v. Jowers Conspiracy Claims
LIST OF ATTACHMENTS
Attachment 1 ............... Photostatic copies of the original documents obtained from Wilson
