Reno Hears King Family's Request
They discuss renewed assassination probe
By Pierre Thomas/CNN
WASHINGTON (April 8) -- U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno listened Wednesday as Martin Luther King Jr.'s widow and youngest son explained why they want the federal government to reopen the investigation into King's 1968 assassination.
After the 2 1/2-hour meeting, Reno promised that the Justice Department would carefully review the request and give the Kings an answer.
Coretta Scott King, Dexter King, former U.N. Ambassador Andrew Young and the Rev. Walter Faunteroy, a former District of Columbia congressional delegate, outlined their concerns about the assassination and called for a special commission to review the case as well as new evidence they say they have uncovered.
Reno, along with Deputy Attorney General Eric Holder and Associate Attorney General Raymond Fisher, listened attentively, with Reno occasionally asking questions and requesting elaboration, according to Justice Department officials familiar with the meeting.
"We presented new evidence that has come to our attention about the assassination of my husband," Mrs. King told reporters afterward. "She listened very sympathetically."
The evidence included "new witnesses coming forth that had
never been investigated," Mrs. King said, but she would not
elaborate.
She said she proposed a national commission with the power to subpoena evidence, to grant immunity and to prosecute, "because all this evidence needs to be presented to an official body."
The King family did not present any documentation, according to the officials.
Reno and her staff promised to continue the dialogue but did not commit to specific action.
"The attorney general and her staff was very gracious in receiving us and took a lot of time, a couple of hours, to hear what we came to say, and we are so grateful that we have had this opportunity so that out of this a fair and open process will come about," Dexter King said after the meeting.
Reno issued a written statement: "I listened carefully to their concerns about the assassination of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., who was one of America's heroes. We will carefully review the questions and information they presented, and I will be in touch with them as soon as the review is complete."
The King family said it is convinced that James Earl Ray, who confessed to shooting King in Memphis, Tenn., was not the gunman. Young has said new information provided by a former Memphis businessman points to a conspiracy.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
|
News