</s>PAGE TWO TP 157-3231 UNUSUAL FOR ANYONE IN THIS ROOMING HOUSE TO BE WEARING A SUIT: DURING CONVERSATION, THIS INDIVIDUAL SAID HIS NAME WAS JESS (CLNU) AND THAT HE WAS FROM TENNESSEE. DURINING THIS CONVERSATIO TWO BOYS, AGES TWELVE AND SEVENTEEN WHO LIVE WITH MOTHER ON THIRD FLOOR OF HOTEL. WERE ALSO PRESENT. CROWLEY WAS WAS OF THE OPINION THAT THIS INDIUDUAL ONLY HAD A ROOM AT THE HOTEL: SHE DESCRIBED HIM AS AS A WHITE MALE. TWENTY-EIGHT. FIVE FEET NINE INCHES TO FIVE FEEET ELEVEN INCHES. ONE HUNDRED FIFTY-FIVE FIVE LBS. WITH A DARK BROWN HAIR. SHE AND HUSBAND TRAVELED TO COCOA. FLA. APPROXIMATELY APRIL TWENTY.FIVE LAST AND SAW PICTURE OF JAMES EARL RAY ON TV AND BOTH SHE AND HUSBAND FELT CERTAIN RAY AND PREVIOUSLY- DESCRIBBED INDIVIDENTIAL. STATED NEIER SHE NOR HUSBAND KNEW TO WHOM THEY SHOULD REPORT THIS MAITER. WHILE IN PINELLAS PARK POLICE STATION. TOLD LOCAL PD AND CROWLY INTERVIEWED THIS DATE. BY BUAGENT AND WAS DISPLAYED 10 AND WANTED FLYER OF SUBJECT. CROWLEY SAID SHE FELTI. END PAGE TWO 2025 RELEASE UNDER E.O. 14176

Summary  
The documents detail FBI investigations from April to May 1968 into potential connections between individuals and Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination. Carol Crowley identified a man matching James Earl Ray’s physical description after viewing a TV image of him, reporting this to Pinellas Park Police in Florida. The FBI Miami office investigated the Buena Vista Hotel in West Palm Beach, Florida, to locate Jesse (possibly Ray) and confirm his identity. A threatening postcard addressed to an editor in Miami was submitted to the FBI Laboratory for analysis but showed no matching handwriting or fingerprints. Rudy Jesse Smith, a hotel guest at the Buena Vista Hotel, was described as not identical to Ray. Additional telegrams reference ongoing efforts to monitor suspects, coordinate with local authorities, and track threats against civil rights leaders. In May 1968, FBI Miami expanded investigations into James Earl Ray (JER) and Michael St. Pierre (MSP), linked to MLK’s assassination. Interviews with Max Mendelson in Miami confirmed his presence in Los Angeles during February-March 1968 but could not identify JER from photographs. FBI agents searched addresses associated with MSP, including 2151 N.W. 11th Street in Miami, and checked post office records for mail deliveries to MSP, which were returned due to no forwarding address. David Lane Uley of Arizona described a white man allegedly involved in MLK’s assassination as 5'11", 170 lbs, blond, and linked to a 1964 Chevrolet. FBI Miami distributed two photographs of JER to media for public identification. The documents also reference coded conversations involving plans to assassinate President John F. Kennedy and MLK, with references to locations like "Bustus Street" and "Justify Street." Investigations into EARL B. SHIELDS, his employment at the Sun Castle Motel in Pompano Beach, Florida, and connections to David Wattier and Josephine Butler were conducted. Mrs. Ratner provided a threatening postcard containing a handwritten message about killing MLK to the FBI Laboratory for analysis.  

Key People  
- **Carol Crowley**: Identified a man matching James Earl Ray’s description.  
- **James Earl Ray (JER)**: Suspected assassin of MLK, referenced in multiple documents and investigations.  
- **Rudy Jesse Smith**: Hotel guest at Buena Vista Hotel described as not identical to Ray.  
- **Mrs. M. Wittle Rayner**: Received a threatening postcard addressed to an editor in Miami.  
- **Special Agents**: Including Morris W. Haddock, James D. Hayes, and Douglas Chalfant (U.S. Secret Service).  
- **Walter Gary Shull** and **Myrtle Shull**: Interviewed regarding Don Miller and "Bernie" linked to Delray Beach.  
- **Don Miller** and **Bernie**: Suspected associates of JER with ties to Delray Beach, Florida.  
- **EARL B. SHIELDS**: Investigated for potential connections to Ray; employed at Sun Castle Motel in Pompano Beach.  
- **David Wattier** and **Josephine Butler**: Contacts related to SHIELDS.  
- **Leon Oswald**: Cuban exile mentioned in assassination context.  
- **Frank C. Holloman**: Miami Police Chief referenced in a conversation about MLK’s assassination.  
- **Michael St. Pierre (MSP)**: Name associated with addresses and mail records in Miami.  
- **Max Mendelson**: Interviewed in Miami; reported presence in Los Angeles during 1968.  
- **David Lane Uley**: Arizona resident who claimed to have seen an individual linked to MLK’s assassination.  

Key Locations  
- **Buena Vista Hotel**, West Palm Beach, Florida: Site of suspect tracking and hotel guest checks.  
- **Pinellas Park Police Station**, Florida: Where Crowley reported her sighting.  
- **Miami, Florida**: Central hub for FBI operations, postcard investigations, and media photo distribution.  
- **Homestead, Florida**: Mentioned in context of a postcard recipient’s past visits.  
- **Boca Raton, Florida**: Location of Shull interviews.  
- **Delray Beach, Florida**: Welding employment of Miller and Bernie; referenced in coded conversations.  
- **Sun Castle Motel**, Pompano Beach, Florida: SHIELDS’ employment location.  
- **Los Angeles, California**: St. Francis Hotel (phone booth used by Mendelson).  
- **Arizona**: Sandy Lane, Fredonia; Tomboy Club on 11th Street, North Miami.  
- **Nashville, Tennessee**: Potential residence of RAY MORRIS.  
- **Memphis, Tennessee**: Investigation into RAY MORRIS.  
- **Atlanta, Georgia**: FBI field office involved in tracking Ray.  

Key Events  
- **April 23–24, 1968**: Postcards containing threats against civil rights leaders were received and analyzed by the FBI Laboratory.  
- **April 25–30, 1968**: FBI Miami coordinated with local police and federal agencies to investigate suspects and threats.  
- **April 24, 1968**: Mrs. M. Wittle Rayner provided a postcard to Special Agent Morris W. Haddock for examination.  
- **May 1968**: FBI Miami expanded investigations into JER and MSP, including interviews with Max Mendelson and searches of addresses in Miami.  
- **Post office records checks**: Mail deliveries to MSP returned due to no forwarding address.  
- **Distribution of JER photographs**: Two images sent to media for public identification.  
- **Discovery of threatening postcard**: Sent to FBI Laboratory by Mrs. Ratner, containing a handwritten message about killing MLK.  
- **Analysis of coded conversation**: Involved plans to assassinate JFK and MLK with references to locations like "Bustus Street" and "Justify Street."  
- **Investigation into EARL B. SHIELDS**: Employment at Sun Castle Motel and connections to Wattier and Butler.  
- **Tracking efforts for RAY MORRIS**: Verification of identity in Nashville, Tennessee.  

Key Organizations  
- **Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)**: Conducted surveillance, analysis, and coordination with local authorities; involved in tracking JER, analyzing postcards, and distributing photographs.  
- **U.S. Secret Service**: Involved in tracking threats and suspects, including Agent Douglas Chalfant.  
- **Miami Police Intelligence**: Conducted interviews and monitored conversations related to civil rights investigations.  
- **U.S. Postal Service**: Provided mail delivery records related to MSP.

MLK Declassified Files

44-mm-1854_v3-part_5_of_7.pdf

Document Summary

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