Percy Foreman on James Earl Ray (1968)

Duration: 1:19

Year Published: 1968

Sound: sound

Description: In this news segment for Houston’s KPRC-TV, criminal defense attorney Percy Foreman defends his decision to represent James Earl Ray. Ray was charged with the murder of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Foreman joined Ray’s defense on November 10, 1968, six days before this segment was broadcast. The Houston-based attorney was already one of the best known trial lawyers in the United States. Foreman’s previous clients included Jack Ruby, shooter of Lee Harvey Oswald; Charles Harrelson, organized crime figure and hitman; and Melvin Lane Powers, nephew of Houston socialite Candy Mossler and accused killer of her husband. To avoid the death penalty, Ray pleaded guilty on March 11, 1969, and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. Three days later, Ray recanted his guilty plea and fired Foreman. He died in prison in 1998.