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The family of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. has addressed President Donald Trump's latest executive order to declassify documents associated with his assassination.
On Thursday (January 23), Trump issued an executive order directing the head of national intelligence and attorney general to declassify files related to the death of King, along with former President John F. Kennedy and Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, per Fox 5 Atlanta.
The order specifically gives staffers 15 days to present a plan to declassify the remaining JFK assassination records and 45 days to "review records related to the assassinations of Senator Robert F. Kennedy and the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and present a plan to the President for the full and complete release of these records."
The King family released a statement on Thursday addressing Trump's latest executive order.
"Today, our family has learned that President Trump has ordered the declassification of the remaining records pertaining to the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy, his brother Robert F. Kennedy, and our father, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr," the statement reads. "For us, the assassination of our father is a deeply personal family loss that we have endured over the last 56 years. We hope to be provided the opportunity to review the files as a family prior to its public release."
King was assassinated on April 4, 1968 in Memphis, Tennessee. The family of the slain civil rights hero has previously expressed doubts about details surrounding his assassination and called for a more thorough investigation into the matter.
James Earl Ray, who pleaded guilty but later recanted, was convicted of murder in King's assassination. However, the King family believes Ray may have been part of a larger conspiracy involving multiple parties, including governmental agencies, to kill the civil rights leader. In 1999, the family won a civil trial against Loyd Jowers, a Memphis restaurant owner who said he was part of a conspiracy to kill King.
The King family has emphasized that they would like to uncover the truth behind his assassination while preserving his legacy of justice, equality, and nonviolence.
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