Bernice King, daughter of Martin Luther King Jr., has called for the release of the Epstein files.
The Trump administration has made public thousands of government documents related to the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. Approximately 240,000 pages were released on Monday on the National Archives website, with further releases expected.
King was assassinated on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee. James Earl Ray, a segregationist, confessed to the murder but later retracted his confession. He died in prison in 1998.
According to National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard, the released files contain FBI memos, investigative leads, notes about Ray’s former cellmate, and intelligence gathered from overseas during the search for Ray after he fled to the UK. Initial examinations have not revealed any new information regarding FBI surveillance of King or potential connections to Ray. Some researchers, along with King’s family, suspect the assassination was part of a larger conspiracy and that Ray may have been framed.
King’s children, Bernice King and Martin Luther King III, were granted early access to the records but opposed their release, fearing they might contain material that could harm their father’s reputation.
It is not yet known if the files contain new details about King’s private life. In a on X, they encouraged the public to consider the documents within “their full historical context,” emphasizing that King’s death remains a deeply personal tragedy.
“We support transparency and historical accountability, but oppose any attacks on our father’s legacy or efforts to weaponize it with falsehoods,” they stated, adding that they will review the documents to determine if Ray was truly responsible.
In a separate post on X, Bernice King referenced the Jeffrey Epstein case, writing: “Now do the Epstein files,” alluding to allegations of a cover-up.
Critics have condemned the administration’s handling of the Epstein case. The Justice Department released ‘The Epstein Files: Phase 1’ in February, but the heavily redacted documents offered little new insight.
Trump ordered the release of grand jury testimony last Friday but did not unseal the full case file, which many believe names of prominent Epstein associates. Trump, who once knew Epstein, he ended their relationship in the 1990s.