1998 Notable Deaths April 23 2 sources

James Earl Ray, American assassin of Martin Luther King Jr

James Earl Ray, American assassin of Martin Luther King Jr. (born 1928)

On April 23, in the year 1998, James Earl Ray, American assassin of Martin Luther King Jr. (born 1928). This event is recorded as a Notable Deaths event in the history of April 23, one of 445 recorded events on this date across all of history.

1 notable person is associated with this event, including James Earl Ray. Learn more below.

James Earl Ray was an American fugitive who was convicted of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 4, 1968. After the assassination, Ray, who had planned on living in exile in Rhodesia, fled to London and was captured there. Ray was convicted in 1969 after entering a guilty plea—thus forgoing a jury trial and the possibility of a death sentence—and was sentenced to 99 years of imprisonment. He later made many attempts to withdraw his guilty plea and to be tried by a jury, but was unsuccessful.

Key Facts

  • This event took place on April 23, 1998 (AD era).
  • It is categorised as a Notable Deaths event in recorded history.
  • Referenced in 2 Wikipedia articles.
  • 1 notable person is recorded as involved in or associated with this event.
  • Wikipedia source last updated on 18 April 2026.

On This Date in History 445

Type Year Date Event
Historical Events 2024 Apr 23 The 2024 Lumut mid-air collision in Malaysia kills 10 people while rehearsing for the 90th anniversary of the Royal Mala
Notable Deaths 2024 Apr 23 Frank Field, British politician (born 1942)
Notable Deaths 2024 Apr 23 Helen Vendler, American Literary Critic (born 1933)
Notable Deaths 2022 Apr 23 Orrin Hatch, American politician, President pro tempore of the United States Senate (born 1934)
Notable Deaths 2021 Apr 23 Dan Kaminsky, American internet security researcher (born 1979)
Historical Events 2019 Apr 23 The April 2019 Hpakant jade mine collapse in Myanmar kills four miners and two rescuers, with at least 50 others missing
Notable Deaths 2019 Apr 23 Charity Sunshine Tillemann-Dick, American soprano singer and presenter (born 1983)
Notable Deaths 2019 Apr 23 Jean, Grand Duke of Luxembourg (born 1921)
Historical Events 2018 Apr 23 A vehicle-ramming attack kills 11 people and injures 15 in Toronto
Notable Births 2018 Apr 23 Prince Louis of Wales, British royal
Selected Events 2018 Apr 23 A man intentionally struck pedestrians with a van on Yonge Street in Toronto, Canada, leading to 11 deaths
Notable Deaths 2016 Apr 23 Inge King, German-born Australian sculptor (born 1915)
Notable Deaths 2016 Apr 23 Banharn Silpa-archa, Thai politician, Prime Minister from 1995 to 1996 (born 1932)
Notable Deaths 2015 Apr 23 Richard Corliss, American journalist and critic (born 1944)
Notable Deaths 2015 Apr 23 Ray Jackson, Australian activist (born 1941)
Notable Deaths 2015 Apr 23 Pierre Claude Nolin, Canadian lawyer and politician, Speaker of the Canadian Senate (born 1950)
Notable Deaths 2015 Apr 23 Jim Steffen, American football player (born 1936)
Notable Deaths 2015 Apr 23 Francis Tsai, American author and illustrator (born 1967)
Notable Deaths 2014 Apr 23 Benjamín Brea, Spanish-Venezuelan saxophonist, clarinet player, and conductor (born 1946)
Notable Deaths 2014 Apr 23 Michael Glawogger, Austrian director, screenwriter, and cinematographer (born 1959)
Notable Deaths 2014 Apr 23 Jaap Havekotte, Dutch speed skater and producer of ice skates (born 1912)
Notable Deaths 2014 Apr 23 Connie Marrero, Cuban baseball player and coach (born 1911)
Notable Deaths 2014 Apr 23 F
Notable Deaths 2014 Apr 23 Mark Shand, English conservationist and author (born 1951)
Notable Deaths 2014 Apr 23 Patric Standford, English composer and educator (born 1939)
Historical Events 2013 Apr 23 At least 111 people are killed and 233 injured as violence breaks out in Hawija, Iraq
Notable Deaths 2013 Apr 23 Bob Brozman, American guitarist (born 1954)
Notable Deaths 2013 Apr 23 Robert W
Notable Deaths 2013 Apr 23 Tony Grealish, English footballer (born 1956)
Notable Deaths 2013 Apr 23 Antonio Maccanico, Italian banker and politician (born 1924)
Notable Deaths 2013 Apr 23 Frank W
Notable Deaths 2013 Apr 23 Kathryn Wasserman Davis, American philanthropist and scholar (born 1907)
Notable Deaths 2012 Apr 23 Lillemor Arvidsson, Swedish trade union leader and politician, 34th Governor of Gotland (born 1943)
Notable Deaths 2012 Apr 23 Billy Bryans, Canadian drummer, songwriter and producer (born 1947)
Notable Deaths 2012 Apr 23 Chris Ethridge, American bass player and songwriter (born 1947)
Notable Deaths 2012 Apr 23 Raymond Thorsteinsson, Canadian geologist and paleontologist (born 1921)
Notable Deaths 2012 Apr 23 LeRoy T
Notable Deaths 2011 Apr 23 James Casey, English comedian, radio scriptwriter and producer (born 1922)
Notable Deaths 2011 Apr 23 Tom King, American guitarist and songwriter (born 1943)
Notable Deaths 2011 Apr 23 Geoffrey Russell, 4th Baron Ampthill, English businessman and politician (born 1921)
Notable Deaths 2011 Apr 23 Max van der Stoel, Dutch politician and Minister of State (born 1924)
Notable Deaths 2011 Apr 23 John Sullivan, English screenwriter and producer (born 1946)
Notable Deaths 2010 Apr 23 Peter Porter, Australian-born British poet (born 1929)
Selected Events 2010 Apr 23 Arizona governor Jan Brewer signed into law the controversial anti–illegal immigration bill SB 1070, much of which was l
Selected Events 2009 Apr 23 The gamma-ray burst GRB 090423 was detected coming from the most distant astronomical object of any kind known at the ti
Notable Deaths 2007 Apr 23 Paul Erdman, Canadian-American economist and author (born 1932)
Notable Deaths 2007 Apr 23 David Halberstam, American journalist, historian and author (born 1934)
Notable Deaths 2007 Apr 23 Peter Randall, English sergeant (born 1930)
Notable Deaths 2007 Apr 23 Boris Yeltsin, Russian politician, 1st President of Russia (born 1931)
Notable Deaths 2006 Apr 23 Phil Walden, American record producer and manager, co-founder of Capricorn Records (born 1940)

This article draws on content from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

People Involved

James Earl Ray

Killer of Martin Luther King Jr. (1928–1998)

death

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