LETTER RE A SEARCH OF CIA FILES FOR INFORMATION ON REV. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE TASK FORCE.
Agency: CIA
Originator: CIA
From: FOLSOM, FRED G., DIR/TASK FORCE
To: JAMESON, WM. GEORGE, OGC
Document date: 12/14/1976
Document type: PAPER - TEXTUAL DOCUMENT

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Date: 02/14/05

JFK ASSASSINATION SYSTEM

IDENTIFICATION FORM

AGENCY INFORMATION

AGENCY

CIA

RECORD NUMBER

104-10136-10367

RECORD SERIES

JEK

AGENCY FILE NUMBER

: 80T01357A

DOCUMENT INFORMATION

Released under the John

Kennedy

Assassination Records

collection Act of 1992

144 USC 2107 Note!.

Case#:NW 53294 Date:

D6-14-2017

AGENCY ORIGINATOR : CIA

FROM : JAMESON, WM. GEORGE, OGC

TO : FOLSOM,

FRED G., DIR/TASK FORCE

TITLE :

LETTER RE A SEARCH OF CIA FILES FOR INFORMATION ON

REV. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF

JUSTICE TASK FORCE.

DATE :

12/14/1976

PAGES : 5

SUBJECTS : KING, M. L. JR.

DOCUMENT TYPE

: PAPER

CLASSIFICATION:: SECRET

RESTRICTIONS

CURRENT STATUS: RELEASED IN PART PUBLIC - RELEASED WITH DELETIONS

DATE OF LAST REVIEW

: 07/26/93

COMMENTS

: JEK51 : F11: 1993.07.26.17:19:42:750240

[R] - ITEM IS RESTRICTED 104-10136-10367

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CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20505

14 December 1976

Fred G. Folsom, Director

Martin Luther King, Jr. Task Force

Office of Professional Responsibility

Department of Justice

Washington, D.C. 20530

HSCA

77-0027

Dear Mr. Folsom:

Re: Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., Department of

Justice Task Force

Pursuant to your requests, dated 24 September and 19 November 1976,

for information regarding the extent and, nature of FBI/CIA contact concerning

Martin Luther King, Jr., a search of Agency files likely to contain the re-

quested information was requested. Numerous FBI documents which either

mention or concern Reverend King as well as a limited number of internal

documents which relate to FBI/CIA interest in Reverend King have been found.

A brief list of documents located by our Office of Security appears

below:

a. Both CIA and FBI originated documents, including an

FBI report on "Martin Luther King Jr., - A Current Analysis,"

which appear to relate to referenced request.

b. Documents taken from the CIA file on a confidential

informant and which appear to relate to referenced request.

•"The documents refer to The Reverend Martin Luther King,..

together with other civil rights leaders, and it is presumed that

the substance of the information contained within these documents

was passed to the FBI through our routine liaison channels.

c. Documents of a 23 May 1967 FBI study entitled "Racial

Violence Potential in the United States this Summer," which refers

in part to Reverend King.

d. Several FBI documents which refer to either Reverend

King and/or Mrs. Coretta (nee: Scott) King•

e. A 23 August 1961 FBI document entitled "Southern

Conference Educational Fund" which mentions Reverend King.

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REVOLUTION'

DOGENTENNA,

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f. Two FBI documents on Mrs. King. Both of these

documents appear to be portions of two separate FBI documents.

g. A 15 June 1965 FBI memorandum entitled "Demonstrations

Protesting United States Intervention in Vietnam and the Dominican

Republic" which mentions Mrs. King.

h. A 5 January 1968 FBI memorandum entitled "Demonstrations

Protesting United States Intervention in Vietnam" which mentions

Mrs. Coretta (nee: Scott) King•

i. Two internal Agency documents and selected pages from

an FBI document, all of which concern and/or refer to Reverend

King and the FBI's interest in that regard. Selected pages from

the FBI document appear to have been extracted from a December

1967 FBI memorandum entitled "The New Left: Road to Anarchy,"

and the entire document could not be located.

Listed below are nine documents that are routine FBI information reports

located by the Operations Directorate. Please note that the DBA, DBB, DBC

and DFB designators and numbers, as well as the computerized titles, were

assigned by this Agency for the purpose of retrieval and do not correspond

with the original FBI document numbers and titles.

a. DBF 82024 dated 19 April 1957 Subject: Discussions

with One C.L.R. James.

b. DBA 07422 dated 23 April 1962 Subject: Correspondence

from One Paul Krassner Concerning an Interview with King•

c. DBB 14763 dated 13 July 1965 Subject: A Request from

a Union Leader Asking King to Grant an Audience with Josiah

Mwangi Kariuki, a Member of the Kenyan Parliament.

d. DBB 19833 dated 12 August 1965 Subject: A Major

Policy Speech by King Containing the Substance of a Letter to

President Johnson and Ho Chi Minh Concerning Vietnam.

e. DBB 56930 dated 17 August 1966 Subject: Fund Raising

Activity by Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) in

Behalf of King's Proposed Trip to the Holy Land.

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f. DBC 05564 dated 23 January 1968 Subject: Request for

King and Dr. Benjamin Spock to Visit England for Meetings Aimed

at Campaigning Against the Vietnam War.

g. DBC 09.700 dated 11 March 1968 Subject: Information

Regarding Plans for a Massive Civil Disobedience Demonstration

in the Nation's Capital.

h. DBC 12561 dated 10 April 1968 Subject: A Plot by a

Female Dominican Republic Citizen Involving Stokely Carmichael

and H. Rap Brown to Assassinate King•

i. DBC 13895 dated 18 April 1968 Subject: Reaction to King's

Assassination by Carmichael, Floyd McKissick and Others, as Aired

on Havana Radio.

The following five documents indicate FBI requests for information from

this Agency or Agency replies to such requests. They are as follows:

a. DBA 80456 dated 10 August 1964 Subject: Travel to

European Countries.

b. CSCI-316/02051-64 dated 30 November 1964 Subject:

Alleged Meeting with Members of the Italian Communist and Socialist

Parties.

c. DBB 22473 dated 24 September 1965 Subject: Departure

Schedule for European Trip.

d. OWOA 19623 dated 30 March 1966 Subject: Planned

Appearance at Oslo, Norway Rally.

e. CSCI-316/01702-68 dated 2 May 1968 Subject: Dr: Martin

Luther King, Jr. This indicates a 1964 offer of employment from

Martin P: Littrell of Athens, Alabama to Roderick Claflin Brown, a

Panamanian national who, in retrospect, believed it was an assas- :

sination plot against King•

In November and December 1974, prior to the Congressional Moratorium

on records destruction instituted in response to Senator Mansfield's request,

sixty-six documents were routinely destroyed. A list of these documents,

similar to those provided above, is available for review. Additional search

has been unable to locate any copies of those documents that might not have

been destroyed.

3

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According to the records of the Operations Directorate. DBC 61386

date unknown, Subject: Martin Luther King, Jr., and DFB 80124A03 dated

3 April 1957, Subject: 16th National Convention of the Communist Party,

USA: Internal Security, in which Dr. King is mentioned on page 316, are

both considered to be lost. An intensive search of the files and indices. has

failed to locate these documents.

Search by other Agency components has produced some duplication of

the materials already listed as well as the following:

a. An FBI letter, dated 21 December 1964, to the CIA with

a memorandum entitled: Martin Luther King, Jr., His Personal

Conduct;

b. A 28 January 1968 CIA memorandum commenting on the

FBI study "The New Left: Road to Anarchy; "

c. A 29 March 1968 memorandum from CIA to FBI containing

volunteered information regarding King's activities concerning the

Poor People's Campaign;

d. A 14-page report on Black Power which mentions King;

e. A 28 November 1975 CIA memorandum from IG to DCI

which refers to a dissemination of information made to FBI concerning

King's European trip in 1964:

There are, moreover, two other items held in this Office which, although

not specifically requested by you, might be helpful to your inquiry.

One indicates

an Agency program, but in evidence of FBI involvement, while the other indicates

an FBI activity which the FBI is unaware this Agency has knowledge of. This

information will also be available to you if you request.

I believe that the information contained herein is responsive to your re-

quest. From a review of these materials it does not appear that this Agency was

ever--wittingly or unwittingly--involved with or importuned by the FBI to mount

or carry out any operations against Dr. King to discredit him, to prevent him

from any undertaking, or to frustrate him in regard to any endeavor or objective.

Please note that all of these documents were forwarded to this Office on an

"on loan" basis and retain their present classification. It is our recommendation

that if you wish to review the documents, this may be accomplished here in

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Headquarters in the presence of representatives from both the originating

component and this Office. Should you determine through this review that

you require copies of any of the materials, additional coordination must then

be accomplished prior to transmitting any of these documents to you.

Please contact me if you have any further questions, or if you wish to

arrange to review any of these materials.

Sincerely,

Office of Gener

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