Recalling The Assassination Of Malcolm X

FEBRUARY 21--Today marks the 50th anniversary of the death of Malcolm X, who was gunned down as he delivered a speech in Manhattan's Audobon Ballroom on February 21, 1965.

On the following pages, you’ll find an assortment of documents chronicling the murder, including NYPD and FBI reports, grand jury testimony, and medical examiner records. From ballistics evidence and eyewitness accounts to a chilling autopsy photo and the bullet-riddled documents found in Malcolm's breast pocket, these documents offer a remarkable picture of a brutal crime.

Three men--Talmadge Hayer, Norman Butler, and Thomas Johnson--were convicted of murdering the 39-year-old black leader. Though prosecutors suggested at trial that the slaying was plotted as “an object lesson for Malcolm’s followers,” no direct evidence linked the Nation of Islam--from which Malcolm had publicly broken--to the killing.

Malcolm's Pocket: His Bullet-Riddled Belongings (2 pages)

Inside The Audobon: Three Eyewitness Accounts (3 pages)

Ballistics Evidence

The Recovered Shotgun Shells (1 page)

Shrapnel Removed From Malcolm (1 page)

Court Exhibit: The Mangled Bullet (1 page)

Betty Shabazz

NYPD Interview With Malcolm's Widow (2 pages)

Shabazz's Grand Jury Testimony (13 pages)

Assorted

At The Hospital: Dead On Arrival (1 page)

NYPD Report On Autopsy (2 pages)

Malcolm's Rap Sheet (1 page)

Anonymous Threat To Inmate Butler (1 page)

FBI Teletype On Murder (13 pages)

Malcolm In The Morgue (1 page)