The Malcolm X Files

On February 21, 1965, Malcolm X was shot to death as he delivered a speech in Manhattan's Audobon Ballroom. The following March, 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, though that speculation still thrives.

As another anniversary of the murder passes, we have compiled an extensive collection of documents chronicling the death of Malcolm X. Included in this package are New York Police Department, FBI, prison, hospital, grand jury, and medical examiner records that have never previously been disclosed. 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.

We have arranged the records in several sections and suggest that you take the time to examine them all. The Smoking Gun thanks Kenneth R. Cobb, director of New York City's Municipal Archives, for his assistance in locating some of these records.

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)