Daughters of Malcolm X Sue Law Enforcement Agencies Over His Assassination

Three daughters of civil rights leader Malcolm X have sued the CIA, FBI, the New York Police Department and others, accusing the agencies of playing roles in his 1965 assassination.

The lawsuit—filed in Manhattan federal court by the daughters and the Malcolm X estate—was announced at a Friday news conference in New York City.

Malcolm X’s Assassination

Malcolm X, who was born Malcolm Little but later changed his name to El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz, died at age 39 after he was shot 21 times by multiple gunmen while he was speaking at Manhattan’s Audubon Ballroom on February 21, 1965.

Three men were convicted for his death, but two of them were exonerated in 2021 after investigators found issues with evidence and discovered authorities withheld information. The two exonerated men later received a combined $36 million after the city and state of New York settled lawsuits with them.

Malcolm X pictured in 1963 — Malcolm X, leading spokesman for the Black Muslim movement, is shown with the dome of the Connecticut Capitol during a visit to Hartford in June 1963. Family members of Malcolm X filed a lawsuit against…

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Accusations From Malcolm X’s Family

In the lawsuit, the family claims law enforcement agencies were both aware of and involved in the assassination plot and failed to stop the killing. The family also accused the prosecution team of suppressing the government’s role in the assassination.

Malcolm X’s widow, Betty Shabazz, the plaintiffs, “and their entire family have suffered the pain of the unknown” for decades, the lawsuit says.

“They did not know who murdered Malcolm X, why he was murdered, the level of NYPD, FBI and CIA orchestration, the identity of the governmental agents who conspired to ensure his demise, or who fraudulently covered-up their role,” the filing adds. “The damage caused to the Shabazz family is unimaginable, immense and irreparable.”

Friday’s new conference announcing the lawsuit was held at the Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz Memorial and Educational Center, which is located at the site of the former Audubon Ballroom where the civil rights leader was killed.

Atorney Ben Crump, who is representing Malcolm X’s family in the lawsuit, said during the news conference that he hopes officials read the lawsuit “and learn all the dastardly deeds that were done by their predecessors and try to right these historic wrongs.”

“It is not lost on us that justice has been delayed in this matter, and on this momentous occasion, we stand ready to lay out our complaint very soundly,” Crump said. “The government fingerprints are all over the assassination of Malcolm X. And finally, we believe we have the evidence to prove it.”