Malcolm X assassination closed case files
Collection REC0060 - RG 007. New York County District Attorney
Abstract
On February 21, 1965, Malcolm X was shot and killed just as he was about to address a rally of the Organization of Afro-American Unity at the Audubon Ballroom in Washington Heights. This collection contains the New York District Attorney’s investigation files into his assassination, trial transcripts, and records related to appeals following the convicition of three men who were charged with murder.
Extent
4.5 cubic feet (9 boxes)
Dates
1963-1999
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research. Patrons are requested to use the digitized version of this collection in order to protect the original records.
Additional Description
Physical Location
Materials are stored onsite at 31 Chambers Street in Manhattan.
Alternate Forms Available
The entirety of this collection has been digitized and is available to view through our online gallery.
Processing Information
This collection was processed by archives intern Elizabeth Mazucci in 2014. The finding aid was updated and standardized by staff archivist Alexandra Hilton in 2018.
Scope and Content Note
The New York District Attorney's Malcolm X assassination case file, closed case file number 871-65, is divided into three series, according to three chronological stages that cover the life of the case: District Attorney's Case Files, Supreme Court Trial Transcript, and Appeals Case Preparations. Series 1 primarily encompasses the investigation period, i.e. the period between the crime and the trial. Series 2 marks the trial period, as it contains a bound transcript of the 1966 trial. Series 3 primarily covers the period following the trial until the file was closed in 1993. The inclusive dates expand far beyond the life of the case because the collection contains a 1963 newspaper and photographs taken in 1999 of a missing artifact.
Biographical/Historical Information
Malcolm X (born Malcolm Little in 1925 and later known as el-Hajj Malik el-Shabazz) was a Muslim minister and a civil rights activist and organizer. He was part of the Nation of Islam from circa 1952-1964 when he left in 1964, forming Muslim Mosque Inc. in 1964 and the Organization of Afro-American Unity in 1965. Malcolm X was assassinated on February 21, 1965 while speaking at the Audubon Ballroom in New York City, leaving behind his wife, Betty Shabazz, and six children, Qubilah, Attallah, Gamilah, Ilyasah, Malaak, and Malikah.
Three men were charged with the murder of Malcolm X: Thomas Hagan (also known as Talmadge Hayer and Mujahid Abdul Halim), Norman Butler (then known as Norman 3X Butler and now as Muhammad Abdul Aziz), and Thomas Johnson (then known as Thomas 15X Johnson and later as Khalil Islam). New York County (Manhattan) District Attorney Frank Hogan supervised the case, Assistant District Attorney Herbert Stern interrogated witnesses, and Vincent Dermody served as prosecutor at the trial. During the trial Hagan admitted to the murder while Butler and Thomas maintained their innocence. Hagan himself maintained that Butler and Thomas were innocent. The trial lasted from January 12, 1966 and ended on April 14, 1966 when all three men were convicted and sentenced to 20-years-to-life imprisonment.
Following their convictions, both Norman Butler and Thomas Johnson appealed their verdicts. Under the auspices of New York County District Attorney Robert M. Morgenthau, Assistant District Attorney Allen Alpert handled the case. The verdict was not overturned for either men during their appeals. Muhammad Abdul Aziz (formerly Norman Butler) was released from prison in 1985. Khalil Islam (formerly Thomas Johnson) was released in 1987. Mujahid Abdul Halim (formerly Thomas Hagan) was released in 2010. In 2021, after a lenghty re-investigation of the case by then New York County District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr., conducted with with the Innocense Project and the law office of David B. Shanies, both Muhammad Abdul Aziz and Khalil Islam were exonerated, though Islam died in 2009. In 2022, the City of New York agreed to pay $36 million in settlements for lawsuits filed on behalf of Aziz and Islam for wrongful convictions.
Three men were charged with the murder of Malcolm X: Thomas Hagan (also known as Talmadge Hayer and Mujahid Abdul Halim), Norman Butler (then known as Norman 3X Butler and now as Muhammad Abdul Aziz), and Thomas Johnson (then known as Thomas 15X Johnson and later as Khalil Islam). New York County (Manhattan) District Attorney Frank Hogan supervised the case, Assistant District Attorney Herbert Stern interrogated witnesses, and Vincent Dermody served as prosecutor at the trial. During the trial Hagan admitted to the murder while Butler and Thomas maintained their innocence. Hagan himself maintained that Butler and Thomas were innocent. The trial lasted from January 12, 1966 and ended on April 14, 1966 when all three men were convicted and sentenced to 20-years-to-life imprisonment.
Following their convictions, both Norman Butler and Thomas Johnson appealed their verdicts. Under the auspices of New York County District Attorney Robert M. Morgenthau, Assistant District Attorney Allen Alpert handled the case. The verdict was not overturned for either men during their appeals. Muhammad Abdul Aziz (formerly Norman Butler) was released from prison in 1985. Khalil Islam (formerly Thomas Johnson) was released in 1987. Mujahid Abdul Halim (formerly Thomas Hagan) was released in 2010. In 2021, after a lenghty re-investigation of the case by then New York County District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr., conducted with with the Innocense Project and the law office of David B. Shanies, both Muhammad Abdul Aziz and Khalil Islam were exonerated, though Islam died in 2009. In 2022, the City of New York agreed to pay $36 million in settlements for lawsuits filed on behalf of Aziz and Islam for wrongful convictions.
Arrangement
The Malcolm X assassination case file records are arranged into three series.
Finding Aid & Administrative Information
- Title
- Guide to the Malcolm X assassination closed case files, 1963-1999
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Elizabeth Mazucci
- Date
- 2014
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
-
Revision Statements
- 2018: Standardized and updated by staff archivist Alexandra Hilton
- 2023: The Biographical/Historical note was rewritten and updated by staff archivist Patricia Glowinski to reflect the exoneration of Muhammad Abdul Aziz (formerly Norman Butler) and Khalil Islam (formerly Thomas Johnson) in 2021.
Subjects