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O-Ta (Rev. 1-28-65) pie | -Gnanswered— Motive ee . Callahan ‘In Malcolm X Murder 3 Felt BY jJenree W. Suis dee Gale Rosen —— ney The Heralé Tribune Staff | eftnesTnited States governmenteigou Sulliva The prosecution's case three are & conservative, sdme residents will, Y Tavel young accused of the murder of agree with your theory that the killers . T Malco groumd to ® close last week were agents of the “Peking Reds.” Totter answers to all the questions except | Both the latter theories have their roots Tele, Room the big one: Who engineered the acsassi- ' an Maleolm's international activities in the Holmes nation of Black Nationalism’s ablest leader’ He had made Since that afternoon 364 days ago, when a pilgrimage to Mecca and a speaking Gandy tour Europe and Africa and was frenaly with representatives of Arab na~ tons _agsigned to the United Nabienin | period before his death Malcolm's riddled body was wheeled out of ' “at .ytoe zt Vk his most effective minister, in 1963 for remarks made after President Eennedy's : assassination, and Ister expelled him. a Elijah Muhammad suspended Malcolm, * Malcolm resented that, and members of . his political and religious organizations . were in violent clashes with the Muslims at various times. After the killing, various of Malcolm's followers talked of task forces heading for. . Chicago to take revenge on the elderly ‘Elijah, but no attempt was ever Made on his Ife. The Muslims publicly denied any con- nection with the murder, but few officials gave them any support and the general public has considered them guilty of tt. However, at no time during the «x weeks that Assistant District Attommey Vincent J. Dermody has presented his evidence im the court of Supreme Court Justice Charles Marks has he given any evidence of a motive for the murder. MUSLIMS Geveral witnesses identified ss Muslims ‘the three defendants, Norman 3X Butler, 26, Thomas i5X Johnson, 29, and Thomas Hagan or Talmadge Hayer, 22, but none claimed to know or even implied that thetr religious leaders might have sent them to kil) Malcolm. The only Hnk between Malcolm's death ‘and the Muslims was # tenuows one, from George 28X Whitney, former member of the Fruft of Islam, the elite Muslim a ale security corps, and later bodyguard to | Malcolm. Whitney satd Malcolm had con- tinuously expressed fears that” he would be killed, “saying that the y structure and the Black Muslims both inter~ ested in his death.” : Attorneys demanded to Inow whether he said “white power structure” or “black power structure,” but tney replied that he “just sald power ad In Harlem, wh than gras does the theory that the } ordered Malcolm’ but” meee apenas ie lf fid thase.fos « support theary that Malcolm was killéd on orders t kill engl 1 : \ , . ae Bleck Musima. “ by the i — THEORIES —_— mat There had been bed blood The ultra-liberals saw in his death the Cencral Inteliigence Agency's reaction to his plans for a united Arab and African people which would include Americans of African descent. The conservatives maintained that he had been supported by the Chinese-Cuban branch of the Communist party and that he was killed weerese"he was moving away subversive r racist line , which he hed been Thiy weet, the jury of nine men and ’ three women in Justice Marks’ court prob- ably will hear ancther theory—that Mal- colm died as the result of a conspiracy by his bodyguar' When a aietrtty is Killed at an appear- ance before several hundred persons, the person charged with the crime tan expect & parade of eye-witnesses to accuse him. Butler, Johnson and EHayer have seen such a Except for * official witnesses, nearly ‘every one who has come to the witness stand has testified to some part of whet happened in the ballroom that day. Hayer and Butler have been identi- . fied as the men who created « disturbance in the audience. Johnson haa been iden- tifled as the man who ran to the stage during the disturbance and fired « sawed-— off shotgun into Malcolm. Hayer and Butler have_been re-tdentified as the men who then ran to the stage and pumped pistol shots into the fellen Malcolm. Under such circumstances, defense at- torneys have cross-examined intensively, hoping to shake the eye-witnesses .and, ‘occasionally, having some success. Some of the questions have been classics, such as that asked by Butler’s attorney, Wil- liam Chance, of Cary 2m ‘Thomas, one of Malcolm's bodyguards “Have you at any time denied to any- boty that you killed Jesus Christ?" Because Mr. Dermody objected and : Justice Marks sustained him, the audi- r ence was never treated to an answer. However, the trend of the questioning by Mr. Chance and Peter L. F. Sabbatino, attorney for Hayer, has indicated they will to prove that Maslcolmumasibe b-victim of » conspiracy by his own guards. M0 -3993a/-4 ——— We | OT RECORDED 191 FEB 25 1966 The Washington Pos \geptees —— . 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