Word then spread that Blanton was planning more eleventh-hour pardons, potentially including one for James Earl Ray, who was convicted of assassinating the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

In this Jan. 11, 1979, file photo, Tennessee Gov. Ray Blanton appears before a joint session to give his final State of the State message in Nashville before leaving office on Jan. 20.

On Jan. 17, 1979, Lamar Alexander became Tennessee's 45th governor, taking office early amid a clemency for cash scandal involving his predecessor.

In this Jan. 11, 1979, file photo, Tennessee Gov. Ray Blanton appears before a joint session to give his final State of the State message in Nashville before leaving office on Jan. 20.

Authorities in Tennessee say they’ve solved the 42-year-old murder of a Chattanooga businessman, calling the cold case a “contract murder” with ties to former Tennessee Gov. Ray Blanton’s ...

Back in 1979, Ray Blanton, the Democratic governor of Tennessee, got busted for selling pardons. Three of his aides went to prison. Marie Ragghianti, an employee of the parole board, blew the ...

Ray Blanton became the 44th governor of Tennessee 40 years ago with his inauguration on Jan. 18, 1975. Leonard Ray Blanton of McNairy County, a one-time farm boy who went on to the state ...

Hamilton County District Attorney's cold case unit says it has solved part of a 42-year-old murder case that was tied up in a former Tennessee governor's scandal.

FILE - In this Jan. 11, 1979, file photo, Tennessee Gov. Ray Blanton appears before a joint session to give his final State of the State message in Nashville before leaving office on Jan. 20.

Officials announced that former Tennessee Gov. Ray Blanton's administration helped fund a contract murder of Samuel Pettyjohn, a trusted ally of union boss Jimmy Hoffa who was gunned down after ...

Officials say ousted Tennessee Gov. Ray Blanton's administration helped pay for the execution style murder of a key federal witness decades ago. Skip Navigation Share on Facebook ...