King arrested for speeding; MIA holds seven mass meetings

January 26, 1956

King leaves Dexter in his car with a friend and the church secretary. After picking up three others at an MIA station, King is stopped for traveling 30 mph in a 25 mph zone. He is arrested, fingerprinted, photographed, and jailed. Abernathy arrives to bail him out; as a crowd gathers at the jail, prison officials escort King out of the jail and drive him back to town. According to King, on this day and the previous two more than one hundred traffic citations are issued to car pool drivers. Later that evening, a group of King’s friends decide to organize protection for him. Seven MIA mass meetings are held to accommodate black residents interested in hearing the story of King’s arrest.