 Martin Luther King Jr. was held in the Birmingham jail and was denied a consultation with an attorney from the NAACP without guards present . When historian Jonathan Bass wrote of the incident in 2001 , he noted that news of King 's incarceration was spread quickly by Wyatt Tee Walker , as planned . King 's supporters sent telegrams about his arrest to the White House . He could have been released on bail at any time , and jail administrators wished him to be released as soon as possible to avoid the media attention while King was in custody . However , campaign organizers offered no bail in order " to focus the attention of the media and national public opinion on the Birmingham situation " . 
