Crossfire: The Plot that Killed Kennedy

Preface
The author warns us not to trust this or any other book on the subject of the JFK assassination. He asks some difficult questions that indict the WR. He makes a mistake by saying that Oswald fired from “more than two hundred yard.” Oswald was 200 feet away, not yards.

Since the JFK assassination, people have become more cynical and less trusting of the government. The purpose of this book is to give anyone who is interested the broad outlines of conspiracy in this case. The photographic and acoustic evidence is examined. Marrs examines the government’s various investigations into the assassination and criticizes them if they appear deceitful.

Marrs has interviewed many witnesses. He is from the Dallas area and later worked there as a reporter. He taught the first college level class concerning the JFK assassination.

Marrs warns us that many people were untruthful in their testimonies. “What then is the truth...the federal government has not told the truth…” (p. iv).

Part I: The Kill Zone
Dallas—the Stage is Set
Dallas is a young city. It was a pioneer way station before becoming a business hub. Dallas is also very hostile. It is a right-wing stronghold. A person couldn’t become a policeman or a local official unless he was a Klansman or a member of the John Birch Society. But Kennedy had to come here for political reasons.

The Thirty-fifth President
Kennedy was the 1st President born in the 20th century. He was the youngest elected President. He lived a shorter life than any other President.

Kennedy’s ancestor, Patrick Kennedy, came here from Ireland in 1848. His family was always Democratic. Joseph was a keen businessman and amassed a huge fortune.

JFK went to Harvard but had only average grades. He had health problems, too. He was with his father in Europe during WWII. He wrote a college paper that was turned into a book called Why England Slept.

He joined the Navy and served in the South Pacific. He was a hero on PT109. His story was published in the local newspapers. After the service, he ran for Congress. He won and served as a Representative for Massachusetts until 1956 when he ran for Senator.

In 1960, he ran for President. His religion was an issue but he managed to sidestep it. He beat out conservative LBJ in the primaries. He selected LBJ to be his running mate. This helped secure some of the conservative Democratic votes. He debated Nixon and used the Cuban plan (Bay of Pigs) against him. Kennedy won the election by a paper thin margin.

People rallied around Kennedy even after the Bay of Pigs fiasco. He tried to regain civilian control over the Pentagon and its intelligence agencies. He was not that popular in the South. He made a trip to Texas to shore up support. Tower was the first Republican to be elected from Texas since the Civil War. The Democrats were split.

He needed to carry Texas in ’64 to get his mandate. He was a shoe-in for winning the election but he wanted a mandate to carry his agenda.

The President and his entourage flew into Dallas from Fort Worth. They drove through downtown Dallas in a motorcade.

Dealey Plaza—November 22, 1963
The Motorcade
Police chief Curry was in the sedan in front of JFK. Kennedy and his entourage were in the limo behind Curry. A SS car was behind the limo. LBJ’s convertible was next. More SS cars followed along with press vehicles. The motorcade passed through Dealey Plaza.

Dealey Plaza is named after George Bannerman Dealey, a Dallas civic leader. It is the site of Dallas’ first post office and court house. It was converted into a park in 1936.

The limo slowed to a crawl to execute a hairpin turn onto Elm Street. As they approached the Triple Underpass, Mrs. Connally heard a “frightening” sound. She saw Kennedy raising both hands to his neck. Kellerman heard a “pop” as they passed the Stemmons Freeway sign. The sound was to his right. He heard the President say, “I’m hit.” Kellerman ordered the driver to get them out to there. Mrs. Connally heard Kellerman say, “Take us to the nearest hospital.”

The driver, Greer, said he was looking ahead towards the railroad overpass when he heard a motorcycle backfire. He heard the noise again and saw Connally slump. He heard the noise 2 more times and hit the accelerator. The Nix film says differently.

Connally was hit too, but he was only conscious of the President being hit. That is, he knew the President had been hit and then later pass out from a bullet that him. He noticed brain tissue on his suit. He then slumped into his wife’s arms. Jackie climbed onto the back of the limo to get a piece of skull. She doesn’t even recall the incident.

Lawson heard a firecracker coming from the rear. This description is repeated by many witnesses. Sheriff Decker saw a bullet ricochet off the ground. DPD officer Ellis told this same story to the HSCA. Decker and Curry ordered their men to rush the underpass and the grassy knoll. Those witnesses in Dealey Plaza thought the shots came from the grassy knoll; those farther back thought they came from the TSBD.

Marion Baker was near the rear. He heard a sound that sounded like a high-powered rifle. He thought it came from the TSBD. He rushed inside. He ran passed Truly who went in after him to escort him.

Landis said he heard the shot and saw Kennedy look towards the grassy knoll. Many people smelled gunpowder in Dealey Plaza. Earle Cabell’s wife saw a gun protruding from the TSBD. She also smelled gunpowder. Gunpowder could travel from the grassy knoll to the street but not from the 6th floor.

Senator Yarborough heard the first sound. He thought it was a bomb. He was an Army infantry officer and a avid hunter. He didn’t recognize the sound as a gun.
Thomas Atkins was a Navy commander. He was an official photographer for the White House. He went to Dallas that day to take pictures. In a 1977 article, he wrote that he heard the shots distinctly come from the Grassy Knoll. He turned his film into a movie called The Last Two Days. He was never called by federal investigators to give testimony nor was his film studied. He was a professional photographer on the White House staff and considered to have a keen visual sense.

The Crowd
Men with rifles were seen by several people in Dallas along the parade route. Phillip Hathaway and John Lawrence saw a man along the way. Hathaway saw the gun, Lawrence did not. Ernest Jay Owens saw a man with a foreign looking gun. Julia Ann Mercer saw a man with a rifle walk up the Grassy Knoll. The next day, the FBI talked to her. They showed her a picture of Jack Ruby. She described him as the man who was the driver for the man who she saw with the rifle. Oswald’s mother also said she was shown a picture of Ruby the day before. Julius Hardie saw men on top of the Triple Underpass who had rifles. He reported the incident to the FBI but no report was ever made public.

The sheriff’s deputies almost unanimously agreed that the shots came from the Grassy Knoll. Deputy L.C. Smith said that he was searching behind the picket fence when word was received that the shooting took place from the TSBD. W.W. Mabra, a bailiff, said people went up the knoll. He thought the shots came from there at first.

Robert West heard a backfire then heard 3 shots. He said the shots came from the Grassy Knoll. Mr. and Mrs. Rowland believed that the shots came from near the Triple Underpass despite the fact that they saw a man with a rifle in the TSBD. The man in the TSBD was in the far west window. He saw another man, possibly black, on the 6th floor. Rowland was interviewed by Roger Craig.

Carolyn Walther saw 2 men also and heard 4 shots. Richard Randolph Carr saw a man that was heavyset in the 6th floor. He saw this same man walking down Commerce Street after the shooting. 2 films also corroborate the claims that there 2 men in the window. Robert Hughes and Charles Bronson each made home movies of the motorcade. The WC has a receipt for the Hughes film; they say the movement in the 2 windows is simply a stack of boxes. Bronson was standing near Hughes when he filmed his own movie. The FBI said the film “failed to show the building from which the shot were fired” (p. 22). Robert Groden inspected the film and said it unquestionably shows movement. The HSCA said the movement was a random photographic artifact. Inmates at the county jail saw 2 men in the window, one with a rifle. The WC ignored them.

Norman Similas took a picture of the 6th floor just as the motorcade was passing him. He saw 2 figures with a rifle in the window. He went to have the film developed but when he did, that negative had been removed.

Ronald Fischer and Robert Edwards saw a man in the window. The man was “transfixed” on the Triple Underpass, not the approaching motorcade.

Betzner saw cops and others picking at the ground after the shooting, as if they were looking for a bullet. He was standing near Phillip Willis, another photographer. He took a picture of Kennedy just as the bullet hit him; the crowd hadn’t even enough time to react. He was sure the bullets came from the TSBD. Willis has stated that Kennedy was waving at the crowd with his head high just as the bullet hit his throat; his head was not bent forward, as the WR says, in order to allow the SBT to take place. Willis took a photo immediately after the shooting that has Jack Ruby in it. Ruby claims he was at the Dallas Morning News. This is a 5 minute walk from Dealey. The WC cropped Willis’s photo of Ruby.

Howard Brennan saw a man with a gun in the 6th floor window. He said he could ID the man again; he failed to ID Oswald, however. An examination of the Zapruder film shows that Brennan was not looking up at the TSBD at the time. Brennan’s boss said that the SS or the FBI took Brennan away for 3 weeks. When he came back his hair had turned white and Brennan would no longer discuss the assassination.

Amos Euins and L.R. Terry saw a man with a rifle shooting from the 6th floor, also. Others saw bullets hitting the street, like Virgie Rachley.

Mary Woodward was standing between the TSBD and the Grassy Knoll. She heard a loud sound and saw Jack and Jackie look towards the sound. She heard 2 more shots and then the President was obviously shot. Calvery and Westbrook were never asked from which direction the shots came from; they were right in front of JFK at the time of the shooting.

Millican heard 5 shots. Jean Newman heard shots from the Grassy Knoll. The mysterious pair near the sign was not investigated until the ‘70’s.

Two Suspicious Men
These 2 men acted strangely. One pumped an umbrella while the other raised his waved his right arm. The “umbrella man” has his umbrella closed before Kennedy’s arrival and closed after the shooting; it’s only open during the shooting. In the Zapruder film, it was pumped almost 2 feet in the air and then lowered. The man next to him is dark skinned, possibly black or Latino. He is waving his hand in the air. It was sunny out so there was no reason to have an umbrella open at that time. He was the only man at Dealey Plaza to have an open umbrella. There are 2 theories regarding this: his umbrella was a weapon or the umbrella was used as a signal. An umbrella existed but is a bit farfetched. The umbrella could be used as a signal. Since the umbrella man was so close to the motorcade, he could have been signaling that the President wasn’t dead and that more bullets were needed.

After the assassination, when most people were lying on the ground or running up the Grassy Knoll, these two sat next to each other, one talking on a walkie-talkie. The WC and the FBI never located these men for questioning. Then in 1978, a man named Louis Steven Witt came forward to say that he was the umbrella man. He claimed he brought the umbrella to heckle JFK because his dad was a compatriot of Neville Chamberlain who used to carry an umbrella. Witt disavowed any knowledge of the dark skinned man on the walkie-talkie, in spite of the fact that they appear to be talking to each other. “Interestingly, one of the Committee attorneys asked Witt specifically if he recalled the man with a walkie-talkie, although officially no one has ever admitted the possibility of radios in use in Dealey Plaza” (p. 33).

Dolores Kounas heard firecrackers too. But she said afterwards, she recognized them as shots. She said she thought the shots came from the viaduct.

James Altgen’s picture of the front of the TSBD is purported to be Lee Harvey Oswald. It was taken just after the 1st shot. He was called to the WC only after a contemptuous article was written.

Charles Brehm said the shots came from one of the two buildings on the corner. He was probably the closest person to the President at the time of the fatal shot; he was never called to the WC.

Muchmore and Nix made home movies. Muchmore’s shows the last shot and Nix’s shows the limo coming to a stop. Nix’s also shows flashes coming from the Grassy Knoll. No scientific analysis has been done on these films. Nix said he believed the shots came from the Grassy Knoll. Sorrells told Nix that at the time, he too thought the shots came from there. The WC never called Nix. Due to criticism, Itek scientists made a study of the film and found that the “man” on the Grassy Knoll was only a shadow. Itek has close ties with the CIA. But the shadow disappears later when Nix pans over the area again.

The Babushka Lady
Beverly Olivier also made a home movie of the killing. She claims that her movie was taken by FBI agents and never returned. She said that she was friends with Ruby and through Ruby, met Ferrie and Oswald. She married an underworld figure who met with Nixon in ’68. Her camera would have undoubtedly captured the umbrella man, the TSBD and other vital areas. A few days after the assassination, FBI or SS men came and asked for the movie. She complied but has never gotten it back. One of the men she identified as FBI was Regis Kennedy, a federal investigator with ties to Carlos Marcello. She married George McGann, a Dallas underworld figure. He was close friend of Ruby’s and was described by the HSCA as being involved in criminal activities since the ‘40’s. The HSCA also found out that McGann had ties to Trafficante.

She said that in ’68, Presidential hopeful Nixon met with her and McGann for reasons that are unclear. McGann was murdered gangland-style in ’70.

Olivier said that Ruby introduced her to a Lee Oswald of the CIA just 2 weeks before the assassination of JFK. She also said that Ferrie was a regular at Ruby’s clubs. She met secretly with the HSCA but there is mentioning of her in their report.

Two women were by Olivier at Dealey Plaza: Moorman and Jean Hill. They took pictures of the gunman on the Grassy Knoll. Like Willis, Hill saw Ruby in front of the TSBD. Hill saw a van being allowed through the police line. It parked near the Grassy Knoll. Hill saw a man fire from behind the picket fence. She also saw a puff of smoke and some movement there. She was taken into custody by SS men soon after the shooting. Moorman and Hill say their pictures were confiscated.

The Newmans were standing from Hill and Moorman. Newman was the person who coined the term “Grassy Knoll” when he told reporters that is where heard shots is.

Jesse Price worked at Union Terminal Annex. He heard shots coming from the Triple Underpass. In an affidavit signed that day, Price said there were 5 shots and that they came from behind the picket fence. He saw a man standing there with something in his hand that could have been a gun.

Most witnesses thought that shots came from the Grassy Knoll. But at least 1 shot came from the TSBD.

The Texas School Book Depository
The TSBD is a private company, not a part of the Texas Public Schools systems. It warehouses books and ships them to where they need to go. It also has offices for publishers and salespeople. The Texas School Book Depository hired many order takers, one of which was Lee Harvey Oswald.

Lee Harvey Oswald was hired at the TSBD on October 14, 1963, only a couple of weeks after supposedly returning from Mexico. Paine made arrangements for Oswald to work there. He was hired and paid $1.25/hour. While working there, he became friendly with Frazier, a coworker of his. Frazier sister was Paine’s neighbor. On November 21, Oswald needed a ride to Irving. He usually went to Irving to see his wife on Fridays but he said he needed to go on Thursday to get curtain rods. Frazier and his sister, Linnie Mae Randle, saw Oswald carrying a package to the car on the 23rd. Their description of the package is vague and not supported by the physical evidence. The brown paper bag could not have carried a dismantled Mannlicher-Carcano. Also, no one other than Frazier saw Oswald bring the package into the TSBD. Jack Dougherty saw Oswald enter the building but didn’t see him carrying anything. Frazier didn’t see Oswald before noon. He was watching the motorcade.

The Distracting Seizure
At 12:15 pm, a man wearing Army fatigues had a seizure on Houston Avenue. An ambulance was dispatched at 12:18 and went to Parkland Hospital. No record of this patient ever being admitted was ever recorded. There is no mention of this in the WC either. The FBI included an investigation about this incident which was called Commission document 1245; this document was not included in the WR.

The ambulance driver said the man in question had a slight facial laceration and walked off during the confusion at Parkland. The man was found. His name is Jerry B. Belknap. Belknap claims that he was interviewed by DPD and FBI agents after the incident but before the official investigation. He said the 2 agencies distrusted each other because they both asked the same questions. In 1983, he claimed that “some committee in Washington” had contacted him a few years earlier. If this was the HSCA, it’s not in their report.

Many people in the TSBD believed that the shots came from elsewhere. Steve Wilson worked at the TSBD. He said the shots didn’t sound like they came from above him. Dorothy Ann Garner, another employee, was filming the motorcade. She said the sounds came from the west. Victoria Adams said the shots sounded like they came from below not above. Oswald’s driver, Frazier, said the sounds came from the railroad area. Frazier was standing next to Bill Lovelady.

The Man in the Doorway
AP photographer James Altgens took a picture of the TSBD just after the fatal shot. In the doorway was a man who looked like Lee Harvey Oswald. The FBI and the WC say the man was Lovelady. Lovelady said he heard shots come from the concrete near the knoll. Lovelady’s supervisor, William Shelley, also heard the shots come from the Grassy Knoll. These 2 men joined the throngs that ran up the Knoll.

The man in the doorway was wearing the same type of shirt as Oswald was arrested in. Anthropologists studied the facial features of the picture. It was concluded that the man was Lovelady and not Oswald.

Oswald claimed that he was on the 1st floor eating his lunch. No one saw Oswald on the 6th floor. Bonnie Ray Williams was on the 6th floor until 12:20. He left his lunch there to go downstairs. He met with Jarman and Norman on the 5th floor. Williams said he heard the shots come from above and he heard the rounds falling on the floor. The three men heard the shots and 2 of them heard the shells hitting the floor. None heard anyone running on the 6th floor, which Oswald would have had to do in order to hide the rifle and get to the 2nd floor in 90 seconds. Oswald said he saw 2 black workers on the 2nd floor. This testimony is corroborated by Jarman and Norman. If Oswald was on the 6th floor, how did he know these men were on the 2nd floor?

Bill Shelley saw Oswald near a phone on the 1st floor at 12:20. Carolyn Arnold said she saw a glimpse of Oswald at the doorway. She said the FBI misquoted her. She intimates that she “didn’t turn around” to see Oswald going into the building but that Oswald was leaving the building to watch the parade himself. She saw Oswald in the 2nd floor lunchroom at 12:15. Arnold saw 2 men, one with a rifle, in the window at 12:15. Furthermore, the WC says that Oswald was in the 6th floor since 11:55 am.

The Oswald Encounter
It is unbelievable that Oswald would be calmly eating his lunch at 12:15 and then race upstairs to kill the President at 12:30. It is also unbelievable that after shooting the President that Oswald would descend 5 {actually 4} flights of stairs and be seen by a police officer who said Oswald was calm and not out of breath.

Patrolman Baker heard shots come from the TSBD. He saw pigeons flying off the roof so he thought the shots came from there. He raced inside. Truly followed him. Truly tried the elevators but they were stuck on the 5th floor so Oswald must have taken the stairs. It was on the 2nd floor that Baker confronted Oswald. In a handwritten note to the FBI, Baker said the man he saw was drinking a Coke. But this testimony was changed in the WR so that the “Coke” reference was removed. Both Baker and Truly said that Oswald was not excited or overly afraid. Truly said, months later, that he saw nothing in Oswald’s hands, but may have said this due to pressure from the feds.

Mrs. Reid saw Oswald on the 2nd floor also. She saw him there shortly after the shots. She said he was calm and had a Coke. The FBI reenacted both the Marion reversion and the Reid version. To manage what the WR says that Oswald did requires some degree of faith. To have done this and to also have bought a Coke strains the imagination. Oswald said in his testimony that he had bought a Coke and was drinking it when confronted by a cop.

Lillian Mooneyham said she saw someone in the 6th floor 4 or 5 minutes after the shooting. Photographer Tom Dillard and James Powell support this. Dillard said he took his photo just as the last shot was fired; Powell said his was taken about 30 seconds later. Comparing their photos with photos that were taken prior to the assassination, the HSCA concluded that the boxes on the 6th floor were rearranged within 2 minutes after the last shot. Oswald couldn’t have been rearranging these boxes if he was encountered by Baker on the 2nd floor. Mooneyham was never called to the WC. Her testimony is buried in the 26 volumes.

Adams and Styles walked down the stairs after the shooting. They say that no one passed them on the way down. Oswald would have had to use those stairs to get to the 2nd floor.

Joe Molina, a TSBD employee, heard shots coming from west of the building. He asked to testify before the WC because the DPD searched his house the day after the assassination. Chief Curry said that Molina was part of a subversive group. Molina wanted to testify to the WC to get a retraction but it was too late. The TSBD automated the job that Molina did so he was fired.

The Triple Underpass
The railroad bridge spans three of Dallas’s main streets. Thus it is called the Triple Underpass. Patrolman Foster was on the underpass during the shooting. He saw the President’s head explode. He said the shooting came from the depository. He found where one shot had hit the turf. Jean Hill said that a SS man asked her if she had seen where a shot had hit the ground. Foster’s partner, Officer White, said he couldn’t see the motorcade because a train was between him and the parade route. The films taken at the time of the assassination do not show a train moving, however. Many railroad workers saw smoke on the Grassy Knoll.

Smoke on the Grassy Knoll
S.M. Holland worked for Union Terminal. He saw cops and FBI men on the Triple Underpass. He heard a couple of shots and saw smoke near the trees. He said the first couple of shots came from up the street and were followed by different sounding shots. In 1966, Holland said the shots he heard came from the picket fence. The WC dismissed his testimony.

James Simmons said in his FBI interview he saw smoke in front of the embankment in front of the TSBD. In 1966, he said the smoke came from the trees. He saw footprints behind the picket fence. Richard Dodd was also a railroad worker. He said in his FBI report that he smoke come from the hedge on the north side of the plaza. 1966 interviews with Walter Winborn and Thomas Murphy confirm that they too saw smoke from the trees on the Grassy Knoll. Dave Weigman was a TV newsman. He ran up the Grassy Knoll, filming as he went. His film is blurry, for the most part. In one frame, however, smoke is clearly present on the knoll.

There is no natural reason for smoke to be there at that time. Many rifles were known to produce smoke. Austin Miller saw smoke coming from the knoll too. Officer Brown said he smelled gunpowder coming from the TSBD but from his position, this smoke could have come from the Grassy Knoll too.

The Third Wounded Man
James Tague was hit by a fragment. He said the shots came from the Grassy Knoll. He talked to Officer Haygood before Haygood made his way up the Grassy Knoll. Deputy Walthers saw where the bullet had impacted the ground. Tague contacted the DPD that same day.

In 1963 and through early ’64, the most widely reported story was that the fist shot hit Kennedy in the back, the 2nd hit Connally, and the 3rd hit Kennedy in the head. The WC seemed prepared to ignore Tague. The FBI first reported that the impact in the ground was not caused by a bullet; after deposing Tague, they changed their minds. This bullet was an incredible miss for a shooter from the 6th floor. Tague’s wound forced the WC to contrive the SBT.

The Grassy Knoll
There are two grassy knolls but the north one is the one which is famous. Not too far away from the pergola, the Zapruder film was made.

The Zapruder Film
Abraham Zapruder is a dress maker. He owned shop near Ruby’s nightclub. Crossfire has a paragraph dedicated to what’s on the film. Zapruder said he thought the shots came from in back of him. On four occasions he stated his belief that the shots came from the Grassy Knoll. However, when the WC came, he said he hadn’t formed an opinion of where the shots came from.

The film was not shown to the public. Many who viewed it threw out wrong depictions of what was on it. These include Life magazine and Dan Rather. Rather said that Kennedy’s head moved forward from the shot “with considerable violence” (p. 68). Rather has stated that he was on the west side of the Triple Underpass. However, pictures of the west side do not show any signs of him.

Jim Garrison was the first to get a copy of the Zapruder film. Time-Life gave him a grainy version. David Lifton said that the film had been spliced. Photo expert Jack White concurs.

Bill Newman was just down the slope from the Grassy Knoll. He and his family were never called to the WC. Cheryl McKinnon said that at least 2 shots came from the picket fence. Emmett J. Hudson said the shots came from that direction too but answered as if he was confused when brought before the WC.

The Black Dog Man
The black dog man appears in at least 2 pictures taken by 2 different photographers. This man joins Hudson and then disappears. Life magazine published the pictures of Betzner and Willis.

Seymour Weitzman saw many footprints behind the picket fence. Officer Joe Smith talked to a hysterical woman who said that someone was shooting the President from the bushes. He was up on the Grassy Knoll and saw Weitzman. He was a SS man. He smelled gunpowder.

Lee Bowers was a railroad supervisor who had a bird’s eye view of the knoll. He saw 3 cars come into the parking lot near the time of the motorcade. The 1st came about 12:10 pm. About 12:20, a 1957 Ford pulled in. The man inside had something like a microphone up to his mouth. Just minutes before the assassination, another car pulled in. He was too busy to keep an eye on it. He said the he heard shots. They came from either the TSBD or from the mouth of the Triple Underpass. He said he saw the 3rd car, the Chevy Impala, right after the 3rd shot; it came back into his view. He said there was a flash of light behind the picket fence, along with some commotion. He saw a large mass of people converge on the parking lot after the shooting. He also saw 50 to 100 cops seal off the area.

Gordon Arnold was never called as a witness to any federal panel which investigated the assassination. He ran up the Grassy Knoll after the shooting. He says a man with SS credentials was shooing people away.

The Badge Man
Mary Moorman took a Polaroid of a person on the Grassy Knoll. This person became known as the badge man because it appears he is wearing a badge. There are actually 2 people in the picture. This is also where the acoustical experts put one or more of the shots. The picture was analyzed by MIT.

The experts at MIT said that “without question, the photo showed a man firing a rifle” (p. 80). The next day, the chairman of the MIT department gave back the photo and refused to cooperate in any further study.
A UK documentary called “The Men who Killed Kennedy” declared that the badge man was Lucien Sarti. This documentary has never been aired in the U.S.

The badge man is verified by much of the above testimonies. No serious news or government study has been conducted on these pictures.

A Grassy Knoll Witness
Ed Hoffman is a deaf mute. He was on the Triple Underpass. He saw movement north of the picket fence. He saw a man wearing a suit running west by the fence. He saw another man with a machine gun with a pistol grip. He tried to contact the FBI but they never asked to speak to him. He told his story in 1967 to a Dallas FBI agent. The WC has dismissed any assertions that a shot came from the Grassy Knoll, in spite of the fact that Hoffman’s testimony is corroborated by other testimony.

Summary
No single witness saw what the WC reported. Connally’s testimony is corroborated by the Zapruder: that he was not hit by the same bullet that hit Kennedy. Some cops saw bullets hit the ground while others saw bullets hit the road. An unexplained change in the motorcade lineup put the press in the back of the motorcade where they couldn’t photograph the assassination. Mrs. Cabell said she smelled gunpowder as she passed through Dealey Plaza. Many witnesses saw men with rifles in the vicinity of Dealey Plaza. Some saw Ruby there too. Many witnesses believe the shots came from the Grassy Knoll. The more suspicious of people at the scene of the crime were never investigated by the WC. Beverly Olivier was never called to the WC despite being a witness to the shooting and being introduced to “Lee Oswald of the CIA” by Jack Ruby. Many people saw smoke on the knoll. People in the TSBD thought the shots were coming from their west (the Grassy Knoll).

A cop saw Lee Harvey Oswald less than 60 seconds after the shots were fired {90 seconds really}. He saw Lee Harvey Oswald with a Coke. At least one employee, Joe Molina lost his job soon after the assassination. James Tague was injured in the shooting. This forced the WC to come up with the SBT.

Gordon Arnold reported that he heard shooting coming from the knoll. Moments later, he said cops asked him for his film and then took off. The Moorman photo has never been fully investigated. Ed Hoffman corroborates a lot of witnesses’ testimonies. The evidence of witnesses and expert tests says that at least 1 shot came from the Grassy Knoll.

Part II: Means, Motives, and Opportunities
The assassination of JFK can only be understood by knowing the background of the individuals involved.

Lee Harvey Oswald—Assassin or Patsy?
Oswald had a typical childhood with the exception of his father’s death.

A Mother in History
The HSCA found that there was a conspiracy involved in the assassination but that Lee Harvey Oswald was still involved. This did not satisfy Marguerite.

Marguerite married Edward John Pic in 1929 at the age of 20. They divorced in 1931. She remarried in 1933 to Robert Oswald. He died in 1939, just months before Lee was born. She married again to Edwin Ekdahl but this too ended in divorce.

She heard on the news that her son had killed the President. She wanted to talk to him to hear him confess but the police barred her from seeing him. She was suspicious of how Ruby was able to get that close to her son. She always maintained that the FBI had shown her a picture of Ruby the day before Ruby shot Oswald.

She would only talk about the events for money. She said it was due to her being poor. No publisher has published her book about her son.

The WC says that Oswald was in an orphanage. While he was put in what would technically be called an orphanage, it was more akin to a daycare. The WR says that Lee slept with his mother until he was 11. This was not because Lee was emotionally troubled; this was because at the age of 11, Lee didn’t have his own bed. The family had just moved and he had to share a bed with Marguerite. Once his older brother moved out, he had his own bedroom. While a truant in New York, Lee did not become a pool hall gang member. He went to the library and the zoo. When he went to a juvenile detention center, he was troubled because the other boys “killed people and smoked.” His interests included astronomy, literature and politics. The WR says that Oswald was a Marxist when he was 15; Robert does not concur with this.

Back in New Orleans, Oswald became a member of the CAP. He met David Ferrie. Ferrie turned up dead the day after being released from protective custody by Garrison after being named his chief suspect in the assassination of JFK.

Ferrie and Oswald’s Library Card
An anonymous tip came in to New Orleans authorities that said that Guy Banister and David Ferrie had been in touch with Oswald. Banister was a right-wing supporter and worked out of 544 Camp Street, the same address that appears on Oswald’s flyers. Ferrie said that he went to Houston to go geese hunting on the day JFK was killed. A friend of Ferrie’s told the NOPD that Oswald was arrested and that C. Wray Gill told Ferrie that Oswald had his library card on him at the time. Gill was also an attorney for Carlos Marcello. Ferrie denied ever knowing Oswald. However, one of Oswald’s neighbors remembers Ferrie coming over and asking about his library card. Oswald’s former landlady said Ferrie came over after the assassination but before his trip to Houston. No library card is found in the official inventory. But the SS asked Ferrie if he had loaned his card to Oswald.

Oswald tried to get in the Marines when he was 16 but was rejected. It seems his zealousness for the Marines is misplaced if he was a Marxist. So Oswald joined the CAP. Ferrie was in this unit.

Oswaldskovich the Marine
Lee Harvey Oswald joined the USMC 6 days after his 17th birthday. He struggled to qualify with his rifle. Nelson Delgado confirms this. He qualified as a sharpshooter later on but did much worse on his last rifle test. Oswald was trained as a radar operator which gave him a security clearance of “confidential.” David Powers recalls that Oswald used many weekend passes to go home to New Orleans. However, Marguerite lived in Texas at this time. Was he there to see Ferrie? He was deployed at Atsugi, Japan.

At Atsugi, the CIA had a presence. It is here that Lee Harvey Oswald could have received intelligence training. It was at this base that U-2 planes originated. One Marine recalls that Oswald took photos of the secret areas of the base. Oswald contacted communists in Japan. At a Tokyo nightclub, the Japanese women would try to pry information from the Americans. The nightclub Queen Bee was expensive and Oswald made little money as a PFC. Some Marines have testified that they believe Oswald was working as an agent to give false information. He even contracted gonorrhea but received no disciplinary action for it; it was “in the line of duty” (p. 105).

Rankin said that the WC was trying to figure out what Oswald was studying at Monterey. Monterey was the Defense Language Institute. They give crash courses in languages. This would explain why Oswald was so fluent in Russian that his wife thought he was a native speaker. Russian is a difficult language and Oswald was supposedly a high school drop out.

A shooting at his barracks could be connected to intelligence work. Oswald accidentally shot himself with a .22. He was grazed by it. This was the first of several holes in his service where he could have been taking intelligence training. He was court-martialed in Japan for owning an unregistered gun. He got into a spat with an NCO. He was put in the brig for 28 days but only 1 Marine saw him in the brig and says that Oswald was wearing civilian clothes at the time.

Many Marines noted substantial differences in Oswald. Some medical and military records suggest that there were 2 men using the name Oswald. Oswald’s commitment to Marxism is debatable also. Some say he was devout, some say they were confused and others say he was a conservative.

Judge Botelho said that when Oswald went to Russia, the radar codes were not changed. Oswald applied and received his visa and passport without incident. This seemed weird in light of his service as a Marine.

Summary
Lee Harvey Oswald was a typical child. He was bright and eager to learn. He joined the Civil Air Patrol where he met David Ferrie. At 17 he joined the Marines. Mysterious things appear on his Marine record. He is an overt Marxist but he is given a security clearance. He has liaisons with elements that are connected with the intelligence network. The speed with which he received his discharge and passport suggest that someone was greasing the wheels. Even his mother maintained that he was an agent.

Russians
The Soviet Union is made up of several nations under 1 government. The Russians conquered many countries, adding their territory to form modern Russia. In 1917, there was a revolution that overthrew the czar. Lenin died in 1924, just 2 years after the U.S.S.R. was founded. He was replaced by Stalin. Stalin died in ’53. In the next 5 years, there was a power struggle with Nikita Khrushchev coming out on top. He took the offensive against Stalin hardliners. He seemed sincere in his efforts to lessen the tensions with America. Eisenhower and Khrushchev agreed to a summit. The summit failed when Francis Gary Powers’s U-2 was shot down. The U-2 was spying on the Soviet Union. It is possible that certain people deployed Powers in order to sabotage the peace talks.
Oswald and the U-2
Powers and his U-2 were shot down 6 months after Oswald defected. Oswald told an American Embassy official that he planned to give the Russians all his radar secrets. Snyder said that Oswald told him that he had something of “special interest” to Soviet Intelligence. The Soviets knew about the U-2 but they didn’t know the details of its altitude so as to shoot it down. Powers wrote a book that suggests that Oswald could have given the Russians enough details to do this. Colonel Prouty disagrees with this assessment.

It’s possible that the plane was shot down due to sabotage. Oswald claimed that he saw Powers in Moscow. Oswald was not in Moscow at this time, however; he was in Minsk. Oswald told a fellow employee at Jaggars-Chile-Stovall that he was at a May Day parade. The only May Day parade that Oswald could have seen, due to details of his whereabouts, was the one in 1960, the time when Powers was in Moscow.

Only 2 enlisted men defected to Russia between ’45 and ’59; in the 18 months prior to January ’60, 9 defected.

Robert E. Webster—Another Oswald?
Robert Webster told officials he was defecting 2 weeks before Oswald did. Webster was in the Navy. He had been an employee of the Rand Development Corporation.

Rand Development was thought to be separate from the Rand Corporation, a CIA think-tank, the one of Ellsberg infamy. They were located across the street from each other. Many leaders at Rand Development had CIA ties.

Webster took a Russian wife and had a kid with her. Webster returned to the U.S. about the same time as Oswald. Webster said he never had any contact with Oswald but Oswald asked an Embassy official about Webster. Marina told an acquaintance that she met her husband after he defected from an exhibition, just as Webster had done. Marina’s address book had Webster’s Leningrad address written in it.

Victor Marchetti confirms that the intelligence network used disenchanted youths to infiltrate Russia. The State Department official in charge of determining which defectors were genuine was Otto Otepka. He was denied access to his materials 5 months before the assassination; Lee Harvey Oswald was one of his subjects.

Oswald’s passport doesn’t mesh with flights leaving to Finland. It could be that he took a military flight, and therefore was an operative. Swedish intelligence says that Oswald was given his visa to the Soviet Union in Stockholm, not Helsinki.

Oswald was told he had to leave Russia after his visa expired. He attempted suicide, but he did so when he knew he was going to be saved. He denounced his American citizenship on a Saturday. Snyder was the Embassy official he talked to. Snyder had worked for the CIA. The HSCA found out that Snyder’s CIA file was unavailable. Snyder wouldn’t allow Oswald to renounce his citizenship because it was a Saturday. Oswald may have allowed himself this window to come back if he wanted to. Priscilla Johnson suggests this, too. Johnson’s book is the main source for material concerning Oswald’s life just prior to the assassination. Johnson denied ever working for the CIA. However, the HSCA said she applied for the CIA and had been debriefed by the agency after returning from the Soviet Union in ’62. An FBI memo said that Brown and Johnson were 2 State Department employees who had contact with Lee Harvey Oswald as part of official business.

Comrade Oswald
Oswald claimed his money came from the MVD (the Soviet Secret police) not the Red Cross. He was living quite comfortably. He moved to Minsk to work at a factory. Hoover said that the Soviets had an espionage school in Minsk.

After defecting, the FBI put an alert on Oswald’s fingerprints, should they come up in another investigation. Hoover wrote the State Department to say that it was possible that someone was using Oswald’s identity. Oswald’s discharged was changed to dishonorable {really it was changed to undesirable}. Marguerite went to D.C. to find out about her son. She talked to Eugene Boster, a White House official. He told her that he was familiar with the case. She wrote Lee a letter. Snyder was surprised to receive a letter from Marguerite at the same time as he received one from Lee. The WC said this was a coincidence. Oswald asked for his passport back. He wanted to leave Russia with his new wife.

A Whirlwind Romance
Around March ’61, Oswald met Marina. She thought he was a native speaker or Russian. She stayed with Lee while he was hospitalized. She has told varying stories of her and Lee’s romance. In Marina and Lee, Marina said that her dad was a Soviet traitor. Oswald told Marina soon after they married that he wanted to come back to the States. She applied for the appropriate documents. It seems her applications were expedited in spite of several glaring errors. Further complicating the process was the birth of June Oswald in ’62. The Oswalds received a loan from the State Department for their trip. Oswald’s passport shows different stamps than Marina’s, suggesting that he traveled by a different route. In Amsterdam, the Oswalds had a layover. The WC calls this time period “unexplained;” Marina was confused by the HSCA’s questions regarding this time period. It’s possible that they were debriefed. The day after the assassination, the SS took a statement from Marina about their trip that is totally inconsistent with the WR’s account.

In the U.S., the Oswalds were met by Spas T. Raikin. He helped them through customs. According to Summers, Raikin had ties with anti-communist groups and CIA-backed anti-Castro activities. The Dallas Department of Health, Education and Welfare says that Oswald went to Russia with the State Department’s approval, a sentiment that Oswald confirms during a radio interview.

After the assassination, Marina said that Lee didn’t shoot anyone. After weeks with the feds, she buried Lee. Marina has said since the WR that the feds forced her testimony by threatening her; that she believes there was a conspiracy; that Lee was an American agent who was caught between the government and the mob; that Oswald was killed to keep him quiet.

A Soviet Defector’s Story
Yuri Nosenko’s story begins just 2 months after the assassination. Nosenko was in the KGB department that dealt with America. He contacted the CIA in June ’62, just 2 days after Oswald left. He offered to spy for the CIA; the CIA was suspicious and declined. In January ’64, Nosenko came to Geneva and said he wanted to defect to America. He told the CIA that he personally handled Oswald’s file. He told the CIA that Oswald was not very bright and he was never offered a spy assignment from the Soviets; this is exactly what the WC and the CIA wanted to hear. James Angleton was wary of Nosenko; it seemed that Nosenko was a little too accommodating. It turned out that Nosenko lied about his rank.

Nosenko was kept in CIA custody for almost 4 years. His story was omitted from the WR. He was allowed to defect and given government assistance.

Most people believe that Oswald was debriefed by the KGB. He was in contact with the Soviets even in Mexico City. Kostikov was in the liquid affairs bureau of the KGB, the section responsible for sabotage and assassinations. It seems unlikely that the Soviets would use Oswald to kill Kennedy. The Kremlin ridiculed the WR’s conclusion that Oswald acted alone. Soviet diplomats believed that the mob and LBJ were somehow responsible.

While the Soviets had nothing to gain by Kennedy’s death, the same could not be said of the Cubans.

Summary
Oswald may have been an intelligence agent when he went to Russia. Oswald may have been connected to the U-2 incident. Many U.S. officials were under the belief that Oswald was acting under orders. Yuri Nosenko’s strange story supports this tangentially.

Cubans
From 1492 to 1895, the Spanish ruled Cuba. After the Spanish-American War, the United States turned Cuba into a protectorate. Through the 50’s Cuba was ruled by gangsters. Batista was overthrown by Castro.

Fidel Castro
Castro ran for Parliament in ’52. Batista cancelled the elections so Castro decided to overthrow Batista. Castro began his violent revolution. He was captured and imprisoned for 22 months. He moved to Mexico next. He made his next attack in ’56. It was a disaster. In ’58, with the help of Che Guevara, the revolution captured Santa Clara, Cuba. Batista fled to the Dominican Republic in ’59. Castro began executing his enemies and pre-revolution war criminals.

Castro ended the gangsters’ rule of Cuba. He nationalized everything which angered American corporations. He improved the public education system. He instigated trouble throughout Latin America for the United States. The United States imposed a trade embargo and threatened invasion. Castro reduced the American Embassy in Havana to 11 people because the rest were CIA, he said. When Kennedy became President, he told his troops that an American invasion was imminent. In ’61, Cuban exiles invaded Cuba.

Disaster at the Bay of Pigs
Plans for the Bay of Pigs invasion were drawn up in the Eisenhower administration. CIA organized anti-Castro exiles into something called the Cuban Revolutionary Council (CRC). The CRC was headed by Howard Hunt. Many of the CIA who were involved in the Cuba affair was also involved in the ’54 Guatemala coup. Bissell was also working on plans to kill Castro.

Eisenhower didn’t know all the details. He authorized a 4 part plan that was vague on the details. Nixon handled the White House angle. Nixon had his executive assistant, Cushman, press the CIA for more information.

Hunt and Barker were creating training camps in Miami for the Cuban exiles.

Kennedy used the Cuban plans against Nixon in one of their debates. Nixon couldn’t respond because it would compromise the secrecy of the plans.

The invasion was doomed to fail because it was founded on the notion that the Cubans would overthrow Castro, who was very popular there. Kennedy told the New York Times that the U.S. military would not aid Cubans in efforts to overthrow Castro. The CIA reassured the exiles that Kennedy would, in fact, aid them. Kennedy began reducing the exiles military support. Kennedy refused to give air support. One of the exiles’ ships was set on fire, the Houston. International pressure forced Kennedy and Stevenson to back down. The Cuban brigade was destroyed. Kennedy took public blame. In Guatemala City, the staging base, the CIA was furious and wanted to kill JFK. Bobby Kennedy began overseeing Cuban affairs.

The University of Miami was the base for a secret war against Castro. The Kennedys knew of this and allowed it to take place. In ’62 when RFK was going after Sam Giancana, the CIA intervened on Gianacana’s behalf. The CIA was using the mafia to get at Castro. Bobby turned the CIA off.

In October ’62, the Cuban Missile Crisis took place. Kennedy’s handling of this crisis was chided by the CIA. Cuba moved further into the Soviet sphere of influence. Kennedy tried, in his last months, to rectify this. Castro supported Kennedy’s efforts.

According to Nelson Delgado, Oswald was affiliated with some secret Cuban business. Oswald opened the FPCC in New Orleans, under the noses of several intelligence agencies. Oswald worked for the William Reily Company, a coffee manufacturer. William Reily was a financial backer for the Crusade to Free Cuba Committee, one of the fronts for the CRC. Oswald met an anti-Castro Cuban named Carlos Bringuier. Bringuier said the FBI had tried to infiltrate his group so he was suspicious of Lee Harvey Oswald. He got into a scuffle with Oswald when he learned that Oswald was distributing pro-Castro literature in New Orleans.

During the arrest, Oswald asked to speak to the FBI. John Quigley interviewed him. The NOPD said they thought the incident was staged. Oswald was interviewed on a radio station because of this incident. He was verbally ambushed by Ed Butler who somehow found out in very little time that Oswald had defected. The CIA and the FBI were trying to discredit the FPCC; was this incident an attempt at doing so? We know that the address on the flyers was that of an anti-Castro group.

544 Camp Street
This address housed the offices of the CRC just a few months before Oswald arrived in New Orleans. This group included Bringuier and Ferrie and other Cubans with ties to Hunt, Sturgis and Barker. One of these men was Carlos Prio. He was arrested with Robert McKeown for a gun-running conspiracy. McKeown was involved in the Cuba jeep deal that Ruby was affiliated with. In 1977, before he testified to the HSCA, he was shot dead in the chest. It was ruled self-inflicted.
Although the CRC had cleared out of 544 Camp Street, the side entrance was to Guy Banister’s office, an anti-Castro ex-FBI man. He helped supply weapons to the Bay of Pigs. His secretary, Delphine Roberts, said that Oswald was working for Banister as a secret agent. Banister also hired David Ferrie.

This address appears in the WR. This office was close to CIA and FBI offices and was near the Crescent City Garage where Oswald was seen with FBI agents, around the corner from his job at the William Reily Company. This is the address that Garrison claims developed the assassination plans.

According to the WR, Oswald was affiliated with pro-Castro activities and this is why he went to the Cuban Embassy in Mexico City. The CIA photo of Oswald, however, looks nothing like him. So the CIA relied on the testimony of Silvia Duran. Her testimony was coerced. The evidence that Oswald was tied to anti-Castro groups is always stronger and usually ignored by the WC.

Oswald and the Exiles
The violent anti-Castro group Alpha 66 was founded by Antonio Veciana. Kennedy criticized their methods. He claimed to be working for Maurice Bishop of the CIA. He claims he met with his CIA case officer in Dallas in September or August of ’63 and met Oswald. The HSCA disbelieved this claim but went to great lengths to find Bishop. Veciana said the CIA wanted him to contact one of his relatives in Mexico and have this relative testify that he had met Oswald in Mexico. The HSCA suggests that Bishop is David Atlee Phillips.

Homer S. Echevarria was an anti-Castro Cuban who was making weapons deals just days after JFK’s assassination. The SS discovered that Echevarria was connected with Bringuier. The FBI shut off their investigation.

Sylvia Odio was another Cuban exile. Their father was arrested for concealing Reinaldo Gonzales. Gonzales was involved in a plot to kill Castro with Veciana. Odio joined the JURE. She claims she was introduced to a Leon Oswald who she identified as Lee Harvey Oswald. Her acquaintance who introduced her to Oswald called her later and asked for her thoughts about him. He told her that this Oswald had a bunch of nasty things to say about the Cuban exiles and about Kennedy. She wrote her father about this incident before the assassination but no one contacted the authorities. The FBI investigated and said that Loran Hall was her contact. Hall stated that Oswald was not the person he introduced to Odio. However, the companions that Hall said he did introduce to Odio deny ever meeting Odio. Hall retracted his statement but the FBI didn’t inform the WC.

On the Sunday prior to the assassination, Oswald may have been with some exiles. His presence on that day is unaccounted for. Harold Reynolds was friends with an anti-Castro Cuban named Pedro Gonzales. He said that he carried a note to Gonzales that was from Lee Harvey Oswald. Gonzales is also connected to Manuel Varona. Varona was the former Cuban prime minister under Prio. He also had letters written to him from the owner of the building at 544 Camp Street. Reynolds’s wife said that Gonzales came over just after the assassination to get all the film negatives.

Summary
Oswald was overtly pro-Castro but secretly, he was meeting with anti-Castro groups. These groups include the mafia and the CIA. The trail includes implicating (framing) Oswald for Kennedy’s murder.

Mobsters
Mobsters have been in America since the immigration periods of the 1800’s

Bootleggers and Boozers
Due to Prohibition, the profitability of liquor exploded. Due to Prohibition’s unpopularity, it was easy to buy protection from politicians. It was in this time that the FBI and the ATF rose to prominence. Joseph Kennedy was one such bootlegger. So too was Meyer Lansky. After 13 years, Prohibition was repealed. The gangsters who owned speakeasies now owned legitimate nightclubs.

During a gang war in New York, Lucky Luciano emerged triumphant. He ended the war and made Vito Genovese his lieutenant.

Lucky goes to War
Lucky was arrested for compulsory prostitution. He was sentenced to 30 to 50 years. During the war years, the mob was in profiting off of black market items like crazy. After an act of sabotage, Meyer Lansky got Navy intelligence to work with Luciano. During the rest of the war, there were no more strikes or sabotage. Luciano was given a pardon after the war by Dewey.

Senator Estes Kefauver probed the issue of organized crime. Hoover and AG McGrath said in ’51 “that no crime syndicate existed” (p. 163). Kefauver proved that it did exist, that it was highly organized and he demonstrated the amount of corruption that must exist for organized crime to take place. New Orleans was especially crime-ridden, specifically by Carlos Marcello.

Carlos Marcello
Marcello was New Orleans crime figure since the 30’s. During ’61, however, he was sent to Guatemala City by Bobby. Some claim he was flown back to the States by Ferrie. Other crime figures around Marcello said that he threatened the Kennedys for this disgrace.

The HSCA determined that there were several connections between the JFK assassination and Marcello: Joe Civello was an associate of Marcello’s and Ruby’s; Ferrie was an employee of Marcello’s; Oswald’s uncle Dutz was acquainted with several of Marcello’s employees.

In the 50’s there were some high profile raids on organized crime; Bobby was associated with these investigations. These investigations included the ties between organized labor with organized crime. Hoffa had close ties with Marcello and Trafficante.

Santos Trafficante and Cuba
During the 30’s through the 50’s, Meyer Lansky was making a fortune in Cuba. He supported the Batista regime. The crime kingpin in Cuba was Trafficante. They were business partners in Cuba. They owned the Tropicana Casino in Havana. The manager of this casino was Lewis McWillie, Ruby’s idol. Nixon was a visitor of Batista’s and these casinos. After the Castro revolution, the crime syndicate no longer ruled Cuba. Trafficante and Jake Lansky were jailed by Castro.

The CIA used these casinos to hide payoffs to the mobsters that it sometimes employed. The CIA used these crime figures to gather intelligence on Castro. Some of these figures were Hoffa’s men. Along with these plans to invade Cuba there were plans to assassinate Castro. These plots included Sturgis, Trafficante and Maheu. Maheu was the liaison between the CIA and the mafia; he was also the manager of the Howard Hughes’s empire.

Hoffa would survive the McClellan Committee hearings. But this was the start of a war between Bobby and Hoffa.

The War on Hoffa
Hoffa was promoted through the ranks of the Teamsters through his connections with organized crime. Bobby turned his sights on Beck and then Beck’s successor, Hoffa. Bobby said that the Teamsters were the most powerful organization in the country aside from the government itself. Hoffa threw in his support for Nixon in the ’60 election.

Ed Partin was a Teamster turned informant. He said that Hoffa told him of a plan to shoot JFK while he was riding in an open car. Partin took a lie detector test and passed. Hoffa was eventually sentenced to prison. He was pardoned by Nixon.

Valachi became an informant in September ’63. His testimony was proof that Hoover was wrong about the existence of organized crime. John Davis, a Kennedy biographer, said that the Kennedys would have destroyed organized crime if given 5 more years.

In the ’60 election, there were enough irregular votes in Chicago to swing the election to Nixon. Daley stopped this investigation—and behind Daley stood Sam Giancana.

Momo and his Girlfriends
Giancana was friend with Sinatra. Through Sinatra, JFK met Judith Exner, one of his mistresses. The FBI was monitoring this because Exner was an associate of Giancana’s. Exner said, in later years, that she was a courier between Giancana and Kennedy. She said that her activities were connected with efforts to carry the West Virginia vote. Hoover had a meeting with JFK because he knew of this relationship; JFK stopped seeing Exner.

Giancana also had ties to Robert Maheu. He asked Maheu to put wiretaps on people. Maheu was investigated by the Justice Department for this. Bobby put an end to this investigation. JFK became aware about this time that Roselli and Giancana were CIA-Mafia hit men.

Hoover haunted Giancana continuously. Giancana went into court on his own accord to gain an injunction against the FBI. This was unprecedented. Bobby had the right to cross examine but declined. But Bobby continued his war on organized crime anyway. When JFK was killed, Bobby’s war was over.

G. Robert Blakely claims that organized crime killed JFK. He said that no one understood the connections of people like Russell Matthews and Lewis McWillie.

Summary
All the major players in organized crime have reportedly made threats against the Kennedys. The Kennedys learned that the intelligence community had ties with the mob since the 40’s. Hoover did not even try to subdue organized crime. Coupled with Kennedy’s refusal to aid the CIA-Mafia war against Castro (Bay of Pigs), the Mafia had an even deeper resentment of the Kennedys. Many researchers believe that organized crime was responsible for JFK’s assassination. But if this is true, how did the SS, the FBI and the CIA fail to notice this?

Agents
Truman created the CIA to be an intelligence agency that would unify America’s intelligence gathering systems. They were not to have police or law-enforcement powers nor were they to investigate inside the U.S. The veterans of the OSS were transferred to the CIA. The CIA was not required to disclose employees, titles or detailed explanations of its budgets.

The CIA has used its money to aid foreign interests including labor, culture and youth organizations. It has been charged that the CIA acts in these regards on behalf of American big business not on behalf of national security. For example, in ’53 the CIA supported the overthrow of the popularly elected Prime Minister Mossadegh. He had nationalized Iran’s oil supply. The CIA man in charge of this was Kermit Roosevelt. He later became VP of Gulf Oil. In ’58, the CIA financed the right-wing coup in Guatemala after the elected government wanted to nationalize the property of United Fruit Company. John Dulles had written the contracts for United Fruit back in the ‘30’s. Allen Dulles had been president of United Fruit. His predecessor at the CIA was Walter Smith who was also a United Fruit VP.

The ascendancy of the CIA was due in large part because of the Dulles brothers.

The Manchurian Candidates
America brought German scientists to the U.S. These scientists were involved in rocketry mostly. But some were concerned with mind control. Some of these programs would fall under the name of MK-ULTRA. These efforts included using LSD on people. A Marine in Oswald’s unit described such an experiment. Sirhan, too, may have been such a guinea pig.

CIA-Mafia Death Plots
In September ’63 the CIA was still trying to kill Castro. This time they used a Cuban official named Cubela, code named AM/LASH. Cubela wanted assurances that the orders to kill Castro came from Kennedy himself. Plans to kill Castro, including Operation Mongoose, were being plotted in 544 Camp Street, New Orleans.

New Orleans
Within days of the JFK assassination, the FBI had interviewed Ferrie. They didn’t know of his Civil Air Patrol connection with Oswald nor were his connections with Marcello. These details of this interview were never publicized. The FBI, in ’76, said that they had lost that file. Ferrie was a pilot for the Bay of Pigs invasion. Marchetti confirms that Ferrie was a CIA agent. Marchetti said that Helms told him that Ferrie and others in the Garrison investigation had been on the CIA payroll.

Others have told of a CIA connection between Oswald and Banister. Beverly Olivier said she saw Ferrie, Ruby and Oswald together at the Carousel Club. Delphine Roberts claimed that Ferrie and Oswald were together. The SS went to 544 Camp Street. They found that the office was closed so they ended their inquiry. Considering all this, it seems likely that Oswald was an intelligence operative.

Was Oswald a Spy?
The answer to this would seem to be a resounding “yes.” His Marine record is checkered with inconsistencies which could be when he received intelligence training. He learned the Russian language. His travel to and from Russia was without incident. His wife was allowed to leave with him when most Russian sweethearts were denied exit permits. The fact that he defected but was still given a passport is suspicious. His notebook has information that suggests he was in contact with intelligence groups or was an informant. His close friend, DeMohrenschildt was an intelligence operative.

He had a Minox camera among his belongings. This camera was not available to the public; it may have been spy equipment. Dallas detectives Rose and Stovall found the camera. The FBI inventory, however, said that it was a Minox light meter. Rose told the newspapers that he was sure that it was a camera. Under the FOIA, a researcher received 25 photos that Oswald took with a Minox camera.

In ’76 a CIA document said that they considered Oswald for recruitment which contradicted Helms’ statement that they did not. Oswald had a 201 file with the CIA which usually meant you were an agent. The CIA told the HSCA that this 201 file was not suspicious.

Even though the official story was that no agency was interested in Oswald, both the FBI and the CIA were keeping tabs on him in the months leading up to the assassination. Just 2 months before the assassination, Oswald supposedly made a trip to Mexico. There only proof was Sylvia Duran. The CIA had gotten the Mexican authorities to arrest her and coerce her testimony. The WR doesn’t show the cable between the CIA and its Mexico City station chief that supports this action. Duran’s testimony was accommodating to the CIA. A Cuban consul, Eusebio Azque said that the Oswald who he saw in Mexico City was not the Oswald in Dallas. Duran’s memory of Oswald’s height is off by 3”. The HSCA produced 300 pages on this subject but didn’t publish them because of their sensitivity.

A Message from Oswald
Penn Jones received an anonymous tip about a letter that Oswald wrote to a Mr. Hunt. The official investigation of this note is dead in the water. The Mr. Hunt could be E. Howard Hunt. Another CIA operative who worked in the CIA’s Latin American areas was William Gaudet. He was also given a Mexican entry pass on the same day as Oswald. He said in a ’78 interview, that he knew Oswald, Ferrie and Banister. He also said he saw those men together. His memory about his trip to Mexico in ’63 is faulty.

DeMohrenschildt and the Agency
DeMohrenschildt had relations with the intelligence community since the days of the OSS. Helms said that DeMohrenschildt applied for work in the government in ’42 but was rejected because of his Nazi credentials. DeMohrenschildt also furnished the CIA with reports while hiking through Central America during the Bay of Pigs invasion. DeMohrenschildt, reportedly, killed himself 3 hours before he was supposed to give the HSCA an interview.

It has come to light that the CIA was opening Oswald’s mail while he was in Russia. Robert Morrow claims that the CIA bought Mannlicher-Carcano rifles that could not be traced in order to commit assassinations.

The French Connection to the Assassination
The author puts forth a convoluted theory which involves French assassins and their connection to the assassination.

Summary
The CIA had gone way outside its charter by the time of the Bay of Pigs. The CIA had a lot of individuals who detested Kennedy. The CIA may have covered up for what some of their agents did with or without orders.

G-Men
Seven FBI men were associated with Oswald during his year and half in the States following his return from Russia.

The Top G-man
Not much of the darker side of Hoover has surfaced because of his own commitments to secrecy.

Hoover fought an unending war against communism. He rounded up anarchists Goldman and Beckman. Goldman was Leon Czolgosz’s greatest influence. Hoover to a great extent believed that the tenets of the Communist Manifesto were a sincere danger to America. He continued to exploit this through the 50’s. As the American Communist Party dwindled to 2,800 members from its original 80,000, Hoover kept up the pressure. Even half of these 2,800 were FBI informants.

While prosecuting Communists, Hoover turned a blind eye to organized crime. He said in ’62 “no single individual or coalition of racketeers dominates organized crime.” Hoover didn’t want his agents to go after tough, organized crime. It was better for the Bureau to go after softer targets.

On the day of the assassination, Agent Hosty told the DPD that the FBI knew about Oswald and knew he was capable of this crime. Chief Curry said to the TV cameras that the FBI knew about Oswald but they hadn’t told the DPD. Hoover initiated a vendetta against the DPD. Hoover wouldn’t allow DPD officers to join the FBI.

LBJ allowed Hoover to work for the FBI beyond the age of mandatory retirement. He did this on a year-by-year basis, making Hoover his lap dog.

Robert Oswald said that Lee never had any interest in Communism before his trip to Russia.

Oswald was interviewed by the FBI several times. He even asked to see the FBI when after his arrest for disturbing the peace.

Did Oswald work for the FBI?
Quigley quickly went to Oswald after Oswald requested an FBI man interview him. Oswald gave him a comprehensive background on the FPCC. He told the WC that he had never heard of Oswald. But he admitted later that at the request of the Dallas FBI office, he reviewed Oswald’s Navy file. Low level functionary William Walter said that he reviewed the files for Quigley; they had a security file on him as well as an informant file. Dallas FBI agent Will Hayden confirms this.

Walter also told the story of the missing teletype—the teletype said militant revolutionaries were going to kill Kennedy on his trip to Dallas. Walter took the teletype to his superiors wondering why they hadn’t prevented the assassination. Hoover ordered the teletype destroyed because it was an embarrassment to the FBI.

Oswald was working next to the Crescent City Garage. He would go there and talk about guns with one of the mechanics. The mechanic, Adrian Alba, said that he saw Oswald receive an envelop from someone who he had reason to believe was an FBI man. The HSCA determined that the SS used this garage for their vehicles.

Then there’s the note that Oswald wrote to the FBI. Nancy Fenner said it was a warning with some violent language. Hosty said that the note just read that Oswald wanted the FBI to leave him and his wife alone. Hosty was ordered to destroy the note after Oswald was killed. Hosty’s supervisor, Shanklin, said he didn’t know anything about this note but Sullivan says that Shanklin did. Ruth Paine also said that Oswald sent a note to the FBI.

Also, the FBI met with Ruby on 8 times between April and October ’59.

544 Camp Street
This address was the home of an anti-Castro CIA-backed group. Banister worked out of 531 Lafayette Street, the side entrance to 544 Camp Street. Banister was a gun runner, a member of the John Birch Society and a publisher of a right-wing magazine called Louisiana Intelligence Digest.

On 2 separate occasions, Banister’s employees saw Oswald distributing pro-Castro leaflets. Delphine Roberts said that Banister told her to ignore it because Oswald was “with the office.”

Banister and Oswald may have been in Clinton, Louisiana during a civil rights program. Witnesses unanimously said it was Oswald they saw. The registrar said the man showed a Navy I.D. card that said Lee Harvey Oswald.

The FBI’s involvement in the assassination cannot be established beyond a shadow of a doubt but many of their actions were criminal. Here is a list:
Suppression of evidence: Beverly Olivier’s lost film of the assassination; the suppression of Ed Hoffman’s testimony
Destruction of evidence: Hosty’s note; the photo of Walker’s house found in Oswald’s possession; the immediate cleaning of the Presidential limo
Intimidation of witnesses: Richard Carr; Ed Hoffman; Jean Hill

Hoover would not have committed the assassination but could have allowed it to happen by not acting on information. He did receive favors from LBJ.

The Secret Service
The SS was organized as part of the Department of Treasury to combat counterfeiting. They assumed the role of Presidential protection because they were federal investigators and because of convenience. They were surrounding McKinley when he was killed by Czolgosz.

LBJ and Connally selected the Trade Mart as the luncheon site. Some wanted the site to be at the Woman’s Building in Fair Park. This debate was still going on the 18th of November. The SS didn’t want to go to the Trade Mart because it was a security risk—the building itself, not necessarily the route taken there.

The SS was slow on the draw during the assassination sequence. Greer, the driver, has testified that he looked over his shoulder, saw Connally slump and then hit the accelerator. However, the films do not support this.

A Few Drinks in the Cellar
The SS was out drinking the night before the assassination. This is against SS regulation.

SA Rufus Youngblood said he threw himself on LBJ. LBJ confirmed this and praised Youngblood. Senator Ralph Yarborough, who was sitting in the car with them, said this was not the case. He said that Youngblood and LBJ listened to a walkie-talkie during the shooting.

Summary
Hoover ruled the FBI for 50 years. When Kennedy died, LBJ allowed Hoover to continue as director. The FBI and the SS failed to act on reports concerning Lee Harvey Oswald.

Rednecks and Oilmen
The Kennedys were opportunistic when it came to civil rights, playing both sides for political currency. During the Oxford, Mississippi riot, General Walker was injured.

A Bullet for the General
In April ’63, Walker was almost killed in his home. 17 months later, the WC said his would-be assassin was Lee Harvey Oswald. Walker was a right-wing fanatic. He was arrested for being the ringleader in Oxford. Bobby Kennedy got involved in the case. Later, in Dallas, he became a member of right-wing groups. Walker’s aids were responsible for distributing the “Wanted for treason” leaflets that were circling Dallas on November 22. Men associated with Walker put the “Welcome Mr. Kennedy” ad in the paper. Walker was friends with Agent Hosty.

Walker and Bringuier were together at an anti-Communist meeting.

A photo of Walker’s house was found in Oswald’s belongings. The license plate of a car in the driveway was removed in the photo. But in a photograph that the DPD took of the evidence, the photo of Walker’s house is present and is undamaged. Thus, the photo was damaged on purpose to hide who owned the car.

Walker gave a talk at a meeting at which Oswald attended. An employee of Walker’s claims that Ruby used to visit the general. Warren Reynolds was befriended by Walker. After Reynolds was shot, Reynolds pointed the finger at Oswald in the Tippit killing.

Oswald’s guilt for the Walker shooting rests almost entirely on Marina’s testimony. But her testimony and the note that Oswald left for her are troubling. Also, the contemporary accounts of the bullet that was fired in Walker’s house were that it was a 30.06. Walker himself disagrees with the bullet the government says was the one pulled from his wall.

A 14 year old boy, Walter Coleman, saw 2 men leave the scene of the crime. An aide to Walker saw 2 men case his house a couple of nights before.

Kennedy put forward his own civil rights bill. Senator Russell said he’d oppose it with every resource at his disposal. Russell was put on the WC 6 months later. Like Walker, Russell disapproved of desegregation. Hoover was a huge opponent of MLK. Hoover had good reason to believe that he would be replaced if JFK won in ’64.

The Miami Prophet
Joseph Milteer predicted Kennedy would be shot from a building with a high-powered rifle. He suggested that it would take place in Miami. He was a right-wing extremist. The police investigated the matter and passed on the word to the FBI and the SS. After the assassination, Milteer’s prediction was vindicated.

Kennedy made enemies by fighting the giant corporations. He awarded steel contracts to smaller companies that hadn’t been gouging people. Big business was furious.

Nixon and the JFK Assassination
Nixon rose to power by being an anti-Communist. He defeated Jerry Voorhis and Helen Douglas. He visited Cuba many times during the Eisenhower administration. He was in charge of the White House’s Bay of Pigs invasion plans. He had many ties to organized crime. Mickey Cohen contributed to his election bids in the 40’s. He pardoned Hoffa. In an FBI memo, he apparently met with Ruby in ’47 to discuss things concerning the House un-American activities. The FBI said the memo is a fake. But if it’s a fake, why was it in with other FBI paperwork? How many fakes does the FBI have?

Nixon was in Dallas on November 22, 1963. He says he was there to seal a deal for Pepsi. However, Pepsi records do not confirm a meeting taking place at this time and place. When Nixon became President, he opened up Russia and got Pepsi an exclusive deal with the Soviet Union. Nixon cannot get his whereabouts for that day straight either.

The WR says that Oswald wanted to kill Nixon. But Marina’s testimony, the only evidence that exists that this attempted attack took place, is contradictory.

In the WH tapes, Nixon and Haldeman talk about the Bay of Pigs and its relationship to the Watergate break-in. Specifically, Nixon was concerned with Howard Hunt. He said that Hunt knew too much and Nixon paid off Hunt to keep him quiet. Since Hunt was a CIA trainer for the Cuban exiles, his background would lead to the Bay of Pigs. But why worry about the Bay of Pigs? It had happened 11 years earlier.

Many of the WC were placed in the Nixon administration. Nixon also was consorting with Santos Trafficante in the last few days of his Presidency. He used Trafficante to make payoffs. He also made Ford, a WC member, his VP after Agnew resigned.

A Killing on Wall Street
There were some unusual business deals that netted tons of money because of JFK’s death. In addition to this, Kennedy wanted to break the back of the Federal Reserve. He depleted the oil reserve which cost oilmen millions. He signed a bill changing the backing of the $1 from silver to gold. He proposed tax breaks for the poor and elderly.

Kennedy and the Oilmen
The history of oil and corruption in America goes back to Teapot Dome. Eisenhower was heavily backed by oilmen. He stopped the grand jury investigation into the international petroleum cartel, citing reasons of national security. In ’53, the CIA backed the Shah in his coup. The coup was masterminded by Kermit Roosevelt. In ’56, the British and French were ousted from the Middle East. The oil companies moved in.

Kennedy passed what would be known as the Kennedy Act which would tax oil dollars that were reinvested overseas. He then got rid of the oil depletion allowance. This got rid of the tax breaks that the oilmen enjoyed.

Oswald’s Friends
Oswald’s closest friend in Dallas was DeMohrenschildt. He was born in czarist Russia on the Polish border. He was friends with the Bouviers. He claims he worked for French intelligence during WWII but he may have worked for the Germans. He was closely connected to Russians who were part General Vlassov’s group. These Russians fought communism; many ended up in the CIA.

He traveled the world as an oil engineer. CIA memos state that DeMohrenschildt was working for intel when he went to Yugoslavia and Central America. DeMohrenschildt’s friends in Dallas were all oilmen. He was friends with J. Walter Moore, CIA Domestic Contact Service. Moore said that DeMohrenschildt was either FBI or CIA. Moore checked on Oswald for DeMohrenschildt and told him that Lee Harvey Oswald was a harmless lunatic. DeMohrenschildt tried to help Oswald and his young family. The rest of the Russian community could take or leave Oswald, however. When DeMohrenschildt saw Oswald’s rifle, he made a crack about the Walker shooting. Jeanne says the incident was different than how it was portrayed in the WR.

After the assassination, George’s health deteriorated. He became paranoid in the 70’s. He was found dead from a shotgun blast to the head. It was ruled a suicide. His doctor during this time has a strange role. Jeanne and Marrs suggest that he may have been part of a plot to discredit and kill DeMohrenschildt.

All the Way with LBJ
LBJ ran for the Senate in ’48 after serving as a congressman for a few terms. The election was very close and it’s possible that LBJ stole the election. He was associated with some criminals in Dallas. He received cash contributions from some members, too. His anticrime record was atrocious. He and Hoover worked together to keep their political lives prosperous.

Kennedy asked LBJ to be his running mate in order to be conciliatory; he didn’t think LBJ would take him up on it. LBJ accepted. Hoover and LBJ both knew they would be dropped in the 2nd term. Both had a great deal to lose if that happened. Both had a great to gain by JFK’s death.
Summary
Kennedy made a belated attempt to improve civil rights. This earned him the hatred of right-wing extremists. Among them was General Walker. The WC’s placement of the blame for Walker shooting is full of holes. Kennedy’s business actions were upsetting to right-wing extremists in Texas. These groups were responsible for the “Welcome Mr. Kennedy” ad and the “Wanted for Treason” handbills. Nixon was in Dallas on the day of the assassination. But his testimony is full of inconsistencies. He is also connected to Ruby and Hoffa. Kennedy’s business activities included the Federal Reserve moves and the oil reserve depletion. One member of the oil community in Dallas was a Russian named DeMohrenschildt who was best friends with Oswald. LBJ had many ties with Texas oilmen. Hoover and LBJ had the most to gain by killing JFK. LBJ also sealed the records until 2039—75 years after the WR, suggesting that he didn’t want anyone he was associated with to be implicated in the assassination while they were still alive.

Soldiers
A problem exists in the U.S. because the civilians want control over the military but there exists a military industrial complex that has other ideas.

The Military-Industrial Complex
Eisenhower addressed the danger of the MIC during his farewell address. The power of the MIC was growing even in peace time. But Americans were determined not to be taken by surprise, so we most always guard against the unwarranted acquisition of power from the MIC.

Kennedy felt that the CIA and the Pentagon had deceived him by exaggerating reports. He wanted the NSC to control the CIA. He signed NSAM’s that said the military would have control over paramilitary operations during peacetime. He signed a nuclear test ban treaty with the Soviets. He tried to reduce the military budget and close down bases all over the world. He set up the “hotline” with Russia.

Kennedy and Vietnam
LBJ’s policies were similar to JFK’s except in Vietnam. Kennedy had promised O’Donnell that he would pull out of Vietnam by ’65; LBJ’s actions provoked the war. The Bay of Pigs taught Kennedy that he could not trust the CIA. But he couldn’t pull out of Vietnam right away either because it would provoke another red scare. In September ’63, Kennedy said that the Vietnam War was theirs to win or lose. The Army Intel office was told to stand down when they offered to protect the President.

Lt. Revill was a DPD officer. He had a list of TSBD employees that had Lee Harvey Oswald living at 605 Elsbeth Street. He had lived at 602 but had since moved and had never given this address to the TSBD. The Army Intel office Dallas maintained a file on Oswald and their address for him had this same mistake: 605. Also, they called him Harvey Lee Oswald, the same name that (Wade) called him during the press conference before correcting himself. Lt. Col. Robert Jones worked at the 112th MIG. He got a call saying that an A.J. Hidell was arrested for the assassination. He looked up that name and found it cross indexed with Oswald. Oswald never used this alias in all the documents that the government produced. He used it to buy a rifle and a revolver and the name appears on his fictitious identifications. This means that military intel had independent knowledge of Oswald buying the guns used in the assassination for they were framing him. This file on Oswald was destroyed before the HSCA could get their hands on it.

Summary
There are so many ties between the intelligence community and the JFK assassination that one must conclude that they were responsible at least for the cover-up. Since the intelligence community was threatened by JFK’s philosophy, they had motive and means to carry out his execution.

Part III: Aftermath
Dallas
Many strange things took place on that day in Dallas. The TSBD was not sealed off for over 10 minutes and maybe longer. Many of the TSBD’s employees were missing during the roll calls. There were bullet marks on the cement near the manhole cover. And many cops said that there were bullets that struck the ground. Some bullets were reported taken by unidentified police.

Richard Lester discovered a 6.5mm round but the ballistics tests indicated that it was not fired by Oswald. A piece of skull was found by a college student; it was never mentioned by the WC. Richard Carr saw 2 men get into a Nash Rambler and speed away after the assassination. Carr said in an interview that the FBI told him what to testify. Carr was the victim of several attacks.

Acquila Clemmons and Ed Hoffman claim that the authorities told them to keep quiet. Howard Brennan’s boss said that Howard was in fear for his life until he died.

Mysterious Secret Service Men
DPD officer Joe Smith saw a SS man on the Grassy Knoll. Gordon Arnold also said he encountered a SS man near the knoll. Constable Seymour Weitzman saw SS on the Grassy Knoll too. DPD D.V. Harkness saw SS in the TSBD. Only Sorrells admits to coming back to the scene after the assassination; he came back after an hour which is too late to be the SS man in question. Two high school boys saw cops pulling over a speeding car. The speeding car had SS men in it. But no SS are known to have left Dallas for New Orleans (the destination the men in the speeding car mentioned) at that time.

Jean Hill saw a man firing from behind the picket fence. She ran up the Grassy Knoll but only saw cops and railroad workers. She was taken into custody by the SS. She also said that the man she saw running from the scene bore a resemblance to Ruby.

The Black Car Chase
DPD officer Tilson said he was involved in a car chase on November 22nd with a man that looked like Ruby. Tilson was off duty and had his daughter with him. She corroborates his story. He took down the plate number and passed it on to the homicide bureau but nothing became of it.

Phil Willis took a picture on the day of the assassination that appears to have Ruby in it. The published version of that picture is always cropped to exclude Ruby.

Ruby is supposed to have been at the newspaper at the time but the newspaper is only 2 blocks away from Dealey Plaza. Seth Kantor saw Ruby at Parkland shortly after the assassination but the WC said he was mistaken.

The Strange Saga of Roger Craig
Roger Craig had earned 4 promotions during his tenure at Dallas. He was also Officer of the Year. He saw a station wagon leaving the scene with 2 men in it. He met a bogus SS man in the TSBD.

Craig claims to have been involved in the interrogation of Oswald. Captain Fritz dismisses this claim. In a photograph, however, Craig is seen to be in the room with Oswald just as he claimed he was. Craig never backed away from his story. He claimed he was the victim of murder attempts. He was found shot to death; it was ruled a suicide.

Lee Bowers and Officer Harkness saw the Three Tramps. One of the 3 was Harrelson.

The Role of Hitman Harrelson
Charles V. Harrelson is a convicted assassin. He was probably one of the Three Tramps. He has many connections to Ruby through 3rd parties. When arrested, Harrelson had a business card of R. D. Matthews. Matthews is mentioned in the WR as an acquaintance of Ruby’s. He is obliquely connected to Ruby’s jeeps-to-Cuba scheme. The HSCA said that Ruby’s and Matthew’s relationship was much closer, however. Matthews was best man at Beverly Olivier’s wedding.

The Mafia Man in Dealey Plaza
Sheriff Lummie Lewis arrested a man named Jim Braden in the Dal-Tex building {he was trespassing?}. He was released after 3 hours. Later, it turned out that he was Eugene Hale Brading and had been arrested over 30 times.

He was on business with Lamar Hunt on November 21—Ruby was also at Lamar’s about this time. Both Ruby and Lamar denied that they had been to Hunt’s but their presence is corroborated by more than one officer worker. Braden was staying at the Cabana Motel which is where Ruby was at on the 21st. Braden also had connections to Meyer Lansky. He also has connections to Ferrie. He has also been identified in photos of Dealey Plaza.

The Shooting of J. D. Tippit
Much of the evidence that Oswald was the killer of Tippit does not withstand scrutiny. He was identified by many of the witnesses. However, some of the witnesses were not quite so sure. Others were shown faulty lineups. Some had seen Oswald’s face ahead of time on television or by police photos and so their testimony is dismissible. Some witnesses saw 2 men at the shooting. Warren Reynolds chased Tippit’s killer for a few blocks. He was shot in the head 2 months later.

The cartridge cases found at the scene do not match with the bullets pulled out of Tippit’s body. The chain of evidence concerning the cartridges was compromised. Oswald’s jacket was found along the path of the assassin. However, many people are at odds with what color and what type of jacket it was. The jacket found had a dry cleaning tag in it. Marina said that she washed Oswald’s clothes and that he didn’t go to dry cleaners. Furthermore, the laundry place where this tag came from was not located in Dallas or New Orleans.

Oswald needed to move pretty quickly to get from his boarding house to the scene of the crime in time to commit the murder of Tippit. Helen Markham was on her way to catch a 1:12pm bus. But the murder was supposed to take place at 1:15. A more accurate time frame would mean that Oswald was not there and therefore was not guilty of shooting Tippit.
The Arrest of Oswald
Police converged on the Texas Theatre by the carload in order to arrest Oswald for not paying for his movie ticket. Some man sitting on in the theatre tipped Officer MacDonald as to where Oswald was.

George Applin told the WC that he didn’t recognize the man sitting in the same row as Oswald. But in ’79, he gave an interview in which he said the man was Ruby.

The concession stand operator, Butch Burroughs, said that the man arrested that day came into the theatre a little after 1pm whereas the man who snuck in came in at 1:35pm. This story is confirmed by Davis, a theatre patron. Another witness saw police walk an arrested man out of the backdoor. Who was this arrested man?

It took the police several hours to charge Oswald with either crime. With Oswald in custody, his guilt was assumed. When he was dead, forces moved against him to ensure that he would forever be so presumed. Hoover told LBJ that they had to convince the public that Lee Harvey Oswald was the real assassin. The Senate Select Committee said that Hoover worked almost immediately after the assassination to reach this goal. Wade said that he was pressured by LBJ to suppress any information regarding a conspiracy. The FBI had no jurisdiction over the killing but they took it over. To further block any investigations, LBJ formed the Warren Commission.

Summary
The TSBD was not sealed until 20 minutes later. Security on the Grassy Knoll was nowhere to be found. Some evidence was removed from the scene of the crime. Some witnesses saw Oswald leave the scene in a Nash Rambler, not a taxi. Many witnesses saw Jack Ruby at Dealey Plaza. Oswald’s guilt concerning the Tippit slaying doesn’t hold up to scrutiny. Many witnesses have suggested that it was not Oswald who snuck into the Texas Theatre without paying. All this, coupled with the official cover-up leads Marrs to conclude there was a conspiracy.

Two Hospitals
Although the murder of JFK was a Dallas homicide, his body was moved to Bethesda. The magic bullet was found on a stretcher but this stretcher was probably not Connally’s.

Jack Ruby at Parkland
News reporter Seth Kantor spoke to Ruby briefly at Parkland on 22 November 1963. Ruby denied this and the WC believed Ruby, not Kantor. Kantor’s story is supported by Wilma Tice. The HSCA reversed the WC’s stance on Kantor’s allegation of Ruby being at Parkland.

At Bethesda, the doctors who performed the autopsy were not experienced with gunshot wounds. The autopsy was being controlled by unknown, high-ranking military men. Dr. Finck was not allowed to track the bullet wound. The autopsy doctors were ordered not to discuss their findings.

The wound on the back is lower than the throat wound—an impossibility if the shooter was firing from behind and above Kennedy. The WC published the back wound 5 ½” higher on Kennedy’s back to compensate. Furthermore, the Dallas doctors said that Kennedy’s right, rear skull portion was blasted out. The Bethesda doctors do not confirm this. The President’s wounds were probably altered post mortem. This is confirmed by witnesses who saw Kennedy’s casket before and after leaving Air Force One.

The David Lifton Investigation
Lifton was a former NASA engineer. He interviewed both sets of doctors. His book, Best Evidence, reports that there are discrepancies in the wounds and in the manner of Kennedy’s transport. Kennedy’s body was wrapped in a sheet in Dallas. But the techs in Maryland said he was in a body bag. The casket that the 2 sets of witnesses describe is quite different. These witnesses include O’Conner and Stover. Lifton’s theories about what happened have stood the test of time. He believes that the President’s body was removed and that wounds were added to it in order to corroborate the lone assassin theory.

Dr. Humes burned his autopsy notes. Dr. Robert Shaw said that a bullet was lodged in Kennedy’s lung.

The following doctors disagree with the official autopsy photos: Perry, Carrico, Clark and McClelland. Groden believes the photos are a fake. The WC was not allowed to view the autopsy photos. This is confirmed by Specter. He said the photos would have been redundant because they had the testimony of the autopsy surgeons.

Summary
Much of the Kennedy medical evidence is flawed or missing. The autopsy was conducted under military orders. The autopsy would not stand up in a court of law.

Jack Ruby
DPD Lt. Dyson said he met Ruby in Wade’s office on the 21st. He told the WC that Ruby said, “You don’t know me but you will.” The WC concluded that Ruby had no ties to organized crime. This is probably untrue. Ruby also tried to tell about the plot against Kennedy but was shrugged off. Ruby named LBJ as one of the people.

Ruby was a bag man for Al Capone. He was good with his fists. Ruby was friends with Leon Cooke, an attorney for a Chicago union. Cooke was shot to death by union president John Martin. Martin offered the union job to Ruby but Ruby declined. The new president, Paul Dorfman, had long standing ties to organized crime. RFK mentioned how Hoffa used Dorfman to expand his operations.

Sheriff Guthrie said that Ruby was part of a Chicago mob plan to put the DPD in their pocket. The WC dismissed this claim because Ruby is not mentioned in the Paul Roland Jones report. Ruby was from Chicago and was associated with many of Sam Giancana’s men—Giancana was the head of Chicago’s organized crime during this period.

Ruby was also higher on the social scale than the official reports are to have us believe.

Jack Ruby—Gangster
Pages 387 to 389 detail many of Ruby’s associates who were known to be involved in organized crime. One associate was Harry Hall. He has connections to H.L. Hunt, Roselli and Brading. Ruby was into gambling and narcotics.

Jack Ruby—Gun Runner and Agent
Ruby made 2 trips to Cuba in ’59. The mob was selling weapons to Castro, not anticipating the Cuban leader’s desire for social reform. The gun running was overseen by Trafficante’s men. The FBI had information that Ruby was involved in this scheme. Trafficante’s man for this operation was Rothman. He was connected to Browder. Browder was hanging around Sturgis at this time.

Circling all this gun running is Ruby’s idol, McWillie. McWillie receives little treatment in the WC and the HSCA. The WC concluded that McWillie’s trips to Cuba were social but the HSCA did not.

After Trafficante was arrested by Castro in Cuba, Ruby contacted Robert McKeown. McKeown was a gun runner. McKeown was involved in Ruby’s aborted jeeps-to-Cuba plan. He was also involved with a man who called himself Lee Oswald that wanted rifles.

A HSCA memo says that McWillie told them that Ruby went to Cuba in ’59 to visit Trafficante in jail. Ruby was also an FBI informant. He met with the FBI 9 times during the time that Trafficante was in jail. The same CIA man that was following Oswald into Mexico in ’63 was keeping tabs on Ruby in the days just before the assassination.

The FBI had monitored meetings between Roselli and Ruby in the months leading up to the assassination. Roselli told Jack Anderson that Ruby was “one of our boys” (p. 401).

The Woman who Foresaw the Assassination
Rose Cheramie is on record prior to the assassination as saying that JFK would be killed. She also knew Ruby. Louisiana state trooper Fruge talked with about it. He contacted Will Fritz of the DPD but Fritz wasn’t interested. She was found dead in ’65.

Did Ruby and Oswald Know Each Other?
Both the WC and the HSCA concluded that they did not know each other. The body of evidence that suggests this is wrong is growing. Even General Walker disagrees. Madeleine Brown said in the spring of ’63 she was at the Carousel Club. People were talking about who shot at Walker. Ruby blurted out that someone named Oswald had done the shooting.

Raymond Cummings was a cabdriver. He said he picked up Ferrie and Oswald and drove them to the Carousel Club in early ’63. Many of the employees of the Carousel Club admit that Oswald was there. The WC brushed off the accounts of Crowe, Crafard and Patterson. The WC ignored Olivier and Cheramie.

Olivier also said that Ferrie was in the Carousel Club.

Carroll Jarnagin is an eccentric lawyer. He overheard Ruby talking to Oswald about an assassination attempt regarding RFK and Connally. He contacted the authorities right away but nothing came of it. He contacted the FBI and the DPD after the assassination as well; his interview is buried in the WR. His story is pinpointed to the date of October 4, ’63.

The Shooting of Lee Harvey Oswald
The WC and the media proclaimed that Ruby shot Lee Harvey Oswald out of grief and that there was no conspiracy involved. The reason Ruby gave at trial was a legal ploy given to him by his lawyer.
He claims he was at the paper during the assassination sequence. But many people say they saw him at Dealey Plaza. Furthermore, Dealey Plaza is only a few blocks from the paper. Witnesses say they saw him at Parkland after the assassination. During a press conference, Ruby corrected Wade who mistakenly said that Oswald was part of a right-wing group.

Officer Billy Grammar got a call from Ruby before the Oswald slaying. The caller, later identified as Ruby, said that Oswald was going to get shot in police custody.

Ruby bought a money order just moments before killing Oswald. This has caused lone nut theorists to conclude that his action to kill Oswald as being spontaneous. However, it would seem more likely that Oswald’s transfer was given the “all clear” sign only after Ruby had finally arrived. Seth Kantor wrote a book called Who was Jack Ruby. He alleges that Ruby began seeking legal counsel before killing Oswald. Ruby’s first lawyer was in the DPD basement watching the transfer. A cop saw Tom Howard there. Jim Leavelle was handcuffed to Oswald. He said he didn’t understand why the transfer was being delayed so long.

The WC and the HSCA disagree on the manner in which Ruby entered the DPD.

Roselli told Anderson that the mob wanted Oswald silenced. Oswald was to be transported in an unmarked car. He was shot just feet from there. He was taken back into the offices where the cops tried to resuscitate him. They did this instead of putting him in a car and driving him to the hospital. Oswald would die on the way to the hospital.

Don Ray Archer, a DPD officer, was guarding Ruby in his cell. Ruby was noticeable nervous and acting out of character. When word came that Oswald was dead and that Ruby would most likely be electrocuted, Ruby relaxed and assumed his normal composure.

Henry Wade made a case for premeditation but skirted the issue of conspiracy.

Ruby did not testify at his trial. He was, however, interviewed by the WC. He told them that he was in danger and intimated that he had information for them if he returned to D.C. with them. He was given a lie detector test. He passed it but the WC doesn’t give it any credence.

The Mysterious Death of Jack Ruby
Ruby attempted suicide a few times while on death row. He wrote nasty letters while there. These letters suggest that there was a conspiracy involved. Ruby was given an injection. He was diagnosed with cancer soon after that. He claimed that he was injected with cancer cells.

His brother Earl tape recorded Ruby saying that there was no conspiracy.

Summary
Jack Ruby’s background is laced with mob contacts. These included Capone, Trafficante, Marcello and Hoffa. In addition to this, he was gun running to Cuba and was a possible informant to the FBI. There are many connections to Ruby and Oswald.

The Evidence
There was a ton of photographic and eye witness evidence to the Kennedy killing. The WC saw 126 of the 266 available witnesses. Of these 126, 51 said they heard shots coming from the vicinity of the Grassy Knoll and 38 gave no opinion. Only 32 indicated the TSBD. Even 4 policemen said the Grassy Knoll was where the shots came from. Some of the witnesses were pressured to give false testimony. O’Donnell and Powers were among them.

The sniper’s nest was moved around before the evidence could be impartially obtained. The shells that were found and then photographed were probably moved by the police before being photographed. Furthermore, it seems unlikely that the assassin would hide a rifle but leave the rounds on the floor. The chain of evidence on the cartridges was also broken.

Some officers reported seeing a 7.65 Mauser, not a Mannlicher-Carcano. Even Wade said that to the press. The WC said that the cops were mistaken but didn’t bother explaining (nor reporting) why Wade made the error. Before test firing the rifle, the FBI added metal shims to the scope for accuracy. The serial number of the Oswald Mannlicher-Carcano is not necessarily unique. Oswald’s possessions did not include any rifle cleaning equipment. The paraffin test performed on Oswald’s cheek was negative.

An Incriminating Palmprint
The palmprint would not be admissible in a court case because there is no chain of evidence. The FBI found no prints on it. While in the morgue, Oswald was fingerprinted again. An FBI memo says that even Rankin had difficulty in believing in the validity of the palmprint.

The magic bullet is open to scrutiny. Cyril Wecht is the leading critic of this evidence. He has asked the WC to produce 1 test that demonstrates that a bullet can make the wounds this bullet is supposed to have inflicted and then remain in the condition that this bullet is in. Both commissions failed to use emission spectrography to prove that the bullet fragments in Connally or Kennedy were from the magic bullet.

The paper bag that Oswald used to bring in the rifle had no oil on it but the rifle did. No traces of the paper bag were found on the rifle. Randle and Frazier disagree with the WR’s assertion about what Oswald carried into the TSBD.

The limo was completely cleaned out on orders of LBJ.

Questionable Backyard Photos
These pictures convicted Lee Harvey Oswald in the public’s mind. Marina testified that she took the pictures. Oswald claimed that his head was superimposed upon someone else’s body. He said he prove this in time.

The backgrounds in the 3 photos are identical when their sizes are made to be the same. This sameness suggests that they were taken on a tripod (not by Marina) or they are fakes. This fakery is supported by foreign photographic experts. These tests suggest that there was a tilting of the easel. And if the backyard photos are fakes, then they are the product of an extensive effort to frame Lee Harvey Oswald.

Reenactment Problems
The men in charge of the reenactment reported many problems and inconsistencies. The set up for the tests were inconsistent with the Zapruder film.
Summary
The evidence against Oswald falls apart upon closer inspection. This evidence includes the palmprint, eyewitnesses, the reenactment and the backyard photos.

The Warren Commission
Hoover sent LBJ a report that supported the contention that Oswald acted alone. Katzenbach wrote a memo to LBJ’s aide Bill Moyers stating that the public must be convinced of Oswald’s guilt. Texas attorney general Waggoner Carr began investigating the crime on November 25; the Senate began the same thing on the following day. The House was going to follow suit. Johnson decided to put a stop to this.

The Reluctant Chairman
Earl Warren grew up in L.A. He graduated from law school at UC Berkeley in 1912. He fought in WWI. He moved to Oakland after the war and became a young DA. He became California’s attorney general in the late 30’s. He became governor in ’42. He ran as VP against Truman in ’48. He became a justice under Eisenhower. He ruled on Brown vs. Board of Education. He voted for JFK.

Warren was resistant to being on the commission. LBJ convinced him that it was in the best interests of the country. The commission had a dual purpose: find Kennedy’s killer and quell public fears at home and abroad.

The WC also consisted of Hale Boggs, D-LA. He was the most vocal critic among the WC. He vanished on October 12, 1972 in a junket flight over Alaska. The plane was never found.

Senator John Sherman Cooper expressed dissatisfaction with the SBT. Senator Richard Russell said in ’70 that he believed that JFK’s death was the result of a criminal conspiracy.
Warren wanted Warren Olney III to be head counsel but Olney was an open critic of Hoover’s. Hoover maneuvered to have Rankin be head counsel.

The WC wrestled with the idea of interviewing Jackie—they never did interview her. Over a dozen pages of a lengthy discussion concerning LBJ, Jackie and the WC was classified; the public hasn’t viewed this to this day.

Oswald and the FBI
Rankin told the WC that there was a rumor that Oswald was an FBI undercover agent. They discussed the peculiarities of Oswald’s trip to the Soviet Union, his dealings with the Embassy, etc. Boggs was very concerned. Waggoner Carr broke the news of Oswald being an agent as well.

The 6 panels of the WC were: basic facts of the assassination; identify the assassin; Oswald’s bio; investigate any conspiracies; Oswald’s murder; Presidential protection.

Conflicts of Testimony
Cooper expressed concern over witnesses who told one story to the WC and another to news interviewers.
Marrs attacks the WR for its omissions. These omissions include the exclusion of many witnesses listed on pages 478-479. Many witnesses claim their testimony was altered in the WR from what they said or intended. These are relayed on pages 479-481. The rest of chapter considers witnesses such as Jean Hill who were intimidated.

The Single-Bullet Theory
To believe the SBT is unpalatable. To disbelieve it, you must reject the entire WR.

The WC was behind schedule. They hadn’t reached a conclusion by June ’64.

The WC used psychologists to support their contentions about Oswald. Many psychologists disagree with this approach. They gave an analysis of Oswald that was highly conjectural.

Johnson refused to be interviewed by the WC. After the WR was released, the WC disbanded, denying the public an opportunity to question them.

Sylvia Meagher is a WC critic. She gives several reasons why she’s a critic on page 489-90. Other critics and their complaints complete this chapter.

Summary
P. 492-493 sum up the previous text.

The Garrison Investigation
Jack Martin was with Guy Banister on November 22, 1963. Banister pistol whipped Martin. Martin and Ferrie became center figures in the Garrison case.

Earling Carothers Garrison went by the name Jim. He was a veteran of WWII and an ex-FBI man. He became a DA in Orleans parish. He fought 8 judges on a defamation case and won.

Garrison interviewed Ferrie. He didn’t believe Ferrie’s alibi. He turned Ferrie over to the FBI but the FBI let him go. Garrison was intimidated by the credentials of the members of the WC.

When he investigated Oswald’s background, he found weird activities. These included Banister’s address. He interviewed Dean Andrews. Andrews told the WC that he was called by Clay Bertrand to represent Oswald but then recanted that statement.

Clay Shaw and Permindex
Shaw was in the U.S. army during WWII. He was involved with military intelligence. He founded the International Trade Mart after the war. This trade mart was connected to the Italian organization CMC which had ties to the underworld. It was also connected to the CMC through Permindex (Permanent Industrial Expositions). This company was connected to the OAS which de Gaulle accused of trying to assassinate him. Guy Banister was connected to the OAS. Permindex and the P2 lodge were expelled from Italy in ’62.

Victor Marchetti wrote in The CIA and the Cult of Intelligence that Helms told him that Ferrie and Shaw were CIA agents. This information would have been helpful to Garrison.
Ferrie was found dead with 2 unsigned suicide notes. His death was ruled “natural causes.” His Cuban contact in Miami, Eladio del Valle, was murdered on the same day.

Garrison had Shaw arrested. In his personal address book, Shaw had the address P.O. 19106 listed. This same address appears in Lee Harvey Oswald’s address book.

During the trial, some of Garrison’s witnesses said that they were drugged. Garrison gave some of them truth serum in order to demonstrate their integrity. Much of the media distorted or lied about Garrison during this time. His office was bugged.

Gordon Novel was a CIA plant that was going to testify for Garrison. He turned up in the Nixon tapes as an electronics expert who was going to erase the tapes. He also turned up in the DeLorean case as an expert electrician.

Garrison plowed ahead with his case. His goal was to prove that there was a conspiracy to kill Kennedy and that Shaw was a part of that conspiracy. He proved the 1st part but not the 2nd. Garrison’s case was set back by several dirty tricks and by perjurers. Judge Haggerty refused to allow Aloysius Habighorst to testify that Shaw used an alias. He claimed that he wouldn’t believe anything that Habighorst had to say anyway.

The HSCA has condemned Garrison and his trial as being a fraud. Garrison claimed that Kennedy was killed by anti-Castro Cubans and other right-wing groups because he wanted reconciliation with the Soviet Union.

Summary
Garrison’s case suffered from several setbacks. He was attacked in the press for his beliefs. Garrison’s investigation focused its attention on the American intelligence community whereas the 2 official commissions ignored this completely. In spite of it all, Garrison was elected to a judgeship and remained there until the 80’s.

The House Select Committee on Assassinations
Nagging doubts by the public concerning the lone assassination theory caused the House to form the HSCA. The HSCA had lots of problems. The HSCA was started by Henry Gonzalez. Downing was the lame duck head of the HSCA. He selected Fensterwald to be the committee’s chief counsel; Gonzalez objected and Fensterwald withdrew his nomination. He was probably a CIA plant. Richard Sprague was chosen instead.

Sprague reopened the MLK and the JFK cases. Sprague was too busy fending off media attacks to get much done. Plus he was friends with Arlen Specter.

The HSCA contacted DeMohrenschildt to have him testify. He was shot to death the day he was to meet with the committee.

Blakey at the Helm
G. Robert Blakey was a law professor at Notre Dame. With Blakey in charge, the HSCA worked in secret. His connections to top administration officials caused concern among assassination buffs. He forced everyone on the committee to sign non-disclosure agreements. Both the FBI and the CIA had a direct say in the witness list of the HSCA. Blakey was more than naïve, however. He didn’t question Oswald’s 201 file with the CIA or why his files were almost completely empty.

The HSCA failed to call many important people to the stand. Also, they failed to question strange pieces of evidence. Blakey wanted the HSCA to reevaluate the previous evidence.

The Dallas Police Radio Recording
The HSCA uncovered the police radio recording. This recording was taken in Dealey Plaza at the time of the shooting. The recording was analyzed by experts. They concluded that there was a second gunman that fired from the Grassy Knoll. The tape also showed that one shot came only 1.6 seconds after another shot. The researchers shot a .38 caliber from the Grassy Knoll to simulate the sound. Why? No one knows why they chose this weapon or how they knew it would be appropriate to the sound testing. Even considering this, there are 4 sounds (shots?) unaccounted for.

There was a lot of controversy over these findings. The cop whose mike was left on, Officer McLain, reversed his testimony about whether it was his mike or not. The tape was submitted to Harvard physics department. They concluded there was no Grassy Knoll shot. However, Gary Mack claims that their testing was biased because Harvard assumed that the DPD had AGS circuitry and the DPD in fact did not have such technology.

The HSCA concluded that there was probably a conspiracy but couldn’t finger any of the other assassins.

Robert Groden charged that the autopsy photos were fakes. Page 534 has a list of the doctors who concur. The HSCA did not investigate.

Summary
The HSCA was pressured by Congress and hamstrung by the FBI and the CIA. Many material witnesses died or were murdered during this time.

Was Oswald really Oswald?
In June ’60, Hoover stated that someone was using Oswald’s name and birth certificate. 2 weeks before the assassination, someone in the State Department checked out Oswald’s file. While in New Orleans, the FBI and the intelligence community was keeping tabs on Oswald. Many people reported that they saw Oswald at places and times that were inconvenient for the WC. When they encountered this problem, the WC simply ignored their claim or said that they were mistaken. Pages 540-545 have several such examples.

Oswald’s autopsy did not reveal the known scars he had. Was the Oswald that was shot in Dallas the same Oswald that was born in New Orleans in ’39?

Oswald spoke impeccable, almost native Russian. He also spoke deliberate, almost instructed English. Language experts studied audio tapes of Oswald. They agreed that he learned English late in life.

Oswald’s family all remarked at how different the man from Russia was from the Oswald that they remembered. They asked for the body to be exhumed. He acted out of character and said unusual things in their presence. {Note: Oswald was mostly estranged from his family in the year and half he was in the States before the assassination—perhaps to avoid be detected…}

His body was exhumed. The doctors said that this body was definitely that of Lee Harvey Oswald.

New Questions on Oswald
Paul Groody testified that the head of the body that was exhumed was not the head of a man who had been autopsied because he was missing the distinctive scar. Thus, the body was not the same one that was buried in ’63. Also, the seal on the casket had been ruptured. This could happen by accident but it is highly unusual.

Summary
There is a lot of evidence that someone was impersonating Oswald in the months leading up to the assassination. If this is the case, then it bolsters the claim that Oswald was framed. If he was framed, then the question becomes who killed Kennedy?

Convenient Deaths
A British actuary concluded that the odds against 18 material witnesses that died in the 2 ½ years after Kennedy was killed were approximately 100,000 trillion to 1. There is some debate about this figure’s legitimacy.
P. 558-563 are a list of these suspicious deaths.

During the HSCA’s lifespan, there were another slew of deaths. P. 565-566 show these.

Conclusions
1. Oswald was in intelligence activities on behalf of the U.S. government.
2. He probably didn’t kill Kennedy or Tippit.
3. If he did participate in the assassination, he was not alone.
4. He was framed.
5. This framing proves there was a conspiracy.
6. Due to the nature of the cover-up, the federal government must have known about the conspiracy.
7. The 2 most powerful men in the country, LBJ and Hoover, benefited from JFK’s death.

Assassination Coverage
The U.S. media helped the WC by printing that Oswald was the lone assassin. They never backed away from this position either. There was always a presumption of guilt that guided the investigation.

A Likely Scenario
There were many groups that wanted Kennedy killed. These included anti-Castro Cubans, Big Oil, Big Banking, organized crime and the intelligence community. Prouty said that most assassination efforts are efforts to remove protection more than they are to perform the assassination itself.

These groups assassinated Kennedy in order to benefit monetarily from his death. After Kennedy was killed, the Vietnam War began in earnest. Negotiations with Russia stopped.