On
22nd November, 1963, President John F. Kennedy
arrived in Dallas,
Texas. It was decided that Kennedy and his party, including his wife, Jackie
Kennedy, Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson,
Governor John Connally and Senator Ralph
Yarborough, would travel in a procession of cars through the business district
of Dallas. A pilot car and several motorcycles rode ahead of the presidential
limousine. As well as Kennedy the limousine included his wife, John Connally,
his wife Nellie, Roy
Kellerman,
head of the Secret Service at the White House and the driver, William
Greer. The
next car carried eight Secret Service Agents. This was followed by a car containing
Lyndon Johnson and Ralph Yarborough.
John
Connally, Nellie Connally, John Kennedy
and Jackie Kennedy in the presidential
limousine.
At
about 12.30 p.m. the presidential limousine entered Elm Street. Soon afterwards
a shot was fired. Secret Service agent Roy
Kellerman
said to the
driver, William
Greer,
"let's get out of here." However, Greer hits the breaks. More bullets
were fired and John
F. Kennedy
was hit by
bullets that hit him in the head and the left shoulder. Another bullet hit John
Connally
in the back.
At this point Jackie
Kennedy
crawled onto the trunk of the limousine.
At the sametime Secret Service agent Clint
Hill,
runs forward from the car behind. As he reaches the limousine he heard her say:
"I have a piece of his brain in my hand." Hill managed to get onto the
trunk and shove her back into the car, placing his body over hers and the Presidents.
Clint
Hill gets onboard to help Jackie Kennedy.
Ten
seconds after the first shots had been fired the president's car accelerated off
at high speed towards Parkland Memorial Hospital. Both men were carried into separate
emergency rooms. Connally had wounds to his back, chest, wrist and thigh. Kennedy's
injuries were far more serious. He had a massive wound to the head and at 1 p.m.
he was declared dead.
Witnesses
at the scene of the assassination claimed they had seen shots being fired from
behind a wooden fence on the Grassy Knoll and from the Texas School Book Depository.
The police investigated these claims and during a search of the Texas School Book
Police Depository they discovered on the floor by one of the sixth floor windows,
three empty cartridge cases. They also found a Mannlicher-Carcano rifle hidden
beneath some boxes.
At
1.16 p.m. J. D. Tippit, a Dallas policeman, approached
a man walking along East 10th Street. A witness later testified that after a short
conversation the man pulled out a hand gun and fired a number of shots at Tippet.
The man run off leaving the dying Tippet on the ground.
Twenty
minutes later, Johnny Brewer, a manager of a shoe shop, saw a man who appeared
to be hiding from passing police cars. He called the police after he saw the man
enter a cinema. When the police arrived Brewer accompanied the officers into the
cinema where he pointed out the man he had seen acting in a suspicious manner.
After a brief struggle the man was arrested. His name was Lee
Harvey Oswald.
The
police soon found out that Oswald worked at the Texas Book Depository. They also
discovered his palm print on the Mannlicher-Carcano rifle that was found earlier
that day. Other evidence emerged that suggested that Oswald had been involved
in the killing of John F. Kennedy. Oswald's hand
prints were found on the book cartons and the brown paper bag. Charles Givens,
a fellow worker, testified that he saw Oswald on the sixth floor at 11.55 a.m.
Another witness, Howard Brennan, claimed he saw Oswald holding a rifle at the
sixth floor window.
The
police also discovered that the Mannlicher-Carcano rifle was purchased under the
name A. Hiddell. When he was arrested, the police found that Oswald was carrying
a forged identity card bearing the name Alek Hiddell. The rifle had been sent
by the mail order company from Chicago to P.O. Box 2915, Dallas, Texas. The Post
Office box belonged to Oswald.
While
being interrogated by the Dallas Police, Oswald denied he had been involved in
the killing of Kennedy. He claimed that he was a "patsy" (a term used
by the Mafia to describe someone set up to take the punishment for a crime they
did not commit).
On
24th November, 1963, the Dallas Police decided to transfer to Oswald to the county
jail. As Oswald was led through the basement of police headquarters a man rushed
forward and shot him in the stomach. The gunman was quickly arrested by police
officers. Lee Harvey Oswald died soon afterwards.
The man who killed him was identified as Jack
Ruby.
After
the death of John F. Kennedy, his deputy, Lyndon
B. Johnson,
was appointed president. He immediately set up a commission to "ascertain,
evaluate and report upon the facts relating to the assassination of the late President
John F. Kennedy." The seven man commission was headed by Chief Justice Earl
Warren and included Gerald Ford, Allen
W. Dulles, John J. McCloy, Richard
B. Russell, John
S. Cooper
and Thomas
H. Boggs.
The
Warren Commission reported
to President Johnson ten months later. It reached the following conclusions:
(1)
The shots which killed President Kennedy and wounded Governor Connally were fired
from the sixth floor window at the southeast corner of the Texas School Book Depository.
(2)
The weight of the evidence indicates that there were three shots fired.
(3)
Although it is not necessary to any essential findings of the Commission to determine
just which shot hit Governor Connally, there is very persuasive evidence from
the experts to indicate that the same bullet which pierced the President's throat
also caused Governor Connally's wounds. However, Governor Connally's testimony
and certain other factors have given rise to some difference of opinion as to
this probability but there is no question in the mind of any member of the Commission
that all the shots which caused the President's and Governor Connally's wounds
were fired from the sixth floor window of the Texas School Book Depository.
(4)
The shots which killed President Kennedy and wounded Governor Connally were fired
by Lee Harvey Oswald.
(5)
Oswald killed Dallas Police Patrolman J. D. Tippit approximately 45 minutes after
the assassination.
(6)
Within 80 minutes of the assassination and 35 minutes of the Tippit killing Oswald
resisted arrest at the theater by attempting to shoot another Dallas police officer.
(7)
The Commission has found no evidence that either Lee Harvey Oswald or Jack Ruby
was part of any conspiracy, domestic or foreign, to assassinate President Kennedy.
(8)
In its entire investigation the Commission has found no evidence of conspiracy,
subversion, or disloyalty to the U.S. Government by any Federal, State, or local
official.
(9)
On the basis of the evidence before the Commission it concludes that, Oswald acted
alone.
Open
Debate on the Kennedy Assassination
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