End of Days
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185 “Accosted” your wife. See the testimony of Captain J. W. Fritz, WC 4, p. 210.
185 Adjustment of handcuffs by Fritz and “thank you, thank you.” See the FBI report on interview with Oswald, Nov. 23, 1963, WC 28, CE 832, pp. 785–86; the testimony of Captain J. W. Fritz, WC 4, p. 238; and Hosty, Assignment Oswald, p. 22.
185 “I’m sorry for blowing up at you . . .” See Hosty, Assigment Oswald, p. 22.
185 “Do you own a rifle?” “Did you ever own a rifle?” See the testimony of J. W. Fritz, WC 4, p. 214.
185 “Yes, sir. He told me he had seen a rifle at the building 2 or 3 days before that Truly and some men were looking at it.” Ibid.
In fact, Roy Truly, Oswald’s supervisor, later testified before the Warren Commission that Warren Caster brought two weapons to work at the Texas School Book Depository on November 20, 1963. See the testimony of Roy Truly, WC 7, pp. 380–86. Warren Caster, the assistant manager of Southwestern Publishing Co., who had offices on the second floor of the Texas School Book Depository, identified these weapons as a Mauser and a .22-caliber rifle. See the testimony of Warren Caster, WC 7, pp. 386–88. Caster was unable to identify all the workers who might have seen his weapons that day, since they were removed from a carton in the hallway in front of the entrance to the warehouse. It is not in his testimony, but it is possible that Oswald may have seen these weapons as well. Castor stated that he showed them to them to Truly and William Shelley, another employee in the building. William Shelley remembers the seeing the two weapons, and mentions actually holding the .22 but not the Mauser. See the testimony of William Shelley, WC 7, pp. 390–93.
186 “I had one a good many years ago. It was a small rifle or something, but I have not owned one for a long time.” Ibid.
186 “Sure. Sure I’ve been to Mexico.” See Hosty, Assignment Oswald, p. 25.
186 Marina at Ruth Paine’s home, discovery of rifle missing. See the testimony of Marina Oswald, WC 1, p. 74.
187 “I knew that it was Lee.” Ibid.
188 The animosity between the Kennedy and LBJ camps was legendary. In early historical works, authors seemed to side with one group or the other. Today, modern historians have provided a more balanced approach, weighing the arrogance of Kennedy’s Eastern intellectual establishment against the manipulative political sense of LBJ. For a recent thoughtful appraisal of this rivalry in the hours and days immediately before and after the assassination, see Robert A. Caro, The Years of Lyndon Johnson: The Passage to Power (New York: Knopf, 2012), pp. 308–436.
188 LBJ labeled “cornpone” by Kennedy’s aides. Ibid., p. 344.
188 First thoughts of planning of funeral. For a comprehensive overview of the planning of the funeral, see Billy C. Mossman and B. C. Stark, The Last Salute: Civil and Military Funerals 1921–1969 (Washington, DC: Department of the Army, 1971), ch. 23, “President John F. Kennedy State Funeral, 22–25 November 1963,” pp. 188–215. See also U.S. Army Center for Military History, www.history.army.mil/books/Last_Salute/ch23.htm.
189 “How often do you go out there?” Ibid., 210.
189 “I don’t want to stay there . . .” Ibid.
189 Medals for marksmanship. See WC 24, CE 2003, p. 265.
189 “Why were you registered at the boarding house as O.H. Lee?” See the testimony of Captain J. W. Fritz, WC 4, p. 211.
189 Whether Oswald worked at Book Depository. See the testimony of Captain J. W. Fritz, WC 4, p. 213, and WC 17, CE 832, p. 785.
189 When Oswald went to lunch. See WC 17, CE 832, p. 786.
190 Getting a Coca-Cola, Oswald’s location at time of shooting, and going home. Ibid., and WC 24, CE 2003 (Dallas Police Department file), p. 265.
190 “I felt like it.” “You know how boys do when they have a gun, they just carry it.” See WC 24, CE 2003, p. 265 (Dallas Police Department file); WC 17, CE 832 (FBI report) p. 786; and Hosty, Assignment, p. 23.
190 “Did you shoot officer Tippit?” See the testimony of Captain J. W. Fritz, WC 3, p. 214.
190 “I hit the officer in the show; he hit me in the eye and I guess I deserved it. That is the only law I violated. That is the only thing I have done wrong.” Ibid., p. 214.
191 “Common laborer.” See Hosty, Assignment Oswald, p. 22.
191 Oswald denies shooting the president. See WC 17, CE 832, p. 786.
192 Questioning of Oswald by Secret Service Agent Forrest V. Sorrels. See the testimony of Forrest V. Sorrels, WC 7, pp. 332–60.
192 “I don’t know who you fellows are, a bunch of cops.” . . . “Aren’t you supposed to get me an attorney?” See the testimony of Forrest V. Sorrels, WC 7, p. 353.
192 “I just want to ask you some questions.” . . . “I don’t care to answer any more questions.” Ibid.
192 Calls from Air Force One. For a comprehensive treatment of the calls LBJ made from Air Force One, see Max Holland, The Kennedy Assassination Tapes: The White House Conversations of Lyndon B. Johnson Regarding the Assassination, the Warren Commission, and the Aftermath (New York: Knopf, 2004).
192 LBJ call to Rose Kennedy. In this brief conversation, the first LBJ made aboard Air Force One, Mrs. Kennedy addressed Johnson as Mr. President. Johnson was apparently “choked up” in this brief exchange and handed the telephone over to Lady Bird to finish the call. Ibid., pp. 45–47. Because Joseph Kennedy had suffered a stroke, it was the decision of the family not to immediately tell the patriarch about JFK’s death.
193 Lineup. See the testimony of Dallas Police Officers W. E. Perry and Richard L. Clark, who participated posing as suspects in this first “show-up.” WC 7, pp. 232–39.
193 Reporter’s question and Oswald’s response, “No, sir. Nobody charged me with that . . .” Bugliosi, Reclaiming History, p. 132 (from newsreel footage in the library of the Sixth Floor Museum in Dallas).
194 The search of Oswald’s pockets. “What are these doing in there?” “I just had them in my pockets.” See the testimony of Dallas Police Detective Elmer L. Boyd, WC 7, p. 136.
194 Decision to have the normal press coverage for arrival at Andrews Air Force Base. See Holland, Kennedy Assassination Tapes, pp. 32–33.
194 RFK rushing on plane and ignoring LBJ, “Jackie, I’m here.” See Manchester, Death, p. 387.
194 Unloading of coffin. Ibid., pp. 387–92.
195 LBJ’s brief comments to the nation. See Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States, Lyndon B. Johnson, bk. 1, Nov. 22, 1963–June 30, 1964 (Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1965), p. 1. For the audio recording of the president’s remarks, including his handwritten notes on his statement, go to the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum Web page at www.lbjlib.utexas.edu/johnson/kennedy/Remarks%20at%20Andrews/remarks.htm.
195 LBJ’s handwritten letters to the Kennedy children. See Manchester, Death, pp. 405–6, and Caro, Years, p. 369.
195 Johnson’s decision to return home and give Jackie as much time as needed to remain in White House. See Manchester, Death, pp. 403–4, 547.
196 Jackie at Bethesda Naval Hospital. See Manchester, Death, pp. 398–99, 406–7, 414–19, 427–30, 434–35, 439–40.
196 “They think they found the man who did it.” “He says he’s a Communist.” See Manchester, Death, p. 407.
196 Oswald’s statements during his arraignment. These quotes come from interviews with William Alexander, assistant Dallas district attorney, by Gerald Posner and Vincent Bugliosi. See Posner, Case Closed, p. 348, and Bugliosi, Reclaiming History, p. 153. For a general description of the arraignment, see the testimony of David L. Johnston, elected justice of the peace, who presided over this judicial procedure, WC 15, pp. 503–13.
197 Oswald’s comments in the hallway. See Bugliosi, Reclaiming History, p. 156 (from news video in the library of the Sixth Floor Museum in Dallas).
197 Questioning to Oswald about rifle. See the testimony of Captain J. W. Fritz, WC 4, p. 217.
197 “The people out at the Paine residence say you did have a rifle, and that you
kept it out there wrapped in a blanket.” See the testimony of Captain J. W. Fritz, WC 4, p. 217.
197 “You know you’ve killed the president.” Ibid., p. 225.
198 Kennedy autopsy. Several factors inhibited the ability to perform a thorough autopsy and gather all evidence that should have been available to make the determination as to the direction of the bullets fired and ultimately the cause of JFK’s death. These included:
• The desire of Jackie Kennedy and JFK’s advisers to immediately take the body of JFK back to Washington, D.C. (contrary to Texas law—at the time, killing a president was not a federal offense)
• The quick wrapping of JFK’s body in Dallas (so as not to damage the expensive coffin that had been purchased). This initial coffin would later be weighted and buried at sea.
• The lack of preservation of crime-scene evidence (such as the Secret Service wiping off some of the blood in the presidential limousine) and the benign careless handling of other forensic evidence
• Other problems with the chain of evidence (with the focus on ballistic evidence, such as the cartridges on the sixth floor of the Texas School Book Depository and CE 399, the near “so called pristine bullet,” which the Warren Commission determined caused seven wounds in JFK and Governor Connally)
• The decision by one doctor, Captain James J. Humes, MD, to destroy his original notes
• Eyewitness statements concerning JFK’s wounds that were not accurate
• Family wishes at Bethesda as to how the very rushed autopsy would proceed that resulted in the lack of communications between Parkland Hospital and Bethesda Naval Center doctors
• The Kennedy family’s “control” over the autopsy evidence
• The mystery surrounding what happened to the metal container containing JFK’s brain
Nevertheless, over a decade later, the medical panel of the House Select Committee on Assassinations (HSCA) confirmed the Warren Commission’s findings. The chairman of this medical panel, nationally known forensic pathologist Michael M. Baden, MD, chief medical examiner for the City of New York, summed up and shared the views of the other forensic pathologists who reviewed the medical evidence. Baden stated: “. . . we did agree as a group with the basic bottom-line conclusions of the original autopsy doctors: Two bullets from behind struck the President and only two bullets [emphasis added]. However, we had a great deal of concern on many levels as to how the autopsy was performed, beginning immediately with the assumption of jurisdiction by what appears to be the Federal Government and the family of the President, intruding into what was at that time a State crime, homicide. The effect of that was to remove the body from Dallas, the jurisdiction which had a very competent forensic pathologist in charge, Dr. Earl Rose, who happens to be a member of our panel presently, to Bethesda at, apparently, the request of the family.” See the testimony of Michael M. Baden, HSCA 1, p. 310 (complete testimony, pp. 180–324), and HSCA 7, Medical Evidence and Related Issues Pertaining to the Assassination of President John F. Kennedy (the Medical Panel Report).
198 “I don’t know what you’re talking about. That’s the deal, is it?” See the testimony of Jesse E. Curry, WC 4, p. 156.
198 Oswald’s arraignment for murder of JFK, “Well, I guess this is the trial.” See the testimony of Justice of the Peace David L. Johnston, WC 15, p. 507, and Bugliosi, Reclaiming History, p. 194.
198 “I want Mr. John Abt of New York.” See the testimony of David L. Johnston, WC 15, p. 508 (complete testimony, pp. 503–13).
199 Preparation of body for an open casket. At this time, a decision had not yet been made whether there would be an open casket. So after the autopsy, the body was prepared for a public viewing. All the previous assassinated presidents, Lincoln, Garfield, and McKinley, had state funerals with open caskets. In fact, especially in the nineteenth century, it was the practice to have open caskets with a public viewing. Prior to JFK’s death, every president who lay in repose in the U.S. Capitol, and many others who did not, had open caskets. This all changed with JFK, and it is now the more common practice for closed caskets, especially for coffins that are in repose in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda. After Kennedy’s death, no president has had an open casket, and only two individuals who lay in repose in the Capitol have had their caskets open: General Douglas MacArthur and Representative Claude Pepper (D-FL). For a complete summary of all individuals who have received this honor of lying in repose in the U.S. Capitol, see the website of the Architect of the Capitol www.aoc.gov/nations-stage/lying-state; also the U.S. Senate Historical Office website, www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/resources/pdf/LyingState.pdf.
Jackie wanted the casket to remain closed. But because of past precedents, Robert McNamara thought otherwise. At around four a.m. (EST) in the East Room, Bobby Kennedy opened the casket and viewed his brother. It did not look like him, and the embalmers had not done a good job. He said, “Close it.” See Manchester, Death, pp. 442–43, and Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr., Robert Kennedy and His Times (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1978), p. 610.
199 Oswald’s midnight press conference. See WR, pp. 200–1, WC 24, CE 2166, p. 617, and Bugliosi, Reclaiming History, p. 189 (taken from a newsreel at the Sixth Floor museum).
200 Oswald paraffin test. See the testimony of Sergeant W. E. Barnes, WC 7, pp. 297, 282–83 (complete testimony, pp. 270–86).
CHAPTER 8: “WE HAD A HERO FOR A FRIEND”
201 Jackie’s return to the White House. See Manchester, Death.
203 Barlett note, “We had a hero for a friend.” November 29, 1963, Washington Star article, Charlie Bartlett “hero for a friend.” See Manchester, President, p. 446.
204 McGrory’s tribute to JFK was also published as a small pamphlet: Mary McGrory, In Memoriam (Washington, DC: Evening Star Newspaper Company [1964]).
204 Maud Shaw bearing the bad news to JFK’s children. Although reluctant to do so, Maud Shaw, at the request of Jackie’s mother, Janet Auchincloss, told the children. There may have been a miscommunication and/or misunderstanding, since Jackie wanted to be the one to convey this tragic news. This perhaps was the beginning of Shaw’s ultimate termination of employment. See C. David Heyman, American Legacy: The Story of John and Caroline Kennedy (New York: Atria Books, 2007), pp. 110–14. Also see generally Maud Shaw, White House Nannie: My Years with Caroline and John Kennedy, Jr. (New York: New American Library, 1966), pp. 12, 20–21.
204 Private mass in the East Room for the family and close aides. See Manchester, Death, pp. 460–64.
205 The misunderstanding about when LBJ would move into the Oval Office. The relationship, or lack of one, between Robert Kennedy and LBJ was well known. Similar to the strained interaction between the Kennedy and Johnson camps, historians shortly after JFK’s death tended to side with one group or the other. More recently, historian Robert A. Caro has assessed fairly the misunderstandings in the immediate few hours and days after the Kennedy assassination. In addition to RFK running past LBJ on Air Force One immediately after it landed, and the miscommunication on occupying the Oval Office, there were tensions about Johnson’s decision to hold a cabinet meeting on Saturday and to give an address to a Joint Session of Congress so soon after Kennedy’s death. See Caro, Years, pp. 373–77. Also see generally Jeff Shesol, Mutual Contempt: Lyndon Johnson, Robert Kennedy, and the Feud That Defined a Decade (New York: Norton, 1997).
205 The decision to bury JFK at Arlington. For a discussion on the decision by Jackie to bury JFK at Arlington National Cemetery and for other information concerning the burial, go to the official website of the cemetery at www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/visitorinformation/monumentmemorials/jfk.aspx.
206 Jackie’s visit to Arlington and choosing the site. See Manchester, Death, pp. 491–97.
207 Fritz questioning of Oswald. See generally WC 20, Kelley Exhibit A, pp. 440–46 (memorandum of interview with Lee Harvey Oswald); WC 24, CE 1988, pp. 18–20 (FBI report on interrogation of Lee Harvey Oswald); WC 29, CE 2003, pp. 195–404 (Dallas Police Department
file on the investigation of the assassination of the president, especially pp. 264–79, interview with Oswald); and the testimony of Captain J. W. Fritz, WC 4, pp. 202–47.
207 Questioning about curtain rods. See the testimony of Captain J. W. Fritz, WC 4, pp. 218–19, and WC 24, CE 1988, p. 18.
207 Questioning about eating lunch. See generally, the testimony of Captain J. W. Fritz, WC 4, p. 223; WC 20, Kelley Exhibit A, p. 440; WC 24, CE 1988, pp. 18–19; and WC 24, CE 2003, p. 267.
208 Oswald’s belongings at Paine house. See WC 20, Kelley Exhibit A, p. 440; WC 24, CE 2003, p. 267; and WC 24, p. 19.
208 Oswald’s purchase of guns through the mail. See WC 20, CE 1988, p. 19.
208 Finding pistol at time of arrest. See WC 20, Kelley Exhibit A, p. 440, and WC 24, CE 1988, pp. 18–19.
209 Oswald’s anger about questioning by FBI. See WC 20, Kelley Exhibit A, pp. 440–41, and WC 24, p. 18.
209 “I am not a malcontent; nothing irritated me about the president.” See WC 20, Kelley Exhibit A, p. 441.
209 Refusal to take a polygraph examination. See WC 20, Kelley Exhibit A, p. 441, and WC 24, CE 1988, p. 19.
209 Questions about ID Card. See WC 20, Kelley Exhibit A, p. 443, and CE 1988, p. 19.
210 Viewing the parade and shooting the president. See WC 20, Kelley Exhibit A, p. 441, and WC 24, CE 1988, p. 20.
211 Marina’s conversation with Oswald. See McMillan, Marina and Lee, p. 435–36; testimony of Marina Oswald, WC 1, pp. 78–79; and Bugliosi, Reclaiming History, pp. 223–24.
212 Wade interview and death penalty comments. For a transcript of these comments made in the corridor of the jail, see WC 24, CE 2172, pp. 843–45 (Nov. 23, 1963, interview with District Attorney Henry Wade); and Bugliosi, Reclaiming History, pp. 222–23 (quoting from newsreel footage in the Sixth Floor Museum Library).
213 Captain Fritz comments to the press, “case is cinched.” See the transcript of Fritz’s remarks, WC 24, CE 2153, pp. 787–88 (Nov. 23, 1963, interview with J. W. Fritz), and Bugliosi, Reclaiming History, p. 226 (quoting from newsreels in the Sixth Floor Museum Library).