Frequently Asked Questions about the JFK Assassination
Other Aspects of the Assassination
This website’s Basic Facts section provides an introduction to the JFK assassination. The current section deals with other questions, many of which demand more detailed answers than an introductory section could provide.
There are some topics which are dealt with by more than one question:
Are There Factual Errors in Oliver Stone’s JFK?
The media claimed that there were many factual errors in Oliver Stone’s JFK. Some of these claims were valid; others were unfounded. Some ‘errors’ were merely examples of dramatic licence.
Did JFK’s Car Stop on Elm Street?
It has often been claimed that dozens of witnesses stated that President Kennedy’s car stopped on Elm Street during the shooting, which would suggest complicity on the part of the driver, a Secret Service agent. In fact, a large majority of these witnesses stated merely that the car slowed down.
Did Lee Harvey Oswald Get a Fair Trial?
Of course, Jack Ruby intervened before Lee Harvey Oswald stood trial, although a trial of sorts did take place. The role of prosecutor was performed by the Warren Commission, and that of the jury by the print and broadcast media. In an almost unanimous verdict, Oswald was pronounced guilty.
Did Marina Oswald Have Bad Teeth?
For some reason, people are interested in whether Marina Oswald had bad teeth, a question that has no obvious relevance to the JFK assassination.
Did Oswald Carry a Bag of Curtain Rods to Work?
The bag which Oswald carried on his journey to work supposedly contained curtain rods. Oswald himself claimed that he carried only his lunch; the Warren Report claimed that the bag contained a rifle.
Did Oswald Kill Officer J.D. Tippit?
The Warren Commission claimed that Lee Harvey Oswald shot and killed Officer J.D. Tippit in Oak Cliff, Dallas, about 40 minutes after the assassination of President Kennedy.
Did Oswald Leave Any Fingerprints?
Lee Harvey Oswald’s fingerprints and palmprints were found on two book cartons close to the sixth-floor window from which at least one shot was fired. His palmprint was found on the rifle.
Did Oswald Shoot at General Edwin Walker?
The Warren Commission and the FBI claimed that Lee Harvey Oswald attempted to shoot General Edwin Walker in April 1963, an act that demonstrated the presiential assassin’s capacity for violence.
Did Oswald Try to Kill Richard Nixon?
A claim emerged that Lee Harvey Oswald planned to shoot Richard Nixon a few months before the JFK assassination. The story turned out to be so implausible that even the Warren Report felt unable to use it.
Did a Secret Service Agent Kill JFK by Accident?
Howard Donahue proposed in 1992 that George Hickey, a Secret Service agent in the car behind Kennedy, fired the fatal shot by accident. Although the theory was quickly debunked, it reappeared, like a zombie, in a 2013 film, JFK: The Smoking Gun.
Did the Warren Commission Investigate the JFK Assassination Properly?
The Warren Commission’s investigation is often accused of having been superficial and one-sided. Previously secret documents show that it was, and the reasons why.
Read: Did the Warren Commission Investigate the JFK Assassination Properly?
Fletcher Prouty and the Christchurch Star
Fletcher Prouty claimed that a New Zealand newspaper, the Christchurch Star, published information about Oswald long before that information became public knowledge, and that that information must have been planted there in order to incriminate Oswald.
How Accurate is Oliver Stone’s Film, JFK?
The release of the film JFK in 1991 set off an enormous amount of hostility in the press. This article examines how Oliver Stone’s JFK deals with the main issues of President Kennedy’s assassination.
How Reliable Is the Medical Evidence?
The medical evidence is a mess, mainly due to the remarkably poor quality of the autopsy.
How Reliable is the NAA Evidence?
Neutron activation analysis was used on paraffin casts of Oswald’s hands and right cheek, and on fragments of bullets from JFK and Governor Connally. The House Select Committee on Assassinations claimed that NAA provided good evidence that only two bullets caused all the injuries; later research refuted this conclusion.
Read: How Reliable is the Neutron Activation Analysis Evidence?
Is the ‘Harvey and Lee’ Theory Credible?
One of the more intelligence-insulting conspiracy theories claims that Oswald was in fact two people, ‘Harvey’ and ‘Lee’, one of whom was a Hungarian who spoke Russian. Apparently, both Oswalds had been recruited by the CIA as boys, in the hope that when these unrelated boys grew up they would magically turn out to look virtually identical. Not only that, but Oswald’s mother was also two virtually identical though unrelated people. And both Oswalds went to the same school at the same time but no-one noticed. And both of them joined the Marines at the same time but again no-one noticed. And one of the Oswalds was 5′ 11″ in 1959 and 5′ 6″ a couple of years later. Unfortunately but unsurprisingly, a fundamental part of this absurd theory had been debunked two decades before the book which promoted it was published.
Is it Oswald or Lovelady in the Altgens 6 Photo?
A press photograph taken during the assassination seemed to show Lee Harvey Oswald on the front steps of the Texas School Book Depository. The man in the photograph turned out to be a colleague of Oswald’s, Billy Lovelady.
Is Robert Vinson’s ‘Oswald Double’ Story Credible?
An Air Force sergeant, Robert Vinson, claimed to have seen a man resembling Lee Oswald escape by plane from Dallas after the assassination. Vinson’s claim has a number of improbable implications, not least that it requires a large plane to have landed and taken off close to downtown Dallas, an event which no-one other than Vinson seems to have noticed.
JFK Assassination Simple Questions
A number of questions about the JFK assassination, grouped around topics such as Lee Harvey Oswald, the Texas School Book Depository, and the Warren Commission.
Suggestions for Further Reading
A few suggestions for furhter reading, online and offline: books, primary sources (including links to websites hosting much of the official documentation in various formats), online discussion forums, blogs and more.
Was CE 399, the ‘Magic Bullet’, Planted?
Commission Exhibit 399, sometimes known as the magic bullet, was supposed to have injured Kennedy and Connally, but may not have been the bullet that was discovered on a stretcher at Parkland Hospital.
Was the Cover-Up Part of the Plot?
Formerly secret documents such as memos and recordings of presidential phone calls show that the Warren Report was a practical solution to a political problem.
Was Jack Ruby Involved in the JFK Assassination?
The convenient murder of Lee Harvey Oswald aroused suspicions that Jack Ruby had been involved in the assassination itself. He was supposedly seen in Dealey Plaza, delivering a rifle, shortly before the assassination.
Was There a Plot to Kill JFK in Chicago?
Three weeks before the assassination, the FBI warned of a plot to kill JFK in Chicago. A man named Thomas Arthur Vallee seems to have shared several characteristics with Lee Oswald.
Was the Zapruder Film Altered?
The Zapruder film is widely recognised as the most important piece of physical evidence that contradicts the lone-gunman hypothesis. Strangely, some conspiracy theorists claim that the film has been altered and cannot be trusted: damage to the rear of President Kennedy’s heade has been covered up, frames have been removed, and so on.
Was Oswald an Expert Marksman?
When Lee Oswald was last tested as a rifle shooter in the Marines, he was barely above the minimum qualifying level. There is no credible evidence that Oswald fired a rifle in the remaining four years before the assassination.
Was the TSBD Sixth-Floor Paper Bag Genuine?
The Dallas police claimed to have discovered a home-made paper bag by the so-called sniper’s nest on the sixth floor of the Texas School Book Depository, although the authenticity of the bag is contested.
What Are the Main Issues in the JFK Assassination?
Newcomers to the assassination, or those who are confused by the enormous amount of evidence that has been generated, may benefit from a summary of the main questions in the JFK assassination.
What Caused Connally’s Lapel Flap?
Governor Connally’s right lapel flaps once in frame 224 of the Zapruder film. It was claimed to be the result of a bullet that had passed through President Kennedy, but was almost certainly caused by a gust of wind.
What Did the Warren Commission Say about Jack Ruby?
According to the Warren Report, Jack Ruby had no connections to organised crime, and acted spontaneously in killing Lee Harvey Oswald. The House Select Committee on Assassinations claimed the opposite.
What Do People Think About the JFK Assassination?
Despite getting almost all of their information about the assassination from the mass media, most people reject the official line.
What Does Noam Chomsky Say?
Noam Chomsky’s opinion of the JFK assassination is not about whether or not it was a conspiracy, but simply that it isn’t a significant political event.
What Is the Case Against a Conspiracy?
The main arguments against the idea of a conspiracy in the JFK assassination, together with counter-arguments.
What Is the Case For a Conspiracy?
The main arguments in favour of a conspiracy, along with opposing arguments.
What Is a Conspiracy Theory?
There are many definitions of ‘conspiracy theory’ and ‘conspiracy theorist’. The JFK assassination provides illustrations of the literal and propaganda uses of the terms.
What Is the Magic Bullet Theory?
The term magic bullet theory is preferred to ‘single-bullet theory’ by those who want to emphasise the unlikely role of Commission Exhibit 399, which is supposed to have caused several broken bones while sustaining hardly any damage itself.
What Was Lee Harvey Oswald’s Alibi?
The only suspect in the assassination was interviewed officially for about 12 hours, but no recordings or transcripts appear to have been made. According to accounts by these interviewers, Lee Harvey Oswald’s alibi was that he was on somewhere on the first floor of the TSBD. In 2019, a note by one of his interviewers was unearthed and made public which gives Oswald’s side of the story.
Where Did Oswald Shoot JFK From?
Newcomers to the JFK assassination will be aware that Oswald is supposed to have been the assassin, but are often unsure where he is supposed to have shot JFK from. Oswald’s whereabouts at the time of the assassination are uncertain, as is the notion that he fired any shots at all.
Who Is ‘Prayer Man’?
Two news films show a figure, sometimes known as ‘Prayer Man’, standing in the corner of the TSBD steps. The figure has not been identified for certain, but it may be Oswald.
Read: Who Is ‘Prayer Man’?
Who Saw Oswald in the Sixth-Floor Window?
Howard Brennan’s description of a gunman in the sixth-floor window of the TSBD matched Oswald, but other witnesses gave descriptions that did not match the accused assassin.
Who Was George Joannides?
George Joannides had two links to the JFK assassination: he supervised the Cuban exile organisation with which Lee Oswald came into contact in New Orleans, and he acted as a liaison between the CIA and the House Select Committee on Assassinations.
Who Were the Dealey Plaza Tramps?
Three tramps were arrested in the rail yards just north of Dealey Plaza about two hours after the assassination. They were thought to have been part of a conspiracy to assassinate JFK, until their identities were revealed in 1992. They were just tramps.
Why Did Oswald Deny Shooting JFK?
Oswald repeatedly denied shooting JFK and Officer Tippit. Some of his other statements while in custody appear to have been less than honest, although most of them are only second-hand accounts.
Why Did Oswald Kill President Kennedy?
The question of Lee Harvey Oswald’s motive for killing President Kennedy remained unanswered by the Warren Commission.
Why Is the Media Coverage So Bad?
The newspaper and television coverage of the JFK assassination is consistently one-sided, for the same reason that coverage of other topics is one-sided.
Why Was President Kennedy Assassinated?
There are many possible reasons why JFK was assassinated, depending on who was behind the killing: Oswald, the Cuban and Soviet regimes, anti-Castro Cubans, the mafia, and factions within the CIA and the US military.