Saturday 29 December 2012

The Tippit murder: The witnesses - Part 1


In this article, I explain the reasons why the witness identifications of Oswald as Tippit’s murderer should be considered unreliable. It’s important to keep in mind that by the time these witnesses testified before the Warren Commission, Oswald was dead. Therefore, any “positive” identification of him as the murderer would not have put an otherwise innocent man in prison. Also, there was no cross examination of the witnesses by a defence attorney on Oswald’s behalf!

Also keep in mind that six of the witnesses; Helen Markham, William Scoggins, Ted Callaway, Sam Guinyard, and the Davis sister-in-laws identified Oswald as the killer after viewing line-ups of him by the DPD. As many competent researchers have demonstrated, the line-ups were conducted unfairly against Oswald, and it is not my intention to discuss the conduct of the line-ups in this article.

The final (and perhaps most important) point which should be considered is that Tippit’s killer by all likelihood bore a good resemblance to Oswald. Think about it. If you’re going to frame a man for murder, then naturally you would use a gunman who resembles the man you intended to frame (See here for evidence that Oswald was framed for Tippit’s murder).

Before discussing the credibility of these witnesses, let’s first examine the statements by Domingo Benavides. As stated in my previous article, Benavides was driving his yellow pick-up truck west along 10th Street when he spotted Tippit exiting his patrol car. Startled by the sound of the shots, Benavides pulled his pick-up truck to the curb, almost directly across the Street from Tippit’s car. Benavides was the closet witness to the murder, but never viewed a line-up of Oswald.

Despite being the closet witness to the shooting, Benavides failed to positively identify Oswald as the killer. The best Benavides could state is that the killer resembled Oswald. From Benavides Warren Commission testimony:

Mr. Belin
You used the name Oswald. How did you know this man was Oswald?

Mr. Benavides
From the pictures I had seen. It looked like a guy, resembled the guy. That was the reason I figured it was Oswald.

Many lone gunman kooks have argued that the reason Benavides failed to positively identify Oswald as the killer, was because he didn’t get a good view of him. However, contrary to this completely absurd and dishonest claim, Benavides informed the Warren Commission that he did get a good view of the killer. See below.

Mr. Belin
Let me ask you now, I would like to have you relate again the action of the man with the gun as you saw him now.

Mr. Benavides
As I saw him, I really---I mean really got a good view of the man after the bullets were fired, he had just tuned. He was just turning away. In other words, he was pointing toward the officer, and he had just turned away to his left, and then he started. There was a big tree, and it seemed like he started back going to the curb of the street and into the sidewalk, and then he turned and went down the sidewalk to, well, until he got in front of the corner house, and then he turned to the left there and went on down Patton Street.

Not only did Benavides fail to identify Oswald as the killer – despite claiming he had “got a good of view of the man”, but he also described the killer as having a complexion “Ruddier than mine”, and also a complexion “a little bit darker than average”. Photos and film footage of Benavides show that his complexion was light brown, whereas Oswald’s complexion was pale white. He also described the jacket which the killer was wearing as being “a light beige jacket”. See below.

Mr. Belin
Anything else you can think of about the man after you saw him? What was he wearing? What did he look like?

Mr. Benavides
Well, he was kind of, well, just about your size.

Mr. Belin
About my size? I am standing up.

Mr. Benavides
You are about 5' 10"?

Mr. Belin
I am between 5' 10" and 5' 11". Closer to 5' 11", I believe.

Mr. Benavides
I would say he was about your size, and he had a light-beige jacket, and was lightweight.

Further on during his testimony:

Mr. Belin
What about his skin? Was he fair complexioned or dark complexioned?

Mr. Benavides
He wasn't dark.

Mr. Belin
Average complexion?

Mr. Benavides
No; a little bit darker than average.

Mr. Belin
My complexion?

Mr. Benavides
I wouldn't say that any more. I would say he is about your complexion, sir. Of course he looked, his skin looked a little bit ruddier than mine.

As both the closet witness to the murder of Tippit - and one who claimed he got a good view of the killer, the inconsistencies between Benavides’s description of the killer and the description of Oswald, is a very good reason to believe that Oswald wasn’t Tippit’s killer!

Apparently, Benavides did eventually identify Oswald as the killer. However, if Benavides did really believe Oswald was the killer, then why on Earth did he hesitate to identify him during his Warren Commission testimony? More to the point, why should anybody accept his later identification as being trustworthy? The truth is we shouldn’t.

There is also the mysterious shooting of Benavides brother, Edward, in January 1964. Edward was shot in the back of the head in a club in Dallas. Many researchers have claimed that the intended target was Domingo - due to the fact that he didn’t positively identify Oswald as the killer. Quite curiously, on January 23 1964, Warren Reynolds, who followed Tippit’s murderer into Roger Ballew’s Texaco Service station, was shot in the head by a rifle at point blank range, but had miraculously survived.

Like Benavides, Reynolds was initially reluctant to identify Oswald as the killer. But after he was shot, Reynolds positively identified Oswald during his Warren Commission testimony. Although I don’t have a firm opinion on this issue, is it really just a coincidence that within the same period of time, both Reynolds and Benavides brother (who could have been mistaken for him) were shot in the head?

It is of course possible, but what are the odds that it really was just a coincidence? (I return to Warren Reynolds further on in this article).  

Helen Markham

Let’s now turn our attention to Helen Markham, whom Warren Commission counsel Joseph Ball once famously referred to as “An utter screwball”. As mentioned in my previous article, Markham was on her way to work at the Eat Well restaurant on Main Street, when she witnessed Tippit’s murder. After witnessing the shooting, Markham became hysterical and began screaming.

The Warren Commission relied heavily on Markham’s identification of Oswald as the killer. The following is from page 167 of the Warren report, Concerning Markham’s “positive” identification of Oswald as Tippit’s murderer.

“In testimony before the Commission, Mrs. Markham confirmed her positive identification of Lee Harvey Oswald as the man she saw kill Officer Tippit.”

Despite the Warren Commission’s bold assertion, Markham’s “positive” identification of Oswald was anything but reliable. It should be noted that Markham was the first Tippit murder witness to view a DPD line-up of Oswald, and that Oswald was the number two man in the four man line-up. The following is from Markham’s testimony concerning her identification of Oswald from the line-up.

Mr. Ball
Did you recognize anyone in the line-up?

Mrs. Markham
No, sir.

Mr. Ball
You did not? Did you see anybody--I have asked you that question before did you recognize anybody from their face?

Mrs. Markham
From their face, no.

Mr. Ball
Did you identify anybody in these four people?

Mrs. Markham
I didn't know nobody.

Mr. Ball
I know you didn't know anybody, but did anybody in that line-up look like anybody you had seen before?

Mrs. Markham
No. I had never seen none of them, none of these men.

As we can see, Markham claimed that she didn’t recognise anybody from the line-up as being Tippit’s killer! Realising that this was a huge problem for convicting Oswald, counsel Joseph Ball asked Markham what can only be considered one of the most disgraceful leading questions ever asked by a Warren Commission lawyer.

Mr. Ball
Was there a number two man in there?

Mrs. Markham
Number two is the one I picked.

Mr. Ball
Well, I thought you just told me that you hadn't—

Mrs. Markham
I thought you wanted me to describe their clothing.

Mr. Ball
No. I wanted to know if that day when you were in there if you saw anyone in there—

Mrs. Markham
Number two.

Following Ball’s leading question, Markham now insists that the man she identified as Tippit’s killer was the number two man (Oswald), despite just moments ago having claimed that “I had never seen none of them, none of these men”! Ball also showed Markham the light gray coloured jacket which Oswald allegedly discarded, and asked her if she could identify it.

Mr. Ball
I have here an exhibit, Commission Exhibit 162, a jacket. Did you ever see this before?

Mrs. Markham
No; I did not.

Mr. Ball
Does it look like, anything like, the jacket the man had on?

Mrs. Markham
It is short, open down the front. But that jacket it is a darker jacket than that, I know it was.

Mr. Ball
You don't think it was as light a jacket as that?

Mrs. Markham
No, it was darker than that, I know it was. At that moment I was so excited--

Markham was fairly adamant that the jacket the Tippit killer was wearing was darker than the Ce162 jacket. What makes this claim incredibly bizarre is that Markham informed DPD Officer Joe M. Poe that the killer’s jacket was white! The following is from Poe’s testimony, concerning the description of the killer he obtained from Markham, after he had arrived at the murder scene.

Mr. Ball
What did you see?

Mr. Poe
Found the squad car parked toward the curb, and a pool of blood at the left-front wheel of the car. The ambulance had already picked him up and the officer had left the scene when we arrived. We had--I don't know how many people there were. Looked like 150 to 200 people around there, and Mrs. Markham, I talked to her first and we got a description of the man that shot Tippit.

Mr. Ball
Do you know what the description was?

Mr. Poe
Sir?

Mr. Ball
Do you know what the description was?

Mr. Poe
White male, about 25, about 5 feet 8, brown hair, medium, and I believe she said had on a white jacket at the time.

Mr. Ball
What did you do then?

Mr. Poe
We gave the description to several of the officers at the scene. You couldn't get on the radio at the time, there was so much traffic on the radio, and the last--the direction he was seen leaving, and then I talked to several more witnesses around there

There was indeed a description of the killer broadcast over the DPD radio, by an Officer named Roy Walker (whom Poe believed was actually Charles T. Walker). The significance of the description Markham gave to Poe is that this was not the description she gave to FBI agent Bardwell Odum, when he interviewed her on the same day!

The following exchange with Ball took place further on during Poe’s testimony.

Mr. Ball
At 1:22 p.m., on the transcript of the radio log, I note it says, "Have a description of suspect on Jefferson. Last seen about the 300 block of East Jefferson. White male, 30's; 5'8", black hair, slender built, wearing white shirt, black slacks." Do you know whether you gave Walker that description?

Mr. Poe
I remember giving [Roy] Walker a description. My partner got in the car with Walker.

Mr. Ball
Did you give Walker a description similar to that?

Mr. Poe
Yes, sir.

Mr. Ball
Well, the only difference I see between the description you said you gave the other officer and this was that you said he was in his 20's or 25, and this says about 30. Otherwise it is about the same.

Mr. Poe
Yes, sir

One of the most truly bizarre aspects of Markham’s testimony was her claim that she had conversed with Tippit after he was shot. Yet, Tippit was also shot once in the right temple and killed instantly. Furthermore, there is absolutely no confirmation from any other witness that Tippit was alive when they went to his aid! The following is from Markham’s testimony.

Mr. Dulles
Mr. Tippit, Officer Tippit, didn't say anything to you?

Mrs. Markham
He tried to.

Mr. Dulles
He tried to?

Mrs. Markham
Yes, sir.

Mr. Dulles
But he didn't succeed?

Mrs. Markham
No, I couldn't understand. I was screaming and hollering and I was trying to help him all I could, and I would have. I was with him until they put him in the ambulance.

Further on during her testimony:

Mr. Ball
Just a few more questions, Mrs. Markham. You ran immediately over to where the police officer was lying in the street?

Mrs. Markham
I did.

Mr. Ball
Was he alive?

Mrs. Markham
Yes, sir.

Mr. Ball
Did he say anything?

Mrs. Markham
He was trying to, but he just couldn't. I just couldn't make out what he was trying to say.

The final point to address concerning Markham’s credibility is the description of the killer which she gave to FBI agent, Bardwell Odum, on 22/11/63. See below.

Mr. Ball
On the 22d of November, 1963, that is the day of the shooting, did you talk to an FBI agent named Odum? Do you remember?

Mrs. Markham
I talked to some people, men, down at the police station.

Mr. Ball
That is right. He says that you described the man who shot Tippit as a white male, about 18, black hair, red complexion, wearing black shoes, tan jacket, and dark trousers. Do you remember that?

Following Joseph Ball’s question, Markham claimed that she didn’t mention the killer was wearing black shoes. She also claimed she didn’t tell Odum the killer looked 18 years old, and that she didn’t inform him that the killer had a red complexion. The significance of this is that the red complexion described to Odum by Markham, is consistent with Benavides claim that the killer’s complexion was “ruddier than mine [Benavides]” (with ruddy referring to a person with a reddish complexion).
 
Despite Markham’s latter claim that she didn’t tell Odum the killer had a red complexion, are we to honestly believe that Odum had mistakenly noted that Markham stated the killer had a red complexion? It simply defies belief that an FBI agent could make such a mistake. It is also inconceivable that Odum could have been mistaken that Markham told him the killer appeared to be 18 years old. (Incidentally, be sure to check out this video clip where Markham described the killer as having a ruddy complexion).

As we can also see, the description she gave to Odum was in stark contrast to the one she gave Officer Poe, which was broadcast over the DPD radio by Officer Roy Walker at 1:22 pm.

What’s particularly interesting is that Markham told Odum the killer had a tan coloured jacket – whereas the jacket which the killer allegedly discarded was a light gray coloured jacket! When Markham was shown the jacket during her testimony, she stated that the jacket the killer had was darker. It should be noted that Markham didn’t deny during her testimony that she told Odum the killer’s jacket was tan coloured.

To summarise, Helen Markham first claimed during her testimony that she didn’t recognise anyone from the line-up as the killer, but then following Joseph Ball’s disgraceful leading question, claimed that she identified Oswald as the killer. She also claimed that Tippit was alive after he was shot – this despite the fact that he was killed instantly! The description of the killer which she provided to FBI agent Bardwell Odum was inconsistent with the one she provided to Officer Poe at the murder scene. Finally, she told Officer Joe Poe that the killer had a white jacket – but then told Odum that the jacket was tan coloured!

Clearly, Markham was by no means a reliable witness. Yet despite all the problems with her credibility, lone gunman zealots uphold her identification of Oswald as Tippit’s killer, as being reliable. Simply unbelievable!

There are many other problems with Markham’s credibility which I could have addressed. However, I will leave it up to you to read through her entire testimony to see for yourself.

On a final note, let me state that Markham’s claim that Tippit had calmly exited his patrol car was contradicted by Domingo Benavides, who claimed during his testimony that Tippit was “kind of in a hurry to get out”.

The Davis sister-in-laws

Let’s now examine the statements by the Davis sister-in-laws, Barbara and Virginia Davis. At the time of Tippit’s murder, the Davis sister-in-laws were lying down and taking a nap at Barbara’s apartment house, on the South east corner of the intersection of 10th and Patton streets. Upon hearing the shots, they went to the front door where they observed Tippit’s killer cut across the lawn, emptying the spent shells in his hand. Although both women identified Oswald as Tippit’s killer, there is very good reason to be suspicious of their identification.

First of all, although a total of four shots were fired at Tippit; they could only recall hearing two shots. As both of them described during their testimonies, they heard a shot followed a second shot. Now although they did only recall hearing two shots, this doesn’t necessarily mean their identification of Oswald as the killer lacks credibility. Furthermore, the “first” shot heard by both women could have actually been the first three shots fired rapidly at Tippit’s chest/abdomen, with the “second” shot being the execution style shot to Tippit’s head - as per the observation of Jack Ray Tatum.

Secondly, although both women observed the killer at the same time, there are many contradictions between their observations/recollections. However, let me first state some of the consistencies between their observations. Both women claimed the killer had the gun in his right hand, and was emptying the spent shells into his left. Both of them also agreed that it was Barbara Davis who called the Police to notify them of the shooting. Furthermore, both of them agreed that Barbara found the first of the two spent shell casings the killer left near the lawn of their apartment house, with Virginia finding the second one.

As far as the contradictions between their observations/recollections are concerned, consider the fact that Virginia Davis stated during her Warren Commission testimony that after they reached the front door and observed the gunman, they did not open the screen door to the front door - whereas Barbara Davis claimed they did.

From the testimony of Virginia Davis:

Mr. Belin
Were you looking through the screen door, or was the screen door partially open, if you remember.

Mrs. Davis
It was closed. We was looking through it.

Mr. Belin
You were looking through the screen door?

Mrs. Davis
Yes

From the testimony of Barbara Davis:

Mr. Ball
When you went to the door, did you open the door?

Mrs. Davis
I opened the door and held the screen opened.

In fact, not only did Barbara Davis claim she held the screen door open, she also claimed she was standing on the porch when they saw the killer.

Representative Ford
Could you tell us where you were standing when you saw him?

Mrs. Davis
I was standing on the porch.

Let’s also take into account the fact that Barbara Davis testified she called the Police after they had seen the killer pass their house. Virginia Davis on the other hand, testified that they called the Police before they saw the killer. In my opinion, Virginia’s claim is ridiculous, and does not speak well for her credibility. In fact, David Belin repeatedly questioned her on this point, and she provided contradictory responses.

Mr. Belin
You notified the police. Let me ask you this. Did you notify the police before or after you saw 'the boy with the gun?

Mrs. Davis
Let's see, I think it was before.

Mr. Belin
When you say before, what do you mean?

Mrs. Davis
Well, before we saw the boy.

From the testimony of Barbara Davis:

Mr. Ball
….After the man [killer] left, what did you do, after he went out of sight what did you do?

Mrs. Davis
I went back in and phoned the police.

The Davis sister-in-laws also contradicted each other on whether or not the killer had looked at them as he cut across their front lawn, with Barbara claiming that he did, and Virginia claiming that he didn’t.

From the testimony of Virginia Davis:

Mr. Belin
Did he look at you?

Mrs. Davis
No, sir; not that I remember. I don't think so.

From the testimony of Barbara Davis:

Mr. Ball
What did you do next?

Mrs. Davis
He looked at her first and looked at me and then smiled and went around the corner.

So far, I have outlined three contradictions between their recollections of what occurred after they heard the shots. Bear in mind that the Davis sister-in-laws viewed a line-up of Oswald at approximately 7:55 pm on the day of the assassination. As was the case with the Markham line-up, Oswald was in the number two position. When Counsel David Belin asked Virginia Davis what the time was when they viewed the line-up, she replied with: “it was probably around 5:30 pm” (she also claimed there were five men in the line-up, when there were only four!). On the other hand, Barbara Davis claimed it was after 8 o’clock when they viewed the line-up.

From the testimony of Virginia Davis:

Mr. Belin
About what time of the day was it?

Mrs. Davis
It was probably about 5:30.

From the testimony of Barbara Davis:

Mr. Ball
That was about what time of day that you were at the lineup?

Mrs. Davis
It was after 8, I am sure.

Mr. Ball
After when?

Mrs. Davis
After 8 o'clock.

Now, although Barbara Davis’s recollection of the time they viewed the line-up was certainly much more accurate than Virginia’s, it should be noted that both women took credit for being the first to identify Oswald as Tippit’s killer! This of course is simply ridiculous.

From the testimony of Virginia Davis:

Mr. Belin
Did you hear your sister-in-law identify him first, or not?

Mrs. Davis
No, sir; I identified him first.

From the testimony of Barbara Davis:

Mr. Dulles
Well, let me start over again. Did you identify the man in the line-up before your sister-in-law?

Mrs. Davis
Yes, sir.

Mr. Dulles
Before your sister-in-law?

Mrs. Davis
Yes, sir; I was the first one.

To summarise so far, the Davis sister-in-laws contradicted each other on a). Whether the screen door was open when they viewed the killer, b). When Barbara called the Police, c). Whether or not the killer had looked at them, d). The time at which they viewed the line-up e). Who was the first to identify to Oswald as the killer from the line-up.

Whilst there is very little doubt that Virginia Davis was mistaken about Barbara Davis calling the police before they observed the gunman cutting across their lawn, it’s difficult to imagine how she could be mistaken about not seeing the gunman look towards them then and smile, as per Barbara Davis’s claim.

Now, should one not be satisfied that the Davis sister-in-laws were unreliable witnesses from the aforementioned contradictions, their identification of Ce162 as the jacket they saw killer was wearing was a complete disaster. See below.

From the testimony of Virginia Davis:

Mr. Belin
Do you remember what he had on?

Mrs. Davis
He had on a light-brown-tan jacket.

From the testimony of Barbara Davis:

Mr. Ball
Was he dressed the same in the line-up as he was when you saw him running across the lawn?

Mrs. Davis
All except he didn't have a black coat on when I saw him in the lineup.

Further on during her testimony:

Mr. Ball
I have a jacket, I would like to show you, which is Commission Exhibit No. 162. Does this look anything like the jacket that the man had on that was going across your lawn?

Mrs. Davis
No, sir.

Mr. Ball
How is it different?

Mrs. Davis
Well, it was dark and to me it looked like it was maybe a wool fabric, it looked sort of rough. Like more of a sporting jacket.

As we can see, Virginia Davis claimed the jacket the Tippit killer was wearing was a light brown tan coloured jacket - whereas Barbara Davis claimed that the jacket she saw the killer wearing was black/dark, and also claimed that it might have been a wool fabric jacket. However, Ce162 was a light gray coloured jacket, and was not made of wool fabric! It should also be noted that according to the testimony of DPD Officer Joe M. Poe, he thought that one of the Davis sister-in-laws informed him the killer’s jacket was white.

In conclusion, are we honestly to believe the Davis sister-in-laws were able to recognise Oswald’s face in the line-up - when they weren’t even able identify Ce162 as the jacket the killer was wearing? I doubt that very much. As a matter of fact, after apparently realising what a problem Barbara Davis’s misidentification of the jacket created for them, Warren Commission member, Gerald Ford, asked her if she had her eyes examined recently!


As I hope you have come to realise, the Davis sister-in-laws, like Helen Markham, should not be considered reliable witnesses! However, despite all the problems with their credibility, lone gunman kooks such as David Von Pein uphold their identification of Oswald as being reliable. It only goes to show their desperation to convict Oswald at all costs.

(More to come late).

Sunday 23 December 2012

The Tippit murder: Unresolved issues - Part 2


The approximate time of Tippit’s murder

Unlike the assassination of the President, the approximate time of the murder of Officer Tippit is open to debate. The Warren Commission placed the time of Tippit’s death at 1:15 pm. This was based on the DPD Channel 1 transcript, where a citizen informed the Police dispatcher that Tippit had been shot.

Despite the Warren Commission’s conclusion, the best evidence indicates Tippit was killed at approximately 1:06 pm (as I hope you will be convinced). Keep in mind that Oswald’s house keeper, Earlene Roberts, claimed during her Warren Commission testimony that Oswald had entered his room at the rooming house at approximately 1pm. Robert’s also claimed that Oswald stayed in his room for about 3 to 4 minutes before leaving. This would mean Oswald left at about 1:03/1:04 pm.

Let’s also keep in mind that according to Google Maps, the shortest route Oswald could have travelled from his rooming house at 1026 North Beckley to 10th and Patton was about 0.8 miles (1.29 km). So if Roberts’ recollection was accurate, and Oswald did leave at 1:03/1:04 pm, and the approximate time of Tippit’s death was at 1:06pm, then Oswald could not have been Tippit’s killer! Even if we take the earlier time of 1:03 pm (with the shortest distance of travel as 0.8 miles), Oswald would have been running at an average speed of 25. 8 km! This, of course, is impossible.

Many lone gunman zealots have claimed (not surprisingly) that Roberts was mistaken about Oswald leaving 3 to 4 minutes after entering his room – and that he had in fact left less than a minute after allegedly putting on a jacket, and grabbing “his” revolver.

I return to this issue further on in this article. Let’s first take a look at the evidence that Tippit was killed at approximately 1:06 pm.

Let’s begin with Helen Markham. On the day of the assassination, Helen Markham was on her way to the Eat well restaurant on Main Street where she worked as a waitress, when she witnessed the murder of Officer Tippit. Markham had left the washateria of her apartment near the corner of 9th and Patton streets, and was heading south on Patton Street towards Jefferson blvd. to catch a bus, according to her, at approximately 1:15 pm.

In her affidavit to the Dallas Sheriff’s department (here), Markham claimed that the time was “approximately 1:06 pm” when Tippit was killed. During her Warren Commission, however, Markham gave a somewhat bizarre answer when Counsel Joseph Ball asked her what time she thought Tippit was killed.

Mr. Ball
You think it was a little after 1?

Mrs. Markham
I wouldn't be afraid to bet it wasn't 6 or 7 minutes after 1

For some reason, Markham seemed to try and deny that Tippit was killed at approximately 1:06 pm, as stated in her affidavit. However, it is important to bear in mind that Markham noted the time was 1:04 pm when she left the Washateria of her apartment (see here, page 8). A re-enactment of Markham’s movements by the FBI (here), determined that it took about 2 ½ minutes to reach the corner of 10th and Patton from the corner of 9th and Patton (one block South). However, according to Google maps, it would take about 2 minutes to walk from the corner of 9th Street to the corner of 10th Street.

With Markham leaving her apartment at 1:04 pm, and with 2 minutes required to walk one block south from the corner of 9th and Patton to the corner of 10th and Patton, this places Markham at the corner of 10th and Patton Streets at approximately 1:06 pm - as she claimed in her affidavit! Is this Just a coincidence? I honestly don’t see how.

It should be noted that according to lone gunman zealot, Dale Myers, Markham was at the corner of 10th and Patton at 1:14 pm. However, this is simply ridiculous. As mentioned above, Markham informed the FBI during her interview with agent Robert Barrett, that the time was 1:04 pm when she left the washateria of her apartment.

Now, although Markham should be considered an unreliable witness (as I will explain in an upcoming article), there is very good reason to believe she was correct about the time of Tippit’s murder being at 1:06 pm. Barry Ernest, author of the book The Girl on the Stairs, interviewed a lady named Mrs Higgins who at the time of Tippit’s murder was living at 417 East 10th Street.

Mrs Higgins was watching TV when she suddenly heard shots being fired, and looked towards Tippit’s patrol car. When Barry Ernest asked her what time the shooting occurred, she stated it was at 1:06 pm. When asked how she was certain that the shooting occurred at 1:06 pm, she explained the following to Ernest:

“Well, I was watching the news on television and for some reason the announcer turned and looked at the clock and said the time was ‘six minutes after one’… He said it just like that, ‘six minutes after one.’ And you know how you always do, you hear the time and you automatically check your own watch. So I just looked up at the clock on my television to verify the time and it said 1:06. At that point I heard the shots.”

When Ernest further asked her if she was positive of the time, she responded: “Yes, I am. I’d bet my life on it.” Mrs Higgins assertion that the time was 1:06 pm when Tippit was killed is perfectly consistent with Helen Markham’s claim that Tippit was killed at approximately 1:06 pm! Furthermore, when Ernest asked Higgins if the man who shot Tippit was Oswald, she very reluctantly claimed that he wasn’t!

Further confirmation that Tippit was killed prior to 1:15 pm comes from T.F Bowley, who arrived at the scene of the shooting after Tippit’s killer had fled. Bowley was on his way to pick up his wife who worked at the telephone company at 9th and Zang Streets, when he observed Tippit lying in the Street. In his affidavit to the Dallas Sheriff’s Office on 2/12/63 (here), Bowley claimed he looked at his watch upon arriving at the murder scene, and noted that the time was 1:10 pm.

Let’s also take into account the statements by Domingo Benavides. Benavides was driving west along 10th Street when he heard the shooting. Startled by the shots, Benavides pulled his pick-up truck to the curb almost directly across the Street from Tippit’s patrol car, and ducked down inside his truck. He was by far the closet witness to Tippit’s murder. Benavides informed the Warren Commission during his testimony that he remained in his pick-up truck for a few minutes before exiting.

Mr. Belin
All right, after you saw him turn around the corner, what did you do?

Mr. Benavides
After that, I set [sat] there for just a few minutes to kind of, I thought he went in back of the house or something. At the time, I thought maybe he might have lived in there and I didn't want to get out and rush right up. He might start shooting again. That is when I got out of the truck and walked over to the Policeman, and he was lying there and he had, looked like a big clot of blood coming out of his head, and his eyes were sunk back in his head, and just kind of made me feel real funny. I guess I was really scared.

The significance of Benavides claim that he remained in his pick-up truck for a few minutes is that Bowley stated in his affidavit that when he arrived at the murder scene: “A man [Benavides] was trying to use the radio in the squad car but stated he didn't know how to operate it”. Bowley also claimed that he took the police microphone from Benavides, and informed the dispatcher that Tippit had been shot (although Benavides claimed during his Warren Commission testimony that it was actually he who contacted the dispatcher).

Note that Bowley’s claim the time was 1:10 pm when he arrived and took the microphone from Benavides is perfectly consistent with Tippit being killed at 1:06 pm, and with Benavides claim that he waited a few minutes to walk over to Tippit’s patrol car and attempt to call the dispatcher.

However, let me also note that Benavides claimed during an interview with CBS in June 1967 (here) that he “…Sat there [in the truck] for maybe a second or two…” before heading over to Tippit’s patrol car - and not for a few minutes as he stated during his Warren Commission testimony. However, are we to honestly believe his latter claim to CBS was more reliable than his claim to the Warren Commission – even though it makes much more sense that he would wait a few minutes instead of a few seconds to walk over to Tippit’s patrol car, with fear of being shot by Tippit’s murderer? Sorry, but I don’t think so.

If you want further evidence that Tippit was killed prior to the Warren Commission’s time of 1:15 pm, then just consider the fact that upon arrival at Methodist hospital, the time of Tippit’s death was noted as 1:15 pm! This was stated on an authorised permit for Tippit’s autopsy on the day of the assassination by justice of the peace, Joe Brown jr. Yet, according to the DPD channel 1 radio transcript, the Police dispatcher wasn’t informed that Tippit had been shot until 1:16pm.

I should also note that an FBI report dated 29/11/63 claims that Tippit was pronounced dead upon arrival at Methodist hospital at 1:25 pm (see here). However, are we to honestly believe an FBI report dated a week following the assassination, instead of the permit dated on the day of the assassination? I don’t think so. (In an upcoming article, I will explain why the FBI reports pertaining to Tippit’s murder are not to be trusted).

As we can see, the best evidence indicates Tippit was killed before 1:15 pm – and most likely at 1:06 pm as per the recollections of Helen Markham and Mrs Higgins. But do lone gunman zealots mention any of this? Not a word - which only goes to show their dishonesty, and their desire to convict Oswald at all costs. Instead, lone gunman zealots rely on the accuracy of the DPD transcripts. Yet, as I explained in my previous post, the transcripts are not to be trusted in regards to Tippit’s murder.

It’s also very interesting to note that between 1:09 and 1:11 pm, there are no transmissions on Channel 1 of the DPD radio. This would have been the approximate time at which Bowley called the Police dispatcher, to inform them that Tippit was shot. In my opinion, the DPD altered the transcript and placed Bowley’s call at 1:16 pm to ensure Oswald would have had sufficient time to murder Tippit.

I know there are those who will disagree with my reasoning above, but think about it carefully. With the President assassinated – and with the entire United States (and the entire world for that matter) anxiously waiting to learn who was responsible, the DPD would have been in a State of panic to find the assassin(s) and charge them with the President’s murder.

With Oswald arrested inside the Texas Theatre, they had a viable suspect. He had left the TSBD shortly following the assassination. He was arrested inside the Theatre allegedly carrying a revolver, and had punched officer McDonald after allegedly shouting “This is it” or “Well, it’s all over now” (Please refer to my previous posts for further discussion of these issues). But more importantly in my opinion, unlike the DPD, Helen Markham, Mrs Higgins, T.F Bowley, and justice of the peace Joe Brown Jr, had no reason to lie.

It should also be noted that according to lone gunman zealot, Dale Myers, Tippit entered the Top Ten records shop at 1:11 pm. This was allegedly based on information from store owner J.W Stark, and one of his employees, Louis Cortinas. However, in order to believe that Tippit was at the shop at 1:11 pm, we must believe that Helen Markham, Mrs Higgins, and T.F Bowley were all mistaken. Completely ridiculous! Furthermore, as explained in this article, Cortinas should be considered an unreliable witness.

Incidentally, at approximately 1:02 pm, the dispatcher asked Tippit for his location, but received no response. It is therefore quite likely that Tippit was in the Top ten records store at this point in time.

On a further note, in the aforementioned article it is claimed that the driver of the ambulance which took Tippit to the Methodist hospital (Clayton Butler), informed the HSCA that Tippit arrived at the hospital at approximately 1:23 pm. However, this is contradicted by the authorisation permit for Tippit’s autopsy signed by justice of the peace, Joe Brown jr, who as mentioned above, placed the time of death at the hospital at 1:15 pm on the day of the assassination.

Let’s now return to Earlene Roberts, Oswald’s house keeper. As previously stated, Roberts claimed that Oswald entered his rooming house on 1026 North Beckley at approximately 1 pm and remained there for about 3 to 4 minutes before leaving. Lone gunman zealots such as David Von Pein have claimed that Roberts was mistaken, and that Oswald left almost immediately after allegedly putting on a jacket and taking “his” revolver, and didn’t wait at the bus stop on the corner of Zang and Beckley Streets.

Although this is nothing but wishful thinking, let’s assume for the sake of argument that Oswald left almost immediately. With the time of Tippit’s murder at 1:06 pm, this would give Oswald approximately 5 minutes to travel from his rooming house to 10th and Patton. This would mean Oswald had to be running at an average speed of 15.5 km/h – still impossible for Oswald to reach the corner of 10th and Patton in time to have been Tippit’s murderer.

To summarise, the best evidence indicates that Tippit was killed at 1:06 pm. If Oswald did in fact arrive at his rooming house at approximately 1:00 pm as Earlene Roberts claimed, then there is absolutely no way Oswald could have walked the shortest route of 0.8 miles to 10th and Patton and shot Tippit!

The “Oswald” Jacket

Let’s now briefly discuss the light gray coloured zipper jacket which Oswald allegedly discarded after he fled the Tippit murder scene. This jacket was designated Ce162. See below.



Before discussing its discovery, it’s important to first explain the escape route taken by Tippit’s killer.

After Tippit was shot, the killer went down Patton Street, where he was seen by Cab driver William Scoggins, the Davis sister-in-laws, and by Harris bros. Auto sales employees Ted Callaway, and Sam Guinyard. Once the killer reached Jefferson Blvd. he turned West onto Jefferson and was seen by Warren Reynolds, B.M Patterson, L.J Lewis, and Harold Russel, who were standing at the parking lot of Johnny Reynolds’ used car lot.

Reynolds and Patterson followed the killer from a safe distance behind him, and saw him turn right into the Texaco Service station on Jefferson Blvd, owned and operated by Roger Ballew. A mechanic employed at the service station named Robert Brock and his wife, Mary Brock, saw the man go into the parking lot behind the station. It was here where the DPD discovered the jacket.

On page 175 of the Warren report, credit for the discovery of the jacket is given to Captain W.R Westbrook. However, this was an outright lie. During his testimony, Westbrook denied discovering the jacket and instead claimed that the jacket was pointed out to him. See below.

Mr. Ball
Did you ever find some clothing?

Mr. Westbrook
That was before, Mr. Ball.

Mr. Ball
When was that?

Mr. Westbrook
Actually, I didn't find it--it was pointed out to me by either some officer that--that was while we were going over the scene in the close area where the shooting was concerned, someone pointed. out a jacket to me that was laying under a car and I got the jacket and told the officer to take the license number.

In fact, not only did Westbrook deny discovering the jacket, but he wasn’t even sure if the person who identified it was an Officer! What’s truly bizarre is that Westbrook claimed the jacket was discovered after the false alarm at the Jefferson branch library (this was when DPD Officer Charles Walker observed a man later identified as Adrian Hamby run into the library).

However, according to the DPD radio transcripts, an unidentified Officer broadcast over the radio at 1:25 pm that the jacket had been found at the parking lot behind the service station. Charles Walker’s broadcast of seeing the suspect run into the Library on the other hand, was at 1:34 pm.

Furthermore, the Officer who discovered the jacket has never been identified, which would explain why the Warren Commission lied about Westbrook having discovered it. There are some researchers who believe the jacket was never found at the parking lot, because the chain of possession of the jacket was never properly established. However, there is film footage of an Officer holding a jacket at the parking lot (see here).

If Oswald was really Tippit’s killer, it’s a mystery as to why he left the jacket behind as evidence. Nevertheless, lone gunman zealots argue that since Earlene Roberts observed Oswald leave his rooming house with a zipper jacket, and since Oswald was arrested at the Texas Theatre without a jacket, then he is obviously guilty.

Although this certainly sounds logical, Roberts’s identification of Ce162 as the jacket Oswald was wearing when he left his rooming house was nothing short of a disaster. The following is from Roberts’s’ testimony:

Mr. Ball
I'll show you this jacket which is Commission Exhibit 162---have you ever seen this jacket before?

Mrs. Roberts
Well, maybe I have, but I don't remember it. It seems like the one he put on was darker than that. Now, I won't be sure, because I really don't know, but is that a zipper jacket?

Mr. Ball
Yes---it has a zipper down the front.

Mrs. Roberts
Well, maybe it was.

Mr. Ball
It was a zippered jacket, was it?

Mrs. Roberts
Yes; it was a zipper jacket. How come me to remember it, he was zipping it up as he went out the door.

As we can see, the best answer Roberts could give concerning the jacket is that she might have seen it. She also claimed the jacket she saw Oswald with seemed darker than Ce162! In fact, the only thing she was sure of was that the jacket Oswald was wearing was a zipper type jacket.

Now if the jacket discovered at the parking lot wasn’t Oswald’s, then there is the distinct possibility that Oswald went to the Texas Theatre with a jacket. Otherwise, it may have been taken from him as he was escorted to the Theatre by the conspirators. The purpose of taking the jacket from Oswald could have been to plant it at the parking lot by the actual killer. However, there is no reason to believe the jacket belonged to Oswald.

If the jacket was found at the Theatre following Oswald’s arrest, then obviously the DPD hid that fact to ensure Oswald would be convicted for the murders of Tippit. The distinct possibility exists that the jacket Earlene Roberts actually saw Oswald wearing was the blue zipper jacket which was allegedly found more than a week following the assassination at the TSBD. Oswald may have taken this jacket off inside the Theatre before being arrested, with the DPD contriving the story that it was actually inside the TSBD.

Lone gunman zealots also use the dubious statements by Marina Oswald as “proof” that Ce162 was the jacket owned by Oswald. From page 175 of the Warren report:

“Marina Oswald stated that her husband owned only two jackets, one blue and the other gray. The blue jacket was found in the Texas School Book Depository and was identified by Marina Oswald as her husband's. Marina Oswald also identified Commission Exhibit No. 162, the jacket found by Captain Westbrook, as her husband's second jacket.”

Countless researchers have exposed Marina Oswald as being anything but credible. Bear in mind that this is the same Marina Oswald who refused to identify the MC rifle as being Oswald’s when it was shown to her at City Hall on the day of the assassination - but then identified it as being Oswald’s rifle during her interviews with the FBI.

Also keep in mind that Marina’s story of how many backyard photographs she allegedly took of Oswald holding the rifle kept changing over time. Marina also initially denied knowing that Oswald ever used the name Alek James Hidell as an alias, but then told the Warren Commission that she learned of the name during Oswald’s radio debate with Ed Butler – even though the name was never mentioned during the course of the debate!

Most importantly, however, Robert Oswald (Lee Harvey Oswald’s older brother) claimed during his Warren Commission testimony that the FBI had implied that they would deport Marina back to Russia if she didn’t co-operate with them! (For example, see here).

There are many other dubious stories which Marina Oswald told, such as Oswald’s alleged attempt to assassinate Richard Nixon – which the Warren Commission didn’t even believe. As a matter of fact, the HSCA wrote a 29 page report questioning Marina’s credibility. Yet despite all the problems with Marina’s credibility, it is truly amazing how lone gunman zealots continue to defend her as being a credible witness.

Returning to the light gray zipper jacket, following its discovery at the parking lot, DPD Sgt H.H Stringer radioed the following information on Channel 2 of the DPD radio.

“The jacket the suspect was wearing over here on Jefferson bears a laundry tag with the letter B 9738. See if there is any way you can check this laundry tag.”

In a written report by Captain W.R Westbrook (here), the jacket is described as a “gray mans jacket with “M” size in collar, laundry mark 30, and 030 in collar.” Oswald, however, only wore small sized clothing - and the FBI was unable to locate any cleaning establishment from which the laundry tag B 9738 originated from. Therefore, other than the unreliable statements by Marina Oswald, there is no reason to believe the light gray zipper jacket belonged to Oswald.

Many researchers have constantly argued that Oswald never used any type of cleaning establishment for cleaning his clothes. However, as author Ian Griggs explains in his excellent book No Case to Answer, there is an FBI interview with a man named Leslie Lawson who informed them that Oswald had used his establishment for having a tie, white shirt, and a black pair of pants cleaned. The interview can be viewed here.

For more information on the jacket, be sure to check out this informative discussion on Gil Jesus’s website. However, suffice it to say, it remains a mystery why Tippit’s killer discarded his jacket.

In the following article, I discuss the reliability of the eye witnesses who identified Oswald as Tippit’s killer.

Addendum:

According to Warren Commission exhibit 705 (here, page 48) the actual time the DPD dispatcher had called out over the DPD Channel 1 radio; immediately following T.F Bowley’s transmission that Tippit had been shot, was 1:10 pm! This is perfectly consistent with Bowley’s claim that the time was 1:10pm when he arrived at the murder scene, and then looked at his watch. How any lone gunman zealot can state that this was merely a bizarre coincidence, is truly beyond me. Also, be sure to see page 3 of this Armstrong Baylor file.