Marvin Johnson, Marion Baker, Mrs Reid, Roy Truly, OV Campbell & Welcome Barnett
Magic Bullet
REPORT ON OFFICER'S DUTIES IN REGARD TO THE PRESIDENT'S
MURDER
MARVIN JOHNSON - #879
Johnson states: "While in the office [Fritz's] from 3:00pm until
2:00am I answered the phone and took an affidavit from Patrolman ML Baker.
Patrolman Baker stated in his affidavit that he was riding escort on his
motorcycle for the President's motorcade; that he heard the shots that killed
the President and wounded Governor Connally; that he decided the shots were
coming from the Texas School Book Depository Building. After determining the
origin of the shots, he jumped from his motor and ran into the building. He
found a man who said he was the building manager. Officer Baker and the
building manager then went to a stairway and started up the stairs to search
the building. On the 4th floor Officer Baker apprehended a man that was
walking away from the stairway on that floor. Officer Baker started to search
the man, but the building manager stated that the man was an employee of the
company and was known to him. Officer Baker released the man and continued his
search of the building. Officer Baker later identified Lee Harvey Oswald as
the man he had seen on the 4th floor of the Texas School Book Depository."
He ends: "When Patrolman ML Baker identified Lee Harvey Oswald
as the man that he stopped in the Texas School Book Depository Building,
Patrolman Baker was in the Homicide Bureau giving an affidavit and Oswald was
brought into the room to talk to some Secret Service men. When Baker saw
Oswald he stated, 'that is the man I stopped on the 4th floor of the School
Book Depository.'"
MARION BAKER
The above is pretty close to Baker's affidavit, except Baker said "the third
or fourth floor", and included a description of the man "apprehended" as
follows: "...a white man, approx 30 years old, 5-9-165 - dk hair and wearing a
lt brown jacket." Needless to say, no mention of any coke.
MRS REID
Mrs Reid's statement was taken on 23nov63. It appears to be in very similar
handwriting as that shown in the draft of Baker's affidavit. It states in
part: "...I remarked to Mr Campbell that I thought the shots had come from
our building. But I heard someone else say no, I think it was further down the
street. [this un-named person's thought seems to have been very persuasive
because in her next sentence, she states she then went back inside the TSBD].
I went back into our building and up to the second floor to our office. Just
after I entered the office, I saw one of the men who work in the warehouse
come through the back office door. This door is located near the lunch room
and the rear stairway. I did not know this man's name at the time for he had
not worked there long. However I now know his name to be Lee Harvey Oswald.
I said to Lee, 'Oh! some one has shot at the president. I hope they didn't hit
him. Lee mumbled something and walked out of the office. I did not understand
what he said. He had a coke in his hand. [the sentence on the coke is writen
above the line of other text with an arrow starting from the end of "I did not
understand what he said" and pointing up to it. "hand" for whatever reason, is
underlined.] When I saw him he was dressed in a white t-shirt and I don't
recall what his trousers was like. I did not see him any more after that."
At the bottom of the statement we have the initial's JRL... Jim R Leavelle.
ROY TRULY
Truly's affidavit is dated 23nov63.
In regard to the floor Oswald where Oswald was encountered, he stated: "We
then started up the stairway. We hit the second floor landing, the officer
stuck his head into the lunch room area where there are coke and candy
machines. Lee Oswald was in there. The officer had his gun on Oswald and
asked me if he was an employee. I answered yes. We then went up the stairs to
the 5th floor where we found the elevator open..."
In regard to his encounter with Baker, he stated: "I saw an officer break
through the crowd and go into the building, so I ran with him..."
That too, is in stark contrast to Baker's statement of the previous day: "I
jumped off my motorcycle and ran inside the building. As I entered the door I
saw several people standing around. I asked these people where the stairs
were. A man stepped forward and stated he was the building manager and that he
would show me where the stairs were..."
However, Jim Leavelle took a (somewhat belated) statement from OV Campbell,
the VP of the TSBD, whom Truly had gone to lunch with on the day of the
assassination. He supports Truly's version...
The statement was taken 17feb64, and states in part: "...I had forgotten about
the parade. I started to lunch with Mr Truly. When we got downstairs Mr Truly
asked if I wanted to wait and see the parade. We waited on the front steps
until the parade turned off Main St and onto Houston St. We then walked across
Elm St and stood on the curb near the parade as it turned from Houston St down
under the underpass. I heard the shots. It sounded like they came from the
knoll near the railroad tracks. I thought it was firecrackers. A uniform
officer came up and at the same time a construction worker [Sounds like he was
confronted by the Village People!!!] with a helmet on across the street and
said he had seen a rifle barrel in the sixth floor window. I walked back in
the building. Mr Truly and the officer had already gone in and up the stairs.
I waited until they came back down to see if they found anything. The
employees were standing around [well, except for a few... Frazier had slunk
off to the basement to eat his lunch alone, and Givens had gone awol]. When Mr
Truly came down he said one of the employees was missing, a man named
Oswald..."
Interesting that Campbell has identified Baker as the cop Brennan spoke to.
Welcome Eugene Barnett identified himself as that officer when he appeared
before the commission on 23jul64. The only document in the DPD files in
relation to Barnett is dated 12dec63 and pertains to his questioning over why
his name appeared on Jack Ruby's visiting list.
Barnett told the commission: "Yes, sir; I was back where No. 8 is then. That
was probably 2 1/2 minutes after the last shot was fired. About that time, my
sergeant came up from this way, from the north of Houston Street and asked me
to get the name of that building. I broke and ran to the front and got the
name of it. There were people going in and out at that time. I ran back and
told him the name of it, and about that time a construction worker ran from
this southwest corner of the intersection up to me and said, 'I was standing
over there and saw the man in the window with the rifle.' He and I and the
sergeant all three broke and ran for the door. I kept the man there with me.
The sergeant ran to the back to make sure it was covered. I kept the man there
until they took him across the street to the courthouse. I was there until 3
o'clock, at the door there with one of the other officers, J.D. Smith."
WC Testimonies:
BAKER now states the Oswald encounter was on the second floor.
On his encounter with Truly, he is a little more ambiguous:
<quote on>
Mr. BAKER - As I entered this building, there was, it seems to me like there
was outside doors and then there is a little lobby.
Mr. BELIN - All right.
Mr. BAKER - And then there are some inner doors and another door you have to
go through, a swinging door type.
As I entered this lobby there were people going in as I entered. And I asked,
I just spoke out and asked where the stairs or elevator was, and this man, Mr.
Truly, spoke up and says, it seems to me like he says, "I am a building
manager. Follow me, officer, and I will show you." So we immediately went out
through the second set of doors, and we ran into the swinging door.
Mr. BELIN - All right.
Now, during the course of running into the swinging door, did you bump into
the back of Mr. Truly?
Mr. BAKER - Yes, sir; I did.
Mr. BELIN - Then what happened?
Mr. BAKER - We finally backed up and got through that little swinging door
there and we kind of all ran, not real fast but, you know, a good trot, to the
back of the Building, I was following him.
<quote off>
REID confirmed to the commision her desk was near a dumbwaiter.
According to Truly, this was used to send orders between floors. Anyone
know how much space was available in this dumbwaiter?
She also stated that her husband worked in the Records Building, and that she
phoned him, and he advised he had heard on the radio that the motorcade was
running about 10 minutes late.
The other information she gave the commission is basically in line with her
original DPD statement, except that now she identified Campbell as the person
who assured her the shots had come from the knoll, not the TSBD.
greg
John Hill
news:newscache$9ve3xg$lgh$1...@news.octa4.net.au...
Was Oswald wearing a light brown jacket at that time?
> MRS REID
> Mrs Reid's statement was taken on 23nov63. It appears to be in very
similar
> handwriting as that shown in the draft of Baker's affidavit. It states in
> part: "...I remarked to Mr Campbell that I thought the shots had come from
> our building. But I heard someone else say no, I think it was further down
the
> street. [this un-named person's thought seems to have been very persuasive
> because in her next sentence, she states she then went back inside the
TSBD].
> I went back into our building and up to the second floor to our office.
Just
> after I entered the office, I saw one of the men who work in the warehouse
> come through the back office door. This door is located near the lunch
room
> and the rear stairway. I did not know this man's name at the time for he
had
> not worked there long. However I now know his name to be Lee Harvey
Oswald.
> I said to Lee, 'Oh! some one has shot at the president.
So much for some folks argument that the ONLY way Oswald could have known
about the shooting was if he'd done it himself.
> I hope they didn't hit
> him. Lee mumbled something and walked out of the office. I did not
understand
> what he said. He had a coke in his hand. [the sentence on the coke is
writen
> above the line of other text with an arrow starting from the end of "I did
not
> understand what he said" and pointing up to it. "hand" for whatever
reason, is
> underlined.] When I saw him he was dressed in a white t-shirt and I don't
> recall what his trousers was like. I did not see him any more after that."
>
> At the bottom of the statement we have the initial's JRL... Jim R
Leavelle.
Now the light brown jacket is missing.
Very interesting post.
--
John Hill (joisa)