Richard Belzer, star of “Law and Order SVU,” discussed his best-selling JFK book, “Hit List” at the National Press Club here in Washington on Monday night. The book examines allegations of suspicious deaths of Kennedy assassination witnesses and, I gather, finds many of them credible.
While conspiracy skeptics often dismiss such claims, no one can dispute that at least one JFK witness died a violent and suspicious death:
That would be Lee Harvey Oswald.
I was hoping to attend Belzer’s talk wasn’t able to make it. Can anybody fill us in on what he said?
I believe Oswald went to get his gun for protection after realizing he had been duped and was going to become a patsy. I think he was going to meet someone in the theatre possibly to help him escape the scene for an extended period of time. It’s Marina’s word that he left the ring. How much is that worth? I do not believe he shot Tippit. Why would he leave his wallet at the scene of the shooting? He was an intelligent guy. It is the police word that he had a gun in the theatre is it not? I may be mistaken.
Belzer’s book is excellent.Oswald was tied to so many people connected to plot (banister,ferrie,ruby,marcello) he may have realized what was going on.More importantly the pistol he was carrying was never linked ballistically to Tippit and the cop who collected the shells at the Tippit scene said the ones the commission showed him weren’t the same.Mary Pinchot Meyer is huge.Her ex,Cord Meyer,was one of the top men at the CIA.They tried to frame a poor black guy but he had a teriffic lawyer.The big surprise was Jim Reeves.
If you accept that witnesses placed him in the lunch room just prior to the shooting it makes me think he wasn’t aware the assassination was going to take place that day but it didn’t take him long to realize he was in trouble.
Desmond FitzGerald, succeeded William K. Harvey as chief of the Cuban Task Force: Died, 23 July, 1967
Winston Scott, Chief, Mexico City Station: Died, 26 April, 1971. No autopsy was performed
William King Harvey, Chief, Staff D, Task Force W, Agent In Charge of zr/rifle (Executive Action): Died, 9 June, 1976
William Pawley, Former diplomat, founder of the Flying Tigers, Sponsor of CIA affiliated anti-Castro guerrilla operations: Died, January 1977
J. C. King, Chief of Western Hemisphere Division: Died, January ’77
David Sánchez Morales, Chief of Paramilitary Operations, jm/wave station, Miami: Died, 8 May, 1978
Tom Karamessines, Assistant Deputy Director for Plans under Richard Helms: Died, 4 September, 1978
When there are so many mob and Cuban corpses strewn about our path during the brief period of congressional investigations, one might easily overlook some of the above.
It has taken me a long time to believe that Jack Ruby was murdered in prison by cancer injections. I believe that now. People just don’t understand what a psycopath Lyndon Johnson was or the “Operation Northwoods” mentality of the military intelligence Machiavellians around him. They would squash a human life out like some folks would squash a cockroach under their shoe.
The “clean up” murder list of the JFK assassination is over-exaggerated. But two of the JFK cover up murders I believe in are 1) obviously Oswald 2) Jack Ruby (before he could get out of prison and become “accessible” to curious people).
Judyth Baker does say they were experimenting on fast acting cancer. Jack Ruby, unlike Fidel Castro, was in possession of the LBJ & military intelligence. Ruby’s regular doctor was fired and another one came in and started giving him strange shots.
http://educationforum.ipbhost.com/index.php?showtopic=8618
Re: the Belzer book
Top three suspicious 1960s deaths in my opinion:
#1 – Dorothy Kilgallen, alleged suicide. After meeting with Ruby and threatening to blow the lid off the case.
#2 – Lee Bowers. Saw suspicious activity behind the stock fence from an RR tower. Ran his car into an RR abutment.
#3 – Bruce Pitzer. Took autopsy photos at variance with official
story. Alleged suicide. Allen Eagelsham says yes, suicide.
If Pitzer’s death was bu suicide, I’d like to think he took his own life upon learning someone or some group was going to kill him.
I don’t know about Belzer, but I’ve seen some conspiracy theorists who try to claim a huge number of deaths as suspicious. Such claims are easily refuted.
If you’re more selective and zero in, the case for something fishy becomes much more compelling. To me, the most potentially suspicious deaths are of David Ferrie, Johnny Roselli, and George de Mohrenschildt. And, of course, Oswald himself.
I think that’s why Belzers book is important because the sheer amount of strange deaths strains credulity that they are all unconnected to JFK’s murder. I would add Nicoletti, Giancana,Mary Meyer, Kilgallen and Pitzer being very interesting and when they died.
What about these?
Dorothy Killalgalen
Lee Bowers
Roger Craig
Looks like he’ll be appearing on the Piers Morgan show on Thursday, May 9.
Lee Oswald has never been proven to be a witness to anything other than police brutality.Are you claiming that he was involved after all? Are you about to come out as a LN advocate?
I think its pretty clear Oswald knew something was going to happen that day. Why else would he go to his room and retrieve his pistol after the assassination?
Regarding the Belzer book, I’m glad it is getting publicity, and is hopefully being read buy Historians and Journalists, as is that is the only thing which will change minds. One thing that is never mentioned about DeMohrenschildt and Ferrie’s deaths which I believe are suicides, and that is does it make it any less suspicious?
As far as Oswald, his actions the day of the Assassination do not appear to be consistent with an innocent man. How many white males were carrying a concealed pistol in Dallas that day? How many snuck into a theater just after Officer Tippit was murdered? As far as I know, not once at any time Oswald was in custody does he express the any remorse that JFK was killed, though supposedly according to Marina he admired him. Kind of strange don’t you think? That’s just another of LHO’s games, like playing a fanatical pro Castro. supporter.
It is now thought that when Oswald went home he got a call from his principal or handler and was told to meet him at the theatre. He probably always had his gun when meeting people like that. It’s also been proven that the timeline doesn’t fit. Oswald could not have spoken with Tippit, shot him and walked to the theatre in the time allotted. It has been said that Oswald was told to meet his handler at the theatre. The handler called the police and said there’s your man. That is why so many police showed up. They wouldn’t send that many cars out b/c someone snuck into a theatre.
Jeff,
From what I’ve read, there’s no proving the pistol Oswald had at the time of his arrest was his, in the sense of proving it was the one he allegedly ordered.
Furthermore, Earline Roberts said she cleaned his small room regularly and never saw a pistol.
In addition, three young women said they saw Jack Ruby hand Oswald a pistol outside the TSBD.
Oswald clearly had a pistol that was going to be be useless; it had a bent firing pin.
The fact that Oswald went to his rooming house on North Beckley (and got a pistol — if that is what he did) does not necessarily point toward advance knowledge of the assassination.
Oswald’s movements after leaving the TSBD are not entirely clear; from what is known for sure, it appears he was looking for someone in the Texas Theater. That isn’t a sign of “guilt.”
You have to ask yourself why he thought he needed a firearm to defend himself in the afternoon when he didn’t need one in the morning. What had changed? The answer, of course, is JFK’s assassination. So what about the assassination makes him need to defend himself? The most plausible explanation is that he knew something that would threaten others and those people would have reason to harm him. Which as in fact the case as subsequent events proved.
Go with it, Jeff. Why was he concerned enough to carry a pistol? Your question.
I don’t know. But that doesn’t matter. I look at what is known about his movements from 12:33 p.m. to 1:50 p.m. Dallas time.
… because he knew something about the shooting of the president.
I’m not saying LHO shot Tippit,but what I am saying is if he wasn’t involved what was he doing between the crucial time of 1:04 when Earlene Roberts sees him at the bustop and when Johnny Brewer saw him near the front of the shoestore before sneaking into the theater some half hour later?
Jonathan,
Yes, Earlene Roberts said she saw no pistol, but she also said she never opened any drawers in Oswald’s room or went through his things, so there was no reason she should’ve seen it.
The FBI test-fired the pistol and described it as being in good operating condition.
There are several FBI reports on the “three women” on the Mary Ferrell JFK site (www.maryferrell.org). Those interviews indicate that the story got garbled as it passed from one person to the next. Evidently the women didn’t mention Ruby or Oswald but said they saw one man hand off a rifle to another man in an Elm St. parking lot a day or so before the shooting.
Jean
Jean,
Hope you see this.
I’ve changed my mind on the firing pin.
Jonathan,
Yes, I did see your reply on the firing pin, and good for you! Few people change their minds about anything in this case, or will say so.
Jean
Dear Z,
Than please answer these questions:
In the 30 years and more that I’ve been reading and thinking about the murder, I have never come even close to getting a handle on what Oswald’s role was on that day. (Besides being 100% certain that he was on the first or second floor of the TSBD when the shots were fired.) What was he thinking when he woke up that morning? What did he think his role was to be? What did he think would go down that day in Dallas?
Of course there are many theories. Did he think he had helped to stop the plot, via information passed on to his handlers? (As he possibly did three weeks earlier with the planned Chicago ambush.) Did he think a fake attempt — one which would miss the President — would be carried out — an attempt which would be falsely trailed back to Cuba/USSR and be used as a casus belli? Would a fake attempt occur, to be used as a casus belli by the Kennedys to “scatter the CIA to the winds” — much as DeGaulle used the Generals Revolt of the year before to finally destroy the OAS? (Imagine Dick Helms, Allen Dulles & Jim Angelton executed by firing squad!) Did Oswald breathe easier because the attempt he was apprised of was to be made at Love Field? Or perhaps later at the Trademart?
But if any of these theories are true, why would Lee Oswald — who seems to me a very sharp guy, especially in understanding how political power actually works — go anywhere near the motorcade route? Why would he not stay home with the kids that Friday? Or present himself outside the TSBD, in order to make his framing impossible? One thing I believe we can rule out is his innocence of knowing that something would occur that day in Dallas: his many intelligence connections leading up to 11/22/63, his leaving all his money at home, his immediate departure from the murder scene, his staying inside the building when JFK passed by.
The answer to these questions must include both his innocence as a Dealey Plaza shooter, and his willingness to place himself in harm’s way. Answers I sure as heck don’t have.
(BTW, keep up the great work, Mr. Morley.)