“A History of the Texas State Guard” by Colonel Curren R. McLane

“Members of the Special Staff of the Texas State Guard Reserve Corps were:

Judge Advocate Section: Col. Charles O. Betts, Austin.”

Austin Sunday American Statesman Newspaper Archives

Sunday, June 04, 1950 - Page 19

Judge Charles O. Betts, former 10th District commander, told the group of the State Guard’s service during the war years, and of the legislation which continued the Texas State Guard Reserve Corps in permanent status subject to active service at any time the National Guard may be called into federal service.”

More on Charles O. Betts:

http://www.texastotheworld.com/the-lbj-murder-conference/

“Regardless, the jury found (Mac) Wallace guilty of murder and eleven of the panelists wanted the death penalty while one suggested life in prison. The judge in the case, Charles O. Betts, issued a “jury verdict notwithstanding” and gave Wallace a five year suspended sentence.”

http://spartacus-educational.com/JFKjohnsonJ.htm

“The jury found (Mac) Wallace guilty of "murder with malice afore-thought". Eleven of the jurors were for the death penalty. The twelfth argued for life imprisonment. Judge Charles O. Betts overruled the jury and announced a sentence of five years imprisonment. He suspended the sentence and Wallace was immediately freed. “

John Simkin in the Education Forum December 2, 2006.

http://educationforum.ipbhost.com/topic/8715-david-harold-byrd/

“In 1944 Byrd founded Byrd Oil Corporation and B-H Drilling Corporation. In 1952 Byrd established the Three States Natural Gas Company. Byrd later sold Byrd Oil to Mobil and Three States to Delhi-Taylor. Byrd used this money to invest in aircraft production and established Temco. A company that employed Mac Wallace after he was convicted of killing John Kinser.”

John Simkin in the Education Forum December 3, 2006, quoting Richard Bartholomew (http://www.acorn.net/jfkplace/09/fp.back_i...e/rambler3.html)

http://educationforum.ipbhost.com/topic/8715-david-harold-byrd/

“Mac Wallace, who received a five-year suspended sentence in the shooting death of John Douglas Kiner in Austin on October 22, 1951, went to work for Temco, Inc. of Garland, Texas five months after his trial. He remained in that position until February 1961, four months before Henry Marshall's mysterious death on June 3, 1961, when he transferred to the Anaheim, California offices of LTV.

Still more LTV intrigues were revealed by Peter Dale Scott: "A fellow-director of [Jack Alston] Crichton's firm of Dorchester Gas Producing was D.H. Byrd, an oil associate of Sid Richardson and Clint Murchison, and the LTV director who teamed up with James Ling to buy 132,000 shares of LTV in November 1963.”

“Corsicana Daily Sun” from Corsicana, Texas March 31, 1970 Page 10

https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/41268447/

“The building (the Texas School Book Depository) is owned by the Dallas Trust Corp. The majority stockholder of the firm, Col. D. Harold Byrd, 69, has decided to liquidate some of his holdings.”

Steve Thomas

On 6/5/2018 at 10:26 AM, David Josephs said:

His visibly handing out leaflets... the fight with Bringuier, the discussions on the radio... and the faked trip to Mexico all go to providing Oswald Bona Fides as he gets deeper and deeper into the groups of Cuban supports of Castro.

The DOD was all over Oswald's FPCC connections as well

deleted

Steve Thomas

Just now, David Josephs said:

Doesn't it make sense that the FBI/CIA would be "In" on the creation of this "committee" for the sole purpose of identifying supporters of the concept...

 No doubt members of FPCC were true Socialist/communist supports of Fidel... but I'd guess over 1/3 of the members were agents looking to catch Commie supporters...

 

David,

You're right, and that crossed my mind too. Why would the CIA, or FBI need Oswald when they were already burglarizing their offices and opening their mail, and like you said, 1/3 of their members were informants anyway.

They didn't.

They just let Oswald think he was important in that effort to infiltrate the organization. Someone once described Oswald as a "useful idiot". Another said, "Poor Oswald, he didn't know who he was working for."

Oswald was double crossed.

Steve Thomas

46 minutes ago, Paul Brancato said:

I too think that Oswald ‘s connection to FPCC is important. It looks on the surface as if the future patsy was garnering credentials which would lead to a post assassination invasion of Cuba and removal of Castro. But there are some problems with this in my view. The main one is that a failed assassination attempt easily blamed on Castro would have worked just as well. Why kill JFK if removing Castro was the goal? 

Paul,

I don't think that anything less than a successful assassination would have resulted in the invasion of Cuba. The removal of Castro was important, yes; but he was only a by-product. The Cubans would have just replaced him with someone else, like his brother. The ultimate goal was the invasion and occupation of the island itself.

Think geographically. Cuba is the gate to the the Caribbean and thus to the southern hemisphere.

Steve Thomas

2 hours ago, Steve Thomas said:

Viewed through the lens of the strategy of tension, I wonder if the FPCC was the real intended patsy, with Lee Harvey Oswald as its public face.

 

Steve Thomas

If the intended patsy was going to be the FPCC, it would explain Oswald's New Orleans efforts in the Spring of 1963 to join and organize an FPCC presence there.

I think his alleged trip to Mexico City in an attempt to get to Cuba by flashing his FPCC credentials as bona fides, is a further example of this.

If there was a conspiracy to assassinate JFK, some people have asked when it was hatched. I used to think it was after JFK's speech at American University in June of 1963.

I now think it went back further than that, and believe that it was hatched after JFK's refusal to invade Cuba during the Cuban Missile Crisis in October, 1962.

This may also explain the missing two weeks in Oswald's chronology from October 19 to November 3, 1962. I think he was being trained or groomed to infiltrate the FPCC. He thought he was part of an effort to infiltrate and learn everything he could about that organization. In reality, he was being set up to take the fall when JFK was killed.

Steve Thomas

Viewed through the lens of the strategy of tension, I wonder if the FPCC was the real intended patsy, with Lee Harvey Oswald as its public face.

Steve Thomas

What I don't understand is why they had to go down Main St. anyway.

The plan was to go down Harwood and cross over Elm in order to turn right on Main. The motorcade could just easily have turned right on Elm and avoided that hairpin turn at Dealey Plaza.

I've decided that the intent was to draw more people onto Main St. so that the merchants could sell more stuff.

Either that, or they didn't want JFK to have to drive past the Giant Eyeball.

That's pretty scary if you ask me.

Steve Thomas

On 6/3/2018 at 1:11 PM, Trygve V. Jensen said:

 

 this second photo from the bottom. ( Who took it ?)

Trygve,

I'm sorry, I don't know. Perhaps the same person who took this other one? Cabluck maybe?

Steve Thomas

On 3/12/2018 at 11:27 AM, Trygve V. Jensen said:

Additional three, if anything has surfaced/been explained the last 8-10 years:

**(Attachement 3) The "shadow" in the upper right. Would he be walking that narrow section towards the pergolia (on the "inside" of the trees), or at the Elm St.-dead end-road, right along the depository? Do you know how long time it has passed since the shooting, when this was taken?  

 

GM: That's the Richard Bothun photo, taken about 30-40 seconds after the assassination.  The "shadow" is actually an unidentified person.

Trygve,

I personally believe that this is the person known as "Black Dog Man". If you look at these pictures from the bottom to the top, you can follow him as he leaves the corner of the fence and is walking east down the sidewalk running between the low brick wall and the Elm St. extension.

Steve Thomas

Security for the Trade Mart was assigned to Deputy Chief, M.W. Stevenson

Security for Love Field was assigned to Deputy Chief, N. T. Fisher

Security for traffic related issues related to the motorcade was assigned to Deputy Chief, R. H. Lunday

In his WC testimony, http://mcadams.posc.mu.edu/russ/testimony/lawrence.htm

Captain, Purdue Lawrence told the Commission on two or three occasions that responsibility for guarding against assaults on JFK that were not traffic related, e.g. someone throwing something at JFK, were given to the Special Service Bureau and the CID.

The Special Service Bureau was headed by Captain, W.P. “Pat” Gannaway. This was a semi-autonomous Bureau that reported directly to Police Chief, Jesse Curry.

The CID, or Criminal Investigation Division, took in the Homicide and Robbery, Juvenile, Burglary, Auto theft, and Forgery Bureaus.

Gannaway seems to have delegated his responsibilites to his subordinates. In the DPD Archives, there ware reports to Gannaway from Lieutenants T. Ingargiola and Eric Kaminsky.

DPD Archives. Box 1, Folder# 11, Item# 7. Report typed, by Lieutenant T. Ingargiola. Photocopy of a report to Captain W. P. Gannaway concerning security at the Trade Mart listing officers assigned, (Photocopy), 12/17/63. 2 pages 00000333 01 11 007 0333-001.gif 0333-002.gif

http://jfk.ci.dallas.tx.us/box1.htm

50 men were requested for security for the first floor of the Trade Mart. “We had a total of 71 officers.” guarding the President against a guest list of 2,500 invited guests.

DPD Archives. Box 1, Folder# 11, Item# 8. Report typed, by W. P. Gannaway. Photocopy of a report to Assistant Chief Batchelor listing officers assigned to the Trade Mart, (Photocopy), 12/18/63. 1 page 00000334 01 11 008 0334-001.gif

http://jfk.ci.dallas.tx.us/box1.htm

15 officers from the Special Service Bureau were assigned to the Trade Mart.

DPD Archives. Box 4, Folder# 1, Item# 6. Information Report, by E. Kaminski. Report to Captain W. P. Gannaway listing officers assigned to the motorcade, (Photocopy), 12/11/63. 00001132 1 page 04 01 006 1132-001.gif

http://jfk.ci.dallas.tx.us/box4.htm

14 men were assigned, only on Main St., stationed a block apart, on foot, guarding the President against potentially tens of thousand of members of the general public.

Where are the snipers on rooftops?

Whether by design, or by negligence, it seems to me that the priorities were screwed up here.

Steve Thomas

1 hour ago, Ron Ecker said:

Vince,

I remember reading somewhere a statement by deputy police chief M.W. Stevenson (I'm almost sure it was him, but it's not in his WC testimony) that it was a Secret Service agent named Grant who showed up and reduced the number and changed the location of the motorcycles. (All that Stevenson says about Grant in his testimony is that it was Grant who told him that JFK had been shot.) Can you comment on this? Thanks in advance.

Ron,

David Grant wrote an after-action report of his activities vis a vis JFK's visit to Dallas.

Report of David B. Grant, White House Detail

Volume XVIII of the Hearings and Exhibits pp. 789-790.

https://www.history-matters.com/archive/jfk/wc/wcvols/wh18/html/WH_Vol18_0402a.htm

In it, he makes no mention of giving Stevenson any instructions. However, if you read his report in conjunction with the combined after-action report of Batchelor, Stevenson and Lumpkin in the DPD Archives, Box 14, Folder# 4, Item# 10 as cited in the City of Dallas Archives – JFK Collection, http://jfk.ci.dallas.tx.us/box14.htm

you'll notice that Grant is heavily involved in the security arrangements for JFK's visit.

On page 2 of this thread, Vince quotes Fritz's WC testimony of getting a call at home from Stevenson at 10:00 PM on the 21st, telling him (Fritz) that his assignment in the motorcade had been changed, and to go to the "speaker's tent". (I'm not sure what "speaker's tent" Fritz is referring to here. According to the Batchelor, Stevenson, Lumpkin report, Stevenson was in charge of the security at the Trade Mart. I'm not sure why he would be making changes to the motorcade itself.

(Is Fritz lying here?).

On page 12 of that BSL report, it says that Lawson reduced the number of motorcycles at a 3:00 PM meeting on the 21st.

David Grant is an interesting person. I once tried to solve the mystery of the Saturday, November 21st 12:35 interrogation of Oswald.

In Grant's after-action report, he makes no mention of attending an interrogation of Oswald at 10:35 on Saturday the 23^rd.

Fritz's handwritten notes (supposedly contemporaneous) lists the attendees at the 10:35 interrogation on the 23^rd. The name Grant is listed with a question mark behind it,

http://www.jfklancer.com/docs.maps/fritz2-5.jpg

Fritz's report of Oswald's interrogations. DPD Archives Box 15, Folder# 1, Item# 111, page 6

http://jfk.ci.dallas.tx.us/box15.htm

Fritz wrote that U.S. Marshal, Robert Nash was present, but does not mention Grant.

Papers of Will Fritz

Interviews With Lee Harvey Oswald on November 23, 1963

https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.html?docId=29106

The document starts out, “At about 10:35 AM, November 23, 1963, Lee Oswald was interviewed ...”

10:35 is crossed out and 12:35 was written above it. The conclusion of the Interview was changed from 11:30 to 1:10 PM, and the conclusion of the evening Interrogation was changed from 7:10 PM to 7:15 PM (to more closely mirror Kelley's Report). I believe that this is another example of someone going in and trying to alter a document after it was written.

The names Grant, U.S. Marshall Robert Nash, Senkel and Tiernon? (probably Turner) have been crossed out.

Appendix XI of the Warren Report p. 626. This is Thomas Kelley's Report of Oswald's interviews

He does show that Bookhout of the FBI, SA David Grant, U.S. Marshal Robert Nash, SAIC Sorrels, and Officers Boyd and Hall, were at the 10:35 interview, which he calls the first interview. (the first for him).

https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.html?docId=946#relPageId=650&tab=page

So, was Grant there for an interrogation of Oswald at 10:35 on the 23rd, or not?

Steve Thomas

10 hours ago, Cory Santos said:

Hi Steve,

I meant what was the original departure route and plans to Love Field.  Did the motorcade change in any way?  What route were they going to use. 

If there was a pre November 22 ride through Dallas and Dealey, certainly, the drive would have also included from the Trade Mart back to Love Field.

Cory,

That same Commission Exhibit, #768 gives Lawson's plans for the street routes on how the motorcade was going to return to Love Field from the Trade Mart on p. 604.

https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.html?docId=1134#relPageId=630&tab=page

I get the impression that the order of the cars themselves was going to be determined in the Trade Mart parking lot after the luncheon was over. Lawson wrote,

"Presidential party leaves head table, is escorted to motorcade formation area in same parking lot and motorcade is formed." (p. 603)

Probably not everyone who rode in the motorcade from Love Field to the Trade Mart would be returning to Love Field to see JFK off.

In his traffic assignment memo, Purdue Lawrence wrote,

"... also that other assignments would be made after the President left the Trade Mart and that Lieutenant M.P. Southard would give each officer his individual assignment."

https://www.history-matters.com/archive/jfk/wc/wcvols/wh20/html/WH_Vol20_0259a.htm

I don't find Southard in the DPD Archive Index or the WC witness list.

Steve Thomas

1 hour ago, Cory Santos said:

Couple of points I would like to get clarification on.

 

Second, Vince, do we have any information on the plans on how JFK would enter and leave the luncheon?  Was he to be walked through a kitchen pantry?  How did the motorcade return to Love Field?

Third, do we have a complete list of all attendees and all employees at the luncheon that day?  Again, did the SS review the entire list and do checks on all employees and attendees?  If so, where is that information?  If not, why?  Would it not be amazing if we found out Mac Wallace was on the guest list.  Lol.

 

Cory,

Here's a little bit about the Trade Mart security. It might help you get started. It's from CE 768.

https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.html?docId=1134#relPageId=632&tab=page

Steve Thomas

1 hour ago, Cory Santos said:

 How did the motorcade return to Love Field?

 

Cory,

I think they left in bits and pieces from Parkland Hospital.

Some never did go back to Love Field - like the members of the Dallas Police force.

I'm not sure what the bulk of the press corps did.

At one time, I was curious about what Whitmeyer did. I never did learn. The police he was with in the pilot car all went back downtown, but they didn't mention that he was with them. His wife had an antiques store across the street from the Trade Mart. He figured he called her and asked her to come and get him.

Steve Thomas

56 minutes ago, Joe Bauer said:

Just one security person with high powered binoculars and a walkie talkie scanning the Dealey Plaza building open windows before and during the shooting might have made a difference.

Ah, but Joe, there was.

"I didn't see nuffin from nuffin"

http://mcadams.posc.mu.edu/russ/testimony/holmes1.htm

Mr. BELIN. On what corner is your building?

Mr. HOLMES. Southwest.
Mr. BELIN. On what side of the building is your office where you were sitting?
Mr. HOLMES. On the north side.
Mr. BELIN. From your office looking north, what building would you see?
Mr. HOLMES. The Texas School Book Depository Building. And I am on the fifth floor of my building.
Mr. BELIN. Were you on the fifth floor about the time the motorcade was coming down Main Street?
Mr. HOLMES. Yes, sir.

Mr. BELIN. Were you looking with the aid of any optical instrument?
Mr. HOLMES. I had a pair of 7 1/2 x 50 binoculars.

Mr. HOLMES. I watched for hours from that vantage point up there with my binoculars, hoping I would see someone running across the railroad tracks, or maybe that I could get word to the police as to where they were, because it was like a birdseye view of the panorama of the whole area.

Steve Thomas

8 minutes ago, Gene Kelly said:

 The Bulletin went out of business in 1982, and was challenged by the afternoon city traffic which made distribution more costly .

Gene

Gene,

How times change, huh?      (off topic alert!)

https://about.usps.com/who-we-are/postal-history/deliveries-per-day.pdf

7 hours ago, Vince Palamara said:

My pleasure! Hey, you helped me with my new post with your advice

Vince,

I don't know if anyone has told you this, but if you want your image to appear in the body of your post, when you upload an image, or a file, if you go to the little thumbnail of your image and click on the little plus sign (+) in the corner of the thumbnail, your image will appear in the body of your post.

Please excuse me if I am being presumptuous.

Steve Thomas

I did a little more reading about this question.

In 1963, it was not a federal crime to murder the President of the U.S. (that changed in 1965). It was a State crime if that murder was committed within the confines of the State in question. Typically the trial was prosecuted in the local municipality where the murder took place. In the case of JFK, that would be the local district attorney, who is a county employee - i.e. Henry Wade. Theoretically, it could have been prosecuted at the State level though, couldn't it? i.e. Waggoner Carr?

Part of what I was getting at is the question of someone being tried for a murder in absentia. This seems to be more common in other parts of the world than here in the U.S.

What happens when your prime suspect dies before the trial takes place?

"When Can a Defendant Be Tried in Absentia?

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/explainer/2003/06/when_can_a_defendant_be_tried_in_absentia.html

1 hour ago, Steve Thomas said:

Ty,

 

No.

Deputy Chief, R. H. Lunday was the Head of the Traffic Division. He was assigned the duty of making sure the parade route was secure from obstacles, such as cross street traffic, etc.

He delegated this responsibility to Lieutenant Purdue Lawrence. Lawrence submitted a report to Curry on November 21st detailing the plans and personnel assignments for the visit and the parade. They included the officers who would be stationed at the Elm and Houston St. intersection.

You can read his report and plans here:

https://www.history-matters.com/archive/jfk/wc/wcvols/wh20/html/WH_Vol20_0255a.htm

 

Steve Thomas

 

Ty,

In the 1950's, a number of cities around the country established "Special Service Bureaus" in their police departments. They were also called "Red Squads". I think the first one was created in New York City, but I'm not positive about that.

One of their ancillary duties was to provide additional security for visiting dignitaries. You can see that happening in Dallas. Members of the Dallas Special Service Bureau were found in the pilot car of the motorcade (Officer's Senkel and Turner) and at the Trade Mart. The Captain of that Bureau was W.P. Gannaway. There were also Detectives of the Bureau stationed at intervals along Main St.

Gannaway headed the Special Service Bureau security detail at the Trade Mart. He had delegated the assignments along Main St. to Lieutenant Kaminsky.

You can find Gannaway's report to Chief Curry in the DPD Archives in Box 15, Folder# 4, Item# 6; and Kaminsky's report in Box 15, Folder# 4, Item# 7.

http://jfk.ci.dallas.tx.us/box15.htm

When Purdue Lawrence was questioned by the WC, he said:

Mr. GRIFFIN. Now, did you receive another set of instructions or orders after that?
Captain LAWRENCE. Yes; on the evening of November 21, this was the first time that I had attended any security meeting at all in regards to this motorcade. At approximately 5 p.m. I was told to report to the conference room on the third floor, and when I arrived at the conference room the deputy chiefs were in there, there were members of the Secret Service--Mr. Sorrels, Captain Gannaway, Captain Souter of radio patrol, and Capt. Glen King, deputy chiefs, assistant chiefs, and Chief Curry, and one gentleman, who I assume was in charge of the security for the Secret Service. This was the first time I had attended any conferences in regard to the security of this escort, and I listened in on most of the discussion and I heard one of the Secret Service men say that President Kennedy did not desire any motorcycle officer directly on each side of him, between him and the crowd, but he would want the officers to the rear.

Mr. GRIFFIN. Was anything said in that meeting about any special precautions that should be taken in connection with protecting the President?
Captain LAWRENCE. Yes; there was some discussion that centered more around the security down at the Trade Mart than any other place and Captain Gannaway was in charge of the security in that area, and then Chief Stevenson, I believe, was there, and they mentioned that they would have detectives stationed along the route--along the motorcade route, especially in the downtown area.
Mr. GRIFFIN. And what were they to be looking for?
Captain LAWRENCE. They were taking care of security, all right, but they did not go into any discussion in my presence. I assume that this had all been, discussed earlier, in fact, when I was called up there, these people were already meeting.

“I assume that some instructions have been given to some members of the CID, the criminal investigation division, and to the men from the special service bureau, and the men specifically assigned to security duties instead of traffic duties. It would be my assumption that this was a part of the assignments given.”

Steve Thomas

Since there's no statute of limitations on murder, and since there was no murder trial per se, do you think the murder of JFK is still an open cold case file with the Texas Attorney General's Office?

Any practicing attorneys have a thought?

Steve Thomas

30 minutes ago, Ty Carpenter said:

Reading briefly through this thread, it appears there is really no consensus as to how we got to Elm St. that day. 

Does anyone else think it may be possible that the lead car with Curry driving just led the motorcade down that route? And the SS just followed them? We know the SS agents didn't take their duties very seriously on that trip and could have been complacent. 

Ty,

No.

Deputy Chief, R. H. Lunday was the Head of the Traffic Division. He was assigned the duty of making sure the parade route was secure from obstacles, such as cross street traffic, etc.

He delegated this responsibility to Lieutenant Purdue Lawrence. Lawrence submitted a report to Curry on November 21st detailing the plans and personnel assignments for the visit and the parade. They included the officers who would be stationed at the Elm and Houston St. intersection.

You can read his report and plans here:

https://www.history-matters.com/archive/jfk/wc/wcvols/wh20/html/WH_Vol20_0255a.htm

Steve Thomas

10 hours ago, David Lifton said:

Steve Thomas:

Thanks for your effort in perusing the Dallas Municipal Archives.

 As you may aware (but maybe you are not) what you are citing  is a small excerpt from the "B-L-S" (or "Batchelor -Lumpkin -Stevenson") combined "Chronological Report" --of the Dallas Police Department-- which is published in its entirety as a "Stevenson Exhibit" in Volume 21 of the WC's 26 Volumes.  As published there, it is an almost impossible-to-read very poor carbon copy, but decades ago, I found a crystal clear copy of this item in the Texas AG's files.  If you (or anyone) can send me their email address, I can send along (later today)  a crystal clear PDF of the entire report, which (as I recall) is quiet lengthy and is dated 11/25/63.  And one of you can post it at a cyber site  along with an "internet link," so we can all study it and discuss it.  

My take on this document (and this is from about 25 years ago): that B, L, and S (the DPD Assistant Chief and two of the 4 Deputy Chiefs) each kept notes (and must have made individual "CYA" records in the two (or three) weeks prior to the assassination);  and then, immediately after JFK was murdered, convened to create this "combined CYA" record (in the spirit of "we had nothin' to do with this") etc.  

Anyway, the full  report was prepared within 3 days, is dated 11/25/63, and was entered into the record (by which I mean the pubic record as published by the Warren Commission), when DPD Deputy Police Chief M W. Stevenson appeared in Dallas before WC Asst Counsel Burt Griffin to give a brief deposition about Jack Ruby and the Sunday (11/24) "abortive transfer" (the WC's delicate  language for the 11/24/63 jail transfer of HO, which then resulted in the murder of their prisoner, LHO).

 

David,

Thank you for your reply.

I agree that this combined report is a study in CYA. My personal belief is that this should never have been allowed to take place. Each officer involved should have been required to submit an individual report. Unfortunately, with respect to the Dallas Police Department, you see this happening with distressing regularity, e.g. the combined Turner/Senkel report.

The combined Batchelor/Stevenson report is dated November 30th, and was produced, I believe, by the internal investigation launched by Chief Curry on November 29th - coincidentally, the same day that Johnson formed the Warren Commission. Curry's internal investigation was initially launched to find out how Ruby got into the basement to shoot Oswald on the 24th, but soon branched out into other areas, such as the shooting of J.D. Tippit, and reports that Oswald and Ruby knew each other, etc.  The investigation was headed by Captain O.A. Jones. The copy of the 35 page Batchelor/Stevenson report in the DPD Archives is much clearer than the Stevenson Exhibit 5053 that you find in 21H of the WC Hearings and Exhibits.

See the HSCA testimony of Jack Revill and Paul McCaghren. Paul McCachren's testimony is very interesting when he talks about a locked filing cabinet containing materials such as the dictabelt recordings of the DPD radio transmissions, and how he took all that material home with him. I corresponded with McCachren for a while. He was, shall I say, rather gruff. He wouldn't give me a copy of the investigative team's files until I made a $100 donation to the Dallas Police Association, which I did.

The materials in the files comprise much of what you find in CD 81.

When McCachren talks about the investigation coming to an abrupt halt after about a month and a half, this is when I believe the DPD gathered up all their stuff and sent it to the Texas AG's office on January 7th.

TESTIMONY OF JACK REVILL, CAPTAIN OF POLICE, DALLAS POLICE DEPARTMENT

http://mcadams.posc.mu.edu/russ/jfkinfo2/jfk4/hscarevl.htm

Captain REVILL. If I recall correctly, I believe there has been previous testimony from those particular officers. Sir, if I might explain something here or elaborate. As counsel said, I was assigned, by Chief Curry to an investigative team to determine how Ruby gained access to the basement of the city hall, to determine if there was any complicity on the part of any officers as to their involvement, and if I may elaborate on the findings or this particular group, I would be happy to do so at this time.

Mr. SAWYER. Proceed.
Captain REVILL. This particular committee was comprised of Inspector Herbert Sawyer, Captain Westbrook, Capt. O.A. Jones, myself, a Lt. Paul McCaghren, Lt. Frank Cornwall, Lt. Cecil Wallace, and initially a detective, one of my subordinates in the intelligence unit, H.M. Hart, and as I said, it was our function to investigate the shooting of Mr. Oswald by Mr. Ruby.

TESTIMONY OF PAUL McCAGHREN, PAUL McCAGHREN ASSOCIATES, DALLAS, TEX.

http://mcadams.posc.mu.edu/russ/jfkinfo/mccaghr.htm

Mr. CORNWELL. And it was sort of a small special group that was working on that investigation, is that correct?
Mr. McCAGHERN. Yes, it was.
Mr. CORNWELL. In addition to the question of Jack Ruby's entry into the basement, were there other issues that that group worked on?
Mr. McCAGHERN. Several, yes.
Mr. CORNWELL. One of them perhaps being the shooting of Officer Tippit?
Mr. McCAGHERN. Yes, it was.

Mr. CORNWELL. At the termination of the investigation, do you know what was done with the evidence?
Mr. McCAGHERN. All the material in our possession was turned over to Chief Curry, who was the chief of police at that time.
Mr. CORNWELL. Would you just basically tell us what types of evidence would have been contained in the package at that point?
Mr. McCAGHERN. These reports were not in-depth investigations. We were trying to field the hundreds of calls that were coming into the police department at that time. It was a cursory type of investigation. It was called to an abrupt halt after about a month and a half. All of our reports were submitted to Chief Curry at that time.

Steve Thomas

2 hours ago, Paul Brancato said:

When I asked Larry Hancock if he had any 488th info he said no, and like you suggested looking into State Guard records, though he also said the Texas State Guard didn’t keep good records. 

Just want to ask you again about Brandstetter, who you first brought to my attention. His autobiography says that Colonel Rose at ACSI assigned him to that unit in 1959. Is that proof enough that the 488th existed? I think it is. I also read somewhere that Prouty referred to ASCI as being involved in black operations. I noticed something else - Brandstetter was Hungarian, as was Dorothe Matlack, who succeeded Colonel Rose at ACSI. She worked first with Hungarian emigres in 1956. I heard, I think on a Doug Campbell podcast linked by BA Copland on the Trejo thread on Walker, Dallas, and Oswald, that Matlack personally chaperoned DeMohrenschildt to his WC testimony hearing. According to Joan Mellen Matlack was the officer in charge of DeMohenschildts mysterious meetings in NYC and DC with Clemard Charles and CIA officials after DeM left Dallas and went to Haiti. As a possible aside, one of the attempts to kill DeGaulle by OAS included 3 Hungarians. This makes me think of CMC and Nagy. Random connections?

Paul,

I don't have Bradstetter's autobiogaphy. Can you give me the specific language he used vis a vis Rose and the 488th? Did Rose assign him to the 488th, or suggest that he join?

Do you think the 488th Detachment was part of one of those 36 "Internal Security Battalions"?

Here is a good beginning site on Matlack. It says she rose to become the Special Assistant to the Assistant Chief of Staff for Intelligence.

quote:    " In 1962, Mrs. Matlack initiated joint agency efforts which resulted in the refugee debriefings that first located Soviet missiles in Cuba."

https://www.army.mil/article/97889/this_week_in_history_dorothe_k_matlack_a_pioneer_and_champion_of_army_humint

Steve Thomas

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Steve Thomas

Whatever the Secret Service had to say about the choice of routes should be balanced against what Ass't Chief Batchelor had to say in his after-action report.

See the DPD Archives Box 14, Folder# 4, Item# 10 page 3.

http://jfk.ci.dallas.tx.us/box14.htm

As late as 3:00 PM on the 15th, three possible routes were still being discussed. All three of the possibilities, as outlined by Batchelor,  stopped at Main. As for the last possibility, Batchelor adds parenthetically "(Ultimately, this was the route that was announced)."   He does not say when this route was actually chosen.

At 10:00 AM on the 18th,  the police and Secret Service drove the route that had been selected. Deputy Chief R.H. Lunday drove the car. (see p. 4)

Lunday did not submit an after-action report, nor did he testify to the WC.

Steve Thomas