Does The New Dealy Plaza Film Prove There Was No Conspiracy To Assassinate Kennedy?
As an “assassination buff” who has read nearly every book (not to mention seen nearly every documentary, including this one) ever written about the assassination of President John F. Kennedy (and who owns a copy of the infamous Zapruder Film) back in 1963 and the various assassination theories, I’m a little skeptical about claims that the new film recently discovered and released from that fateful November day actually debunks conspiracy theories. From the New York Times:
But to assassination researchers, the footage definitively resolves one of the case’s enduring controversies: that the bullet wound on Kennedy’s back, as documented and photographed during the autopsy, did not match up with the location of the bullet hole on the back of his suit jacket and shirt. The discrepancy has given conspiracy theorists fodder to argue that the autopsy photos had been retouched and the report fabricated.
This is more than an academic debate among ballistics buffs. It is critical because if the bullet did enter where shown on the autopsy photos, the trajectory lines up correctly for the famous “single bullet†theory — the Warren Commission hypothesis that one bullet inflicted wounds to both Kennedy and Gov. John Connally of Texas. However, if the hole in the clothing was the accurate mark of where the bullet entered, it would have been too low for a single bullet to have inflicted all the wounds, and would provide evidence of a second assassin.
For years, those of us who concluded that the single-bullet theory was sound, still had to speculate that Kennedy’s suit had bunched up during the ride, causing the hole to be lower in the fabric than one would expect. Because the holes in the shirt and jacket align perfectly, if the jacket was elevated when the shot struck, the shirt also had to have been raised.
Some previously published photos taken at the pivotal moment showed Kennedy’s jacket slightly pushed up, but nothing was definitive. Meanwhile, conspiracy theorists have done everything to disprove that the jacket was bunched. Some used grainy photos or film clips to measure minute distances between Kennedy’s hairline and his shirt, what they dubbed the “hair-to-in-shoot distance.â€
The new film has finally resolved the issue. At the end of the clip, as the camera focuses on the backs of the president and first lady, Kennedy’s suit is significantly bunched up, with several layers creased together. Only 90 seconds before Lee Harvey Oswald fired the first shot, Kennedy’s suit jacket was precisely in the position to misrepresent the bullet’s entry point.
You can watch the new film, the Jefferies Film, here (.wmv).
Of course, this op-ed was written by Gerald Poser, who wrote Case Closed: Lee Harvey Oswald and the Assassination of J.F.K., a book I have read not once but twice, so obviously it’s biased. However, the position of Kennedy’s suit coat, something that seems so mundane to the average person, is something very familiar to anyone who has spent any time studying or researching the assassination. And, this footage could well spawn more of the never-ending conspiracy theories:
The footage is sure to be new fodder for conspiracy buffs who have long maintained Kennedy was the victim of a sinister plot orchestrated by shadowy elements in either the government, the “military-industrial complex,” the Mafia or communist Cuba.
“I’ve already seen the footage on a conspiracy Web site — it’s interesting for the conspiracy researchers to study Kennedy’s coat which appears to be bunched up on his back,” Mack said.
He said since Kennedy’s jacket was riding high on his back, the entry wound in his body did not match the expected position in his coat — grist for the conspiracy mill that charges more than three shots were fired.
Investigators maintain the shooting was carried out by Oswald acting alone. The most complete and best-known film of the Kennedy assassination to come to light was taken by bystander Abraham Zapruder.
I’ve never really come down on one side or the other when it comes to JFK assassination conspiracies. The entire saga has fascinated me for more than a decade. I was interested in it even before Oliver Stone made JFK. For that reason, I almost hate to see that this film could cause assassination “scholars” to decide a final conclusion has now been reached.
I kind of tend to agree with the House Select Committee On Assassination’s conclusion in regard to the Kennedy Assassination:
The committee believes, on the basis of the evidence available to it, that President John F. Kennedy was probably assassinated as a result of a conspiracy. The committee was unable to identify the other gunmen or the extent of the conspiracy.
“Probably,” but who knows. I don’t think we’ll ever know the real answer. That’s a very sad thing, but it is nevertheless a very thought-provoking mystery to examine. At any rate, I won’t be divesting myself of my collection of assassination books, newspapers, and magazines, anytime soon.
Written by Vince Leibowitz
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