|
UPDATED
January 01, 2003 02:17 PM
Who
is Burke Marshall?
©2002 by Jim Moore
Burke Marshall (former Assistant US Attorney General) had close ties
to the Kennedys and was the later the man who was given custody of a
gruesome souvenir. It was he who was to keep the brains of John F.
Kennedy well out of the public eye after November 22, 1963. He
became the Kennedy family lawyer.
In 1977, when the House Select Committee on
Assassinations tried to examine some this forensic evidence to
determine just where the shots might have come from (the Dallas
School Book Depository, the "grassy knoll" or elsewhere)
it was discovered that Kennedy's brain was missing.
Marshall was
also one of the first people Ted Kennedy called immediately after
Chappaquiddick, before Mary Jo Kopechne's body was ever found.
Marshall is believed to have helped Kennedy come up with the
cover-up story for that nasty tragedy. (The Taking of America 1-2-3,
Chapter 7)
He is said by Bruce Roberts to have helped Aristotle
Onassis in the 1946 Liberty Ship purchase (or perhaps his legal
defense of that purchase in the early 1950s) but there is no
evidence to substantiate that.
| Contact
Info |
Yale Law School
P.O. Box 208215
New Haven, CT 06520
burke.marshall@yale.edu |
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| Subjects |
Federal
jurisdiction; legislation; political and
civil rights; constitutional law. |
| Education |
B.A., Yale, 1943;
LL.B., 1951. |
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| Professional
Positions |
Articles Ed. and
Book Rev. Ed., Yale L.J. Admitted to
bar: DC, 1952. Member, Covington &
Burling, 1951-61. Asst. U.S. Atty. Gen.
for Civil Rights Div., U.S. Dept. of
Justice, 1961-65. Vice President and
Gen. Counsel, IBM Corp., 1965-69; Sr.
Vice President, 1969-70. Prof., Yale,
1970-78; John Thomas Smith Prof.,
1978-86; Katzenbach Prof., 1986-93;
Prof. Emeritus and Crawford Lecturer
since 1993; Deputy Dean, 1970-75.
Chairman, Natl. Adv. Comm. on Selective
Service. |
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| Honors
and Awards |
LL.D., U. New
Haven, 1990. |
|
The
'Mystery' of JFK's Missing Brain
May Be No Mystery After All
In Oliver Stone's JFK, New Orleans District Attorney Jim
Garrison (Kevin Costner) accuses government conspirators of
suppressing and even destroying vital evidence of John F. Kennedy's
assassination, listing these examples:
. . . 1) [T]he chief pathologist, Commander Humes, by his own
admission voluntarily burned his autopsy notes, 2) [the
government] never released the autopsy photos to the public, 3)
President Johnson ordered the blood-soaked limousine filled with
bullet holes and clues to be immediately washed and rebuilt, 4)
[the government] sent John Connally's bloody suit right to the
cleaners, and 5) when my office finally got a court order to
examine President Kennedy's brain in the National Archives in
the hopes of finding from what direction the bullets came, we
were told by the government the President's brain had
disappeared!(1)
Oliver Stone was raked over the coals for statements such as
this, with his critics saying these statements were proof Stone had
no intention of presenting anything close to the truth. I saw the
movie and it was a lot closer to reality than people think, despite
some distortions that took place long beyond Stone ever got
involved. Let's take a closer look at this supposedly fictional account from the
movie, and compare it to reality. When we do we see the role of
Marshall Burke.
[W]hen my office finally got a court order to examine
President Kennedy's brain in the National Archives in the hopes
of finding from what direction the bullets came, we were told by
the government the President's brain had disappeared!
The House Select Committee reexamining JFK's assassination in the
1970s (HSCA) investigated this issue; click
here to read their report on the subject. Further research conducted by author Gus Russo supports the HSCA
findings. Russo writes:
After Robert Kennedy's own murder in 1968, the Kennedy
family's veil of secrecy was pulled back ever so slightly. Under
the aegis of family attorney Burke Marshall, qualified members
of the medical establishment, interested in scholarly review,
were occasionally granted access to John Kennedy's autopsy
materials. One such professional made front-page news in 1972
when he emerged from the National Archives and announced that
President Kennedy's brain was missing. The clear implication
(not discouraged by this doctor) was that the brain was removed
in order to prevent an accurate tracking of the wounds -- tracks
that might lead to the infamous grassy knoll.
The doctor's statements further inflamed public opinion about
the government and completely misdirected those interested in
learning the truth. The truth, in this instance had nothing to
do with a conspiracy to kill John Kennedy. It had everything to
do with Bobby's unceasing devotion to his brother. But the
result was the same -- it continued to feed the fires of
domestic-based rumors and theories about possible assassination
conspiracies.
In point of fact, staffers at the National Archives had known
since October 1966 that the President's brain was missing.
However, because they had a good idea of what had happened to it
-- a benign explanation, it turns out -- they decided against
making it public, fearful of inciting just the kind of public
outcry that occurred in 1972. What follows is the actual
chronology of events that generated the controversy, compiled
using the most recent releases of House Committee interviews and
interviews by the author.
On the night of the assassination, autopsist James Humes gave
the President's brain and tissue slides to Kennedy's personal
physician, Admiral George Burkley. Humes later said, "He (Burkley)
told me that the Kennedy family wanted to inter the brain with
the President's body. I don't know what happened to the brain,
but I do know that Admiral Burkley was an honorable man."
Boswell agreed, saying, "I believe that it was buried with
the body . . . I personally handed it over to Dr. Burkley and he
told me that the family intended to bury it with the body. I
believe Admiral Burkley."
Two weeks later, the brain, however, by now fixed in formalin,
was re-examined by Humes, and returned to Burkley. Burkley then
transferred it for storage to the Secret Service locker at the
Executive Office Building, under the custody of Secret Service
Agent Robert Bouck. There it remained for the next two and
one-half years.
On April 22, 1965, Robert Kennedy sent a letter to Dr.
Burkley directing him to transfer the material to JFK's former
personal secretary, Evelyn Lincoln, whose office was by now in
the National Archives. The letter also stated that Mrs. Lincoln
was being instructed that the material was not to be released to
anyone without the written permission of Robert Kennedy.
Three days later, Kennedy family attorney Burke Marshall,
acting as executor of John Kennedy's estate, relinquished
control of the materials to Robert Kennedy. They were then
transferred for safekeeping to Mrs. Lincoln in the Archives. An
inventory taken at the time indicated that nothing was missing.
One month later, as Mrs. Lincoln later recalled it to the
HSCA, Bobby Kennedy called, saying he was sending over his
personal secretary, Angela Novello, along with Presidential
archivist Herman Kahn and his deputies, to take the trunk away
to some undisclosed location. Mrs. Novello was out of town when
the HSCA later attempted to interview her. Her attorney told the
Committee that she knew nothing about the sequence of events.
In 1994, Mrs. Novello, in a phone interview with the author,
said she only recalls moving "some papers," and to the
best of her knowledge these papers were still in the Archives.
The next question would have been, "Where in the Archives
were these 'papers' taken?" At that point, however, Novello
abruptly ended the conversation -- again proving that the
secretaries of the world are the true keepers of secrets. In
Novello's case, she not only functioned as RFK's personal
secretary, but after his death, assumed the same function for
the "ultimate insider," power attorney Edward Bennett
Williams -- the man who represented RFK's longtime nemeses Jimmy
Hoffa and Sam Giancana.
According to Lincoln, Bobby's driver and personal assistant,
Master Sergeant Joseph Giordano, carried off the trunk.
According to Dr. Burkley, "Giordano moved the material to
the JFK Library in Boston and knows something about the
brain." Giordano, however, told the HSCA that he did not
move it, and had "no knowledge" of what happened to
it. He suggested that George Dalton, who also worked for Bobby,
might know. Dalton was no stranger to performing
"secret" missions for the Kennedys -- he had
transcribed the Oval Office tapes at Bobby's request. Neither
Dalton nor Giordano would respond to the author's requests for
an interview.
On November 2, 1965, Public Law 89-318 was enacted. Among
other provisions, the law made it clear that the Kennedy autopsy
materials were evidence, and that it rightfully belonged to the
government. Further, the materials had to be returned within one
year of the law's enactment. At that point, Attorney General
Ramsey Clark initiated discussions with Kennedy attorneys, who
clearly wanted to stall Clark indefinitely.
By the fall of 1966, as the deadline neared, Clark approached
Bobby Kennedy directly for the materials. Kennedy was not
sympathetic to the government's position. Heated discussions
ensued with family lawyer Burke Marshall. On October 29, 1966,
an agreement was reached whereby the Kennedys donated the trunk
back to the Archives. Deputy Archivist Trudy Peterson witnessed
the material's return to the building, and suggested that Bobby,
Novello, et al, had removed it from the building in May 1965 to
a location Robert Kennedy himself designated.
National Archives General Counsel, Harry Van Cleve, receiving
the transferred trunk, took an inventory and became the first
person to discover that JFK's brain and other "gross
material" were missing. Concluding that the Kennedy family
had taken possession of the material, Van Cleve later noted that
"we were borrowing trouble in exploring it any
further." He further cautioned against approaching Joseph
Giordano.
There is very little doubt that Robert Kennedy took control
of the "missing" material. This was the finding of the
HSCA, as well as many of the Archive employees. The only mystery
remaining is exactly how Bobby disposed of the material. And
even that mystery is finally starting to fade.
In 1976, RFK's former press aide, Frank Mankiewicz, told HSCA
Counsel Blakey he thought that the "President's brain is in
the grave. LBJ, Ted, Bobby, and maybe McNamara buried it when
the body was transferred. Ted seemed to confirm it later."
JFK's body was, in fact, reinterred in Arlington in March
1967, upon completion of a memorial structure. HSCA Chief
Investigator Robert Tanenbaum related to the author a comment
that Mankiewicz allegedly made to him in 1978 -- that RFK, in an
earlier phone call, said that the brain "is being put back
in the coffin. Do not leak this or you'll be in big
trouble." Mankiewicz denies saying this, but acknowledges
being on guard at the perimeter for the reinterment. Evelyn
Lincoln told the Committee that she would continue to
investigate the matter on her own.
In 1992, in a final attempt to determine the whereabouts of
the material, the author enlisted a close friend who is also a
confidante of Mrs. Lincoln to put the question to her. After she
told the HSCA that she would conduct further inquiries into the
matter, did she indeed learn anything about the disposition of
the President's brain? According to the intermediary, Mrs.
Lincoln became quiet, looked her friend in the eyes, and simply
said, "It's where it belongs."(5)
NOTES:
1. Oliver Stone and Zachary Sklar, JFK: The
Book of the Film (New York: Applause, 1992), p. 159. All
quotations are from the shooting script and may vary slightly from
the finished motion picture.
2. Paul
Seaton Web site.
3. Anthony Marsh, "Myths
about the 'X-100.'"
4. Harold Weisberg, Post Mortem
(Frederick, Md.: Harold Weisberg, 1975), p. 45.
5. Gus Russo, Live by the Sword
(Baltimore: Bancroft, 1998), pp. 387-90.
WHAT HAPPENED TO KENNEDY'S
BRAIN?
The following is from Volume VII of the HOUSE
SELECT COMMITTEE ON ASSASSINATIONS.
- PART III. SUBSEQUENT HISTORY OF MATERIALS
-
(114) On
April 22, 1965, then Senator Robert F. Kennedy
- sent a letter to Dr. Burkley directing him to transfer in
person
- the autopsy material being kept at the White House to Mrs.
Evelyn
- Lincoln, the personal secretary of President Kennedy, for
- safekeeping at the National Archives.
The letter also said that
- Mrs. Lincoln was being instructed that the material was not
to be
- released to anyone without Robert Kennedy's written
permission and
- approval. This
demonstrates Robert Kennedy's firm control over
- the disposition of the materials.
-
(115) In
response to this directive, Dr. Burkley notified
- the Protective Research Division of Senator Kennedy's
request.
- Before transferring the material, Bouck, Burkley and other
Secret
- Service personnel carefully inventoried all the items
present.
- This was the first official inventory of these materials.
-
(116) On
April 26, 1965, Burkley and Bouck transferred the
- materials to Evelyn Lincoln.
A letter from Burkley to Lincoln
- documenting the exchange included the inventory, which
documented
- that a stainless steel container 7 by 8 inches in diameter,
- containing gross material was transferred.
On the last page of
- the inventory, Lincoln wrote: "Received, April 26,
1965, in room
- 409, National Archives, Washington, D.C., from Dr. Burkley
and
- Robert Bouck." At
the time of the transfer, the items now
- missing, which are those enumerated under item No. 9 of the
- inventory, were allegedly present.
-
(117) In
his testimony before the committee, Bouck stated
- that he is quite positive all the autopsy-related material
that
- came into his possession was given to Mrs. Lincoln at the
time of
- the 1965 transfer. He also stated that he was uncertain
whether
- Dr. Burkley had custody of the brain, but that if the brain
was
- part of the autopsy materials in the custody of the Secret
- Service, it was transported to the National Archives.
-
(118) Dr.
Burkley clarified this issue, saying that the
- stainless steel container mentioned in the inventory held
the
- brain and that he saw the bucket in April 1965, when he and
Bouck
- transferred the autopsy materials to Lincoln. Since this
transfer,
- Dr. Burkley maintains that he has had no further knowledge
of or
- association with these materials.
-
(119) Mrs.
Lincoln was not an employee of the National
- Archives during this period; she was only assisting in the
- transfer of the official papers and items of President
Kennedy and
- in this capacity occupied an office in the National
Archives.
- Consequently, although the autopsy materials were in the
confines
- of the building the National Archives did not have authority
or
- responsibility for them.
-
(120) The
next documented transaction involving the
- materials transferred to Mrs. Lincoln occurred on October
29,
- 1966, when Mr. Burke Marshall, on behalf of the executors of
the
- John F. Kennedy estate, sent a letter to Lawson B. Knott,
the
- Administrator of the General Services Administration,
outlining
- an agreement for formal transfer of materials related to the
- autopsy to the U.S. Government.
-
(121) Pursuant
to this agreement, which constituted a deed
- of gift, Burke Marshall met with various representatives of
the
- Government on October 31, 1966, in room 6-W-3 of the
National
- Archives to transfer formally the materials related to the
- autopsy. These
materials were contained in a locked footlocker
- for which Ms. Angela Novello, the personal secretary to
Robert F.
- Kennedy, produced a key. Others in attendance for the
transfer
- were William H. Brewster, special assistant to the general
counsel
- GSA, who unlocked and opened the footlocker; Harold F. Reis,
- executive assistant to the Attorney General Robert H.
Bahruer
- Archivist of the United States; Herman Kahn, Assistant
Archivist
- for Presidential libraries and James Rhoads, the Deputy
Archivist
- of the United States. After
Brewster opened the footlocker,
- Marshall and Novello departed.
-
(122) Bahmer, Reis, Rhoads, Kahn, and Brewster then
removed
- all the material from the footlocker and inspected it.
The
- footlocker contained a carbon copy of the letter from Robert
F.
- Kennedy to Burkley on April 22, 1965, and the original
letter from
- Burkley to Lincoln on April 26, 1965, which also listed on
the
- itemized inventory list the materials present at that
transfer.
-
(123) Upon
inspection, the officials realized that the
- footlocker did not contain any of the material listed under
item
- No. 9 of the inventory.
This material included:
-
1 plastic box, 9 by 6 1/2 by 1 inches, paraffin
blocks of
-
tissue sections.
-
1 plastic box containing paraffin blocks of tissue
sections
-
plus 35 slides.
-
A third box containing 84 slides.
-
1 stainless steel container, 7 by 8 inches in
diameter,
-
containing gross material.
-
3 wooden boxes, each 7 by 3 1/2 by 1 1/4 inches,
containing
-
58 slides of blood smears taken at various times
-
during President Kennedy's lifetime.
- (124)
The last date these items were accounted for was the
- April 26, 1965 transfer of the autopsy materials to Lincoln.
-
(125) The committee contacted Lincoln to determine
what
- happened to the materials in item No. 9, the missing
materials,
- following their documented transfer to her in April 1965.
She
- informed the committee of an interview and subsequent
affidavit
- that Burkley and Bouck brought her some materials in the
spring
- of 1965 that Dr. Burkley identified as being related to the
- autopsy of the President.
She recalled that these materials
- arrived in a box or boxes, and that within 1 day she
obtained a
- flat trunk or footlocker from the Archives personnel to
which she
- transferred the materials.
She added that these materials were
- kept in a security room in her office in the National
Archives.
-
(126) Mrs.
Lincoln stated that within approximately 1
- month, Robert F. Kennedy telephoned her and informed her
that he
- was sending Angela Novello, his personal secretary, to move
the
- footlocker that Dr. Burkley had transferred.
She believed they
- wanted the materials moved to another part of the Archives,
- presumably where Robert F. Kennedy was storing other
materials.
- Angela Novello soon came to her office with Herman Kahn,
Assistant
- Archivist for Presidential Libraries, and one or more of his
- deputies, to take the trunk. Lincoln believes she had
Novello sign
- a receipt for the materials, which was Lincoln's routine
practice,
- but she is uncertain where it would be today. Lincoln also
said
- that she gave Novello both keys to the trunk.
She added that the
- trunk was never opened while it was in her office.
-
(127) Lincoln had no further direct contact with the
- material, but did state that after the assassination of
Robert
- Kennedy, she began to wonder what happened to it.
Consequently,
- she contacted Kenneth O'Donnell, former aide to President
Kennedy,
- to make sure the family was aware of its existence. Mrs.
Lincoln
- said it was her understanding that Mr. O'Donnell then called
- Senator Edward Kennedy, subsequently calling her back to
tell her
- everything was under control.
-
(128) Because
of Lincoln's statement and other reports that
- Novello produced the key to the footlocker in December 1966,
the
- committee interviewed Novello and also obtained an
affidavit. She
- informed the committee that she had no recollection of
handling
- a footlocker, of possessing a key or keys to such a
footlocker,
- or of handling any of the autopsy materials.
-
(129) The
committee also contacted Burke Marshall and
- Senator Edward Kennedy to determine their knowledge of the
missing
- materials. Senator Kennedy indicated that he did not know
what
- happened to the materials, or who last had custody of them.
-
(130) While
Burke Marshall also maintained that he had no
- actual knowledge of the disposition of the materials, he
said it
- was his speculative opinion that Robert Kennedy obtained and
- disposed of these materials himself, without informing
anyone
- else. Marshall said Robert Kennedy was concerned that these
- materials would be placed on public display in future years
in an
- institution such as the Smithsonian and wished to dispose of
them
- to eliminate such a possibility. Marshall emphasized that he
does
- not believe anyone other than Robert Kennedy would have
known what
- happened to the materials and is certain that obtaining or
- locating these materials is no longer possible.
-
(131) Since
Marshall offered the opinion without any
- verification, the committee continued to search for the
missing
- materials and to examine any issue related to the autopsy
- materials in general. The committee interviewed Harold F.
Reis,
- Executive Assistant to the Attorney General who attended the
1966
- transfer of the autopsy materials to the National Archives,
as
- well as Ramsey Clark, the Attorney General in 1966, to
determine
- their knowledge of the missing materials. Clark stated that
he
- initiated the action to acquire the materials transferred in
the
- October 1966 deed of gift pursuant to Public Law 89-318,
enacted
- on November 2, 1965. This
law provided that the acquisition by
- the United States of certain items of evidence pertaining to
the
- assassination of President Kennedy had to be completed
within the
- year. When
Clark learned the time limit for obtaining the
- evidence was approaching, he contacted Robert Kennedy, who
was not
- sympathetic to the Government's need to acquire the autopsy
- material. Rather heated negotiations ensued between Clark
and
- Burke Marshall, the Kennedy family representative, which
resulted
- in the October 29, 1966 agreement constituting the deed of
gift.
- Clark stated that he had only requested transfer of the
autopsy
- photographs and X-rays and did not recall any discussions
with
- Robert Kennedy about any other autopsy materials.
Consequently,
- the brain and the tissue segments were not an issue in the
- procedures and negotiations during the October 1966
transfer. The
- committee could not ascertain if the physical specimens were
ever
- discussed in the negotiations, what type of approval Robert
- Kennedy gave for transforming the materials, or what
procedure was
- employed to separate the photographs and X-rays from the
material
- now missing.
-
(132) The
next reference to the missing materials and the
- other autopsy materials in the custody of the National
Archives
- occurred in 1968. Ramsey Clark, the Attorney. General,
arranged
- for an independent review of the autopsy evidence by a group
of
- pathologists-commonly referred to as the Clark panel--as a
result
- of growing skepticism concerning the assassination and
Warren
- Commission investigation.
In a memorandum to the files on
- February 13,1969, Thomas J. Kelley, the Assistant Director
of the
- Secret Service, reflected on the report of the Clark panel,
in
- which the physicians had commented that the materials they
- reviewed were included on the inventory list that
accompanied the
- letter from Burkley to Lincoln on April 26, 1965.
Kelley asserted
- that this reference to the autopsy materials by the Clark
panel
- physicians was phrased in this manner because the doctors
did not
- have access to the materials listed as comprising item No. 9
on
- the inventory list. The
memorandum also noted that after
- discovering in October 1966 that these items were missing,
- Archives personnel conducted a careful search but could not
- determine their location.
-
(133) After
discussing the "missing" materials with Harry
- R. Van Cleve, Jr., General Counsel to the General Services
- Administration, and agreeing that they should attempt to
ascertain
- their disposition, Kelley said he would contact Dr. Burkley.
- Kelley's memorandum related the following:
-
[T]hat after turning all of this material over
-
to Mrs. Lincoln [on April 26] [Burkley] never saw nor
-
heard anything about its disposition, and that he was
-
surprised to hear that it was not with the remainder
-
of the material he turned over to Mrs. Lincoln. After
-
discussing the problem, Dr. Burkley offered to call
-
Mrs. Lincoln. He did this in my presence and Mrs.
-
Lincoln told him that all of the material he turned
-
over to her was placed in a trunk or footlocker; that
-
it was locked, and that to her knowledge it was never
-
opened nor the contents disturbed by her. She said,
-
however, that sometime after its receipt all of the
-
material concerning the assassination, with which she
-
was working, was turned over to Angie Novello, Robert
-
Kennedy's secretary.
- (134)
The memorandum further related that Dr. Burkley told
- Kelley that Henry Giordano, a former White House driver, was
- working with Lincoln at the time of the transfer and was
then
- employed in Senator Kennedy's office.
- (135)
After contacting Van Cleve again and advising him of
- the contact with Burkley, Kelley related the following:
-
I * * * further advised him that, in my opinion, we
-
should not contact Giordano. He agreed with this and
-
stated he felt that the inquiry would have to remain
-
as it now stands; that perhaps we were borrowing
-
trouble in exploring it any further, and assured me
-
that the Archivist had made a thorough search of all
-
of the material on hand to make sure that the
-
material in question had not been received by the
-
Archivist at another time or under other
-
circumstances.
-
(136) Thus,
the General Services Administration, which
- oversees the National Archives, decided not to pursue the
search
- for the missing materials any further. The officials
involved were
- apparently satisfied with knowing that the National Archives
did
- not have any responsibility in their disappearance and did
not
- wish to instigate trouble by pursuing any investigation.
-
(137) In
1971, a controversy, not directly involving the
- missing materials, arose over the chain of custody of the
autopsy
- materials being stored in the National Archives and who
should
- have access to them. John
Nichols, a pathologist, began court
- proceedings in the Federal courts, challenging the agreement
of
- October 29, 1966, which contains several restrictions
limiting
- public access to the autopsy materials.
An issue raised by the
- suit was whether the Kennedy family ever had any legal right
to
- control the autopsy materials at any time and, consequently,
- whether any deed of gift from the family which contained
- restrictions limiting public access could be valid.
-
(138) Both
the Federal District Court and the Tenth Circuit
- Court of Appeals upheld the agreement.
The Court of appeals
- stated that the "letter of agreement of October 29,
1966 is a
- valid, binding agreement and that the restrictions imposed
thereby
- are reasonable."
-
(139) The
legal department of the Congressional Research
- Service analyzed the Nichols case for the committee. The CRS
noted
- that while the "Nichols decision represents only the
determination
- of one circuit until the question is addressed elsewhere it
would
- seem to represent 'the state of the law?'"
The CRS stated that
- until the April 1965 transfer, the autopsy materials were
"in
- Government hands with no intervening transfer of like having
- occurred." It then observed:
-
At this point, however, as suggested in the
-
November 4, 1966, Treasury Department memorandum * *
-
* the transfer to the Kennedy family may have been
-
interpreted by some as indication of U.S. recognition
-
of Kennedy family rights in the items so transferred.
-
At some point thereafter, either upon delivery to the
-
Archives in 1965 or upon acceptance of the letter of
-
gift of October 1966, the materials may be regarded
-
as having been either (1) returned to their rightful
-
owner, the United States Government, or (2) donated
-
by properly executed deed of gift to the United
-
States, thereby resulting in relinquishment of
-
Kennedy family rights in them.
-
(140) The
CRS ended by saying that two conclusions are
- irrefutable. First, the autopsy photographs and X-rays are
now the
- property of the United States; and second, the letter of
agreement
- between the Government and the Kennedy family remains
enforceable.
- (141)
The committee also interviewed Archives personnel to
- ascertain their present position regarding the missing
materials.
- In response to committee requests, Trudy H. Peterson,
Assistant
- to the Deputy Archivist of the United States, prepared a
written
- statement. In
this document, Peterson noted that just prior to
- the October 1966 transfer of the materials to the Archives,
the
- locked footlocker was brought to the National Archives
building,
- although she does not specify from where.
This suggests that
- after Novello allegedly took the material from the office of
Mrs.
- Lincoln, it may have been moved from the Archives building
as
- opposed to only being moved to another part of the building
as
- Mrs. Lincoln speculated.) Peterson also says that Robert
Bahmer,
- the Archivist of the United States in 1966, believed that
sometime
- before the transfer of the materials as a gift, Herman Kahn,
the
- Assistant Archivist for Presidential Libraries supervised
the
- acceptance of the footlocker, along with several other boxes
of
- Robert Kennedy's materials, for courtesy storage in vault
6-W-3.
- Peterson further stated that Herman Kahn, now dead, may have
been
- the only Archives employee present for the transfer and that
no
- record of delivery is available.
-
(142) In
response to a subsequent committee inquiry
- concerning Herman Kahn, Peterson stated that Kahn dealt with
- members and representatives of the Kennedy family during
1964-68
- on numerous issues, including the courtesy storage of Robert
- Kennedy materials. He
was present for the October 1966 transfer
- and, according to Marion Johnson of the National Archives,
was one
- of the original holders of the combination to the safe
cabinet in
- which the autopsy material was stored.
Kahn also allegedly
- accompanied Novello when Novello apparently removed the
autopsy
- materials from the office of Lincoln.
-
(143) In
response to another committee request, the Office
- of Presidential Libraries conducted a thorough but
unsuccessful
- search of the office files for 1965-66 for documentation
regarding
- the transfer of the autopsy materials to the physical
custody of
- the Archives. Additionally,
two members of the Presidential
- Libraries staff who worked under Herman Kahn at that time
stated
- in interviews and affidavits that they could not recall any
- pertinent details concerning the autopsy materials. The
staff of
- the John F. Kennedy Library also reviewed their files, with
- negative results. Further,
one Archives employee, Marion Johnson,
- Archivist, Office of the National Archives, National
Archives and
- Records Service, remembered that he became aware of the
footlocker
- containing the autopsy materials shortly before the October
31,
- 1966 transfer, but was not aware of its contents until after
the
- transfer. Additionally,
at the request of the committee, on July
- 18, 1978, Clarence Lyons and Trudy Peterson conducted a
thorough
- but unsuccessful search of the security storage vault for
the
- tissue sections and the container of gross material.
-
(144) Given
these efforts and findings, it appears that
- Kahn and Novello removed the autopsy material from the
office of
- Mrs. Lincoln shortly after April 1965. The material was then
- either kept in another part of the Archives, probably a
Robert
- Kennedy courtesy storage area, or removed from the building
to a
- location designated by Robert Kennedy. The circumstantial
evidence
- would seem to indicate that Robert Kennedy then decided to
retain
- possession of all physical specimen evidence and transferred
only
- the autopsy photographs and X-rays to the Government. The
- committee has not been able to verify how or when the item
No. 9
- materials were removed from the other autopsy materials or
what
- subsequently happened to them.
- PART IV. ADDITIONAL EFFORTS TO ACQUIRE THE MISSING
MATERIALS
- (145)
After failing to determine the fate of the missing
- materials by tracing that chain of custody, the committee
- investigated the possibility that someone had placed the
missing
- autopsy items all of which were physical specimens taken
from the
- body of President Kennedy, in the final grave on reinterment,
on
- March 14, 1967. The
persons contacted who were present for the
- ceremony could not recall any additional package or material
being
- placed in the grave. The Superintendent of Arlington
National
- Cemetery from 1951 to 1972 John Metzler, informed the
committee
- that he attended the burial of the President and the
reinterment.
- At the time of burial, the coffin was placed in a
"Wilbur" vault,
- which has a lid and vault that operate on a tongue and
groove
- system. Tar is placed on the points of contact of the
grooves to
- insure a tight fit and permanent seal. Metzler witnessed the
- lowering of the lid and the sealing of the vault, and
believed
- that the only method to open the vault subsequently would be
to
- break the lid on the main portion of the vault.
-
(146) Metzler
supervised the reinterment in 1967 and was
- present at all phases of the transfer: from the opening of
the old
- site through the transfer by crane of the vault to the
closing of
- the new site Metzler said there was no way anyone could have
- placed anything in the coffin or vault during the transfer
without
- his seeing it. Metzler
also said that nothing could have been
- placed in the vault since 1963 because there was no
indication of
- damage to the vault indicating any disturbance.
Metzler stated
- further that no one placed anything in the new or old
gravesite
- besides the vault.
-
(147) In
the course of its investigation the committee
- contacted numerous other people in an unsuccessful attempt
to
- locate the missing materials. They included:
-
1. Dr. James J. Humes, autopsy pathologist;
-
2. George Dalton, former White House aide and
assistant to
-
Mrs. Lincoln at the National Archives;
-
3. Edith Duncan, administrative assistant to Robert
Bouck,
-
Protective Research Section, Secret Service;
-
4. Joseph D. Giordano, former White House aide and
-
assistant to Mrs. Lincoln at the National Archives;
-
5. Frank Mankiewicz, former assistant to Robert F.
Kennedy;
-
6. Harry Van Cleve, former General Counsel of the
General
-
Services Administration;
-
7. Lawrence O'Brien, former aide to President
Kennedy;
-
8. David Powers, former aide to President Kennedy;
-
9. Ken Fienberg, aide to Senator Edward Kennedy;
-
10. P.J. Costanzo, Superintendent of Arlington
National
-
Cemetery;
-
11. Dr. James Boswell, autopsy pathologist;
-
12. Dr. Pierre Finck, autopsy pathologist;
-
13. Adm. George Galloway, commanding officer of the
-
National Naval Medical Center in 1963;
-
14. Capt. John H. Stover, commanding officer of the
U.S.
-
Naval Medical
School in 1963;
-
15. Bruce Bromley, former Justice Department attorney
who
-
was called briefly from private practice to serve as
-
counsel to the Clark panel;
-
16. Carl Eardley, former Justice Department official;
-
17. Harold Reis, former Justice Department official;
-
18. Sol Lindenbaum, former Justice Department
official;
-
19. National Archives personnel; and
-
20. Thomas J. Kelley, Assistant Director of the U.S.
Secret
-
Service.
- PART V. CONCLUSIONS
- (148)
Despite these efforts, the committee was not able to
- determine precisely what happened to the missing materials.
The
- evidence indicates that the materials were not buried with
the
- body at reinterment. It seems apparent that Angela Novello
did
- remove the footlocker containing to the materials from the
office
- of Mrs. Lincoln at the direction of Robert Kennedy, and that
- Herman Kahn had knowledge of this transaction.
After the removal
- from Lincoln's office, Robert Kennedy most likely acquired
- possession of or at least personal control over these
materials.
- Burke Marshall's opinion that Robert Kennedy obtained and
disposed
- of these items himself to prevent any future public display
- supports this theory.
-
(149)
There are least two possible reasons why Robert
- Kennedy would not have retained the autopsy photographs and
- X-rays. First,
the only materials retained were physical
- specimens from the body
of his brother: Tissue sections, blood
- smear slides, and the container of gross material.
He may have
- understandably felt more strongly about preventing the
misuse of
- these physical materials than the photographs and X-rays.
Second,
- the Justice Department under Ramsey Clark pushed hard to
acquire
- the photographs and X-rays but did not request the physical
- materials. Even if Robert Kennedy had wished to prevent the
- release of all the autopsy materials, he was not in a
position to
- do so when confronted with Justice Department demands.
-
(150) Consequently,
although the committee has not been
- able to uncover any direct evidence of the fate of the
missing
- materials, circumstantial evidence tends to show that Robert
- Kennedy either destroyed these materials or otherwise
rendered
- them inaccessible.
In the summer of 1968, an author discovered a remarkable
similarity between the sketch of the assassin of Dr. Martin Luther
King and one of the three tramps arrested in Dealey Plaza following
the assassination of President Kennedy. Peter Khiss wrote a story
about this and it was published by the Times in June,1968.
Apparently that was the final straw for the Times management as far
as Khiss was concerned. He was not allowed to do any more research
on assassinations or to discuss the subject at the Times. As
he told
the author in 1969, he doesn't attend any press conferences about
assassinations because he doesn't like it when people in Times
management say, "Here comes crazy old Pete Khiss again with his
conspiracy talk."
The apex of The New York Times actions and editorial positions on
the JFK assassination came in November and December 1971. They
published three items supporting the Warren Commission eight years
after the assassination, at a time when it seemed on the surface to
be a dead issue. The first was a story about Dallas eight years later
by an author from Texas who wrote his entire story as though it were
an established fact that Oswald was the lone madman assassin firing
three shots from the sixth floor window of the Depository building
and later killing police officer Tippit.
The second was an Op-Ed page guest editorial by none other than
David Belin, a Warren Commission lawyer. He defended the Commission
and attacked the researchers. The third was a story by Fred Graham
about the findings of Dr. Lattimer, who was allowed to see the
autopsy photographs and x-rays of John Kennedy. Graham actually wrote
most of his story, which solidly backed up the Warren Commission due
to Lattimer's claims that the autopsy materials proved no
conspiracy, before Lattimer ever entered the Archives.
In other words, it appears that Graham knew what Lattimer was
going to find and say in advance. Either that or someone in
Washington, D.C. gave someone at the Times orders in advance to
prepare the story for the first page, upper left-hand corner, of the
paper. It really didn't make any difference whether Dr. Lattimer ever
saw the x-rays and photographs.
The concerted campaign on the part of the Times management could
have been timed to prevent a discovery of new evidence of conspiracy
in the autopsy materials. The reason for this possibility developing
in the November 1971 period is that the five-year restriction placed
on the autopsy evidence by Burke Marshall, a Kennedy family lawyer,
expired in November of 1971. Four well-known and highly reputable
forensic pathologists, Dr. Cyril Wecht of Pittsburgh, Dr. John
Nichols of the University of Kansas, Dr. Milton Helpern of New York
City and Dr. John Chapman of Detroit had already asked permission to
examine the x-rays and photos upon the expiration of the five-year
period. All four were known to question the Warren Commission's
findings. What better way to freeze them out of the Archives than to
select a doctor who could be trusted to back up the Commission (Lattimer
had published several articles doing just that), commission him to go
into the Archives, and then persuade The New York Times to publish a
front page story in its Sunday issue demonstrating that no one else
need look at the materials because they supported the Warren
Commission's findings.
All attempts by researchers to convince Times management that the
other side of the story should be told have been completely ignored.
Lattimer's findings, if correct, actually prove conspiracy. The
Times has been informed of this but they have shut off all
discussion of the subject. The complete story of the complicity of
the New York Times in the crimes to which they have become an
accessory would take up an entire volume.
6. For
a more detailed analysis of the Times' culpability and selective
bias in reporting the facts of the assassination, see Jerry
Policoff's October 1972 article in The Realist: "How All the
News About Political Assassinations In the United States Has Not
Been Fit to Print in The New York Times."
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