(Testimony of Chief Jesse E. Curry)
Mr. Curry.
Yes; absolutely.
Mr. Hubert.
Now, you did receive a report from them ultimately?
Mr. Curry.
Yes, I did.
Mr. Hubert.
And I take it, of course, that you studied it ?
Mr. Curry.
Yes, sir.
Mr. Hubert.
As I remember the report, it made certain specific findings as to how Ruby entered and so forth. Mr. CURRY. Yes, according to the report he did come down the Main Street ramp.
Mr. Hubert.
From your study of the report and all the statements that you got, are you satisfied with the conclusions reached in the report?
Mr. Curry.
I believe this is the way he came in'. I don't believe the officer at the top of the ramp where he came in, I don't believe that he knew that he went by, but I do state this, that I think the proper security was set up, and that had each officer carried out his assignment, I believe the transfer would have been made safely, and while I, as head of the department, have to accept responsibility for the security, I can say this, that the proper security was set up. It was a failure of one man to carry out his assignment properly that permitted this man, apparently, to come into the basement of the city hall.
Mr. Hubert.
And that man you mean is Roy Vaughn?
Mr. Curry.
Vaughn--Officer Vaughn, the officer assigned to the Main Street ramp.
Mr. Hubert.
Was there any kind of influence of any sort whatsoever or suggestions exercised upon you or made to you concerning the transfer of Oswald by either Mayor Cabell or City Manager Crull?
Mr. Curry.
No, sir; they left it up to me.
Mr. Hubert.
Chief, as you know, there has been some suggestion that a desire to satisfy the press dictated the time of the movement and the route. I think you ought to have an opportunity at this time to recall your own observations as to what influence, if any, considerations of pleasing the press entered into any of these plans?
Mr. Curry.
Well, I would only say this, that we were trying in the police department to let the press have an opportunity to observe the proceedings as they were. This is an event that had not been--the like of the event had not been seen or heard, I think, in this century.
I didn't have any particular ones to come to me and insist that this be done in this manner. I saw no particular harm in allowing the media to observe the prisoner, and with no laws against it, and no policies that had ever been set up stating that the news media would not be allowed to see a prisoner.
There was no way for us to take the prisoner from the homicide office to the Jail and back without the news media seeing him. I was besieged actually by the press to permit them to See Oswald. They made such remarks as, "The public has a right to see, to know," I didn't want them to think that we were mistreating Oswald; that we were carrying on this investigation in a normal manner, and that this case was handled as probably any other case would have been handled, although this had more national appeal, you might say, and had some curiosity to it, than some of the other cases we have handled. But certainly the fact that the news media was permitted to see him and to take pictures of him was not anything unusual. This has always been done, but not to this extent because we didn't have this much press present.
Mr. Hubert.
As I understand what you are saying, it is that had it not been for the fact that the victim was Oswald, if it was Oswald, and it was the President involved, this would have been quite normal procedure, that is to say, the press would have been allowed to see him, you would have told them when he was going to be moved ?
Mr. Curry.
That's right.
Mr. Hubert.
And allowed them to take pictures?
Mr. Curry.
That's right.
Mr. Hubert.
Was any suggestion made to you by anybody that it would be best to disregard those considerations with respect to the press and use another route in making the transfer at another time?
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