(Testimony of Ira Jefferson "Jack", Jr. Beers)
Mr. Beers.
The reason I recall them was because they were stopping there just about right where I was standing and looking into the back seats and so forth.
Mr. Griffin.
Do you recall a TV camera being wheeled into the basement shortly before Jack Ruby shot Oswald?
Mr. Beers.
No, sir; I don't. A big live camera?
Mr. Griffin.
Yes.
Mr. Beers.
I don't recall seeing that. I may have, but I don't recall seeing it.
Mr. Griffin.
Now at the time that Oswald was brought out, do you recall how people were, newspeople and policemen, were stationed in the basement? Do you recall roughly how they were spread out?
Mr. Beers.
Roughly, they were asked to get into somewhat of an L-shaped position here, which would be that the news people would be across the driveway like so, and this area here in front of the cameras was more or less open.
There was some people moving back over here in this area just a little bit, and then from approximately right in front of myself to up this ramp, towards the Commerce Street exit was roughly the position that the, this was the position people were asked to get into, that they assumed that, roughly.
Mr. Griffin.
Now, do you have any recollection if the people were more densely stationed along the Main Street ramp than along the area in front of the entrance to the garage, or vice versa, or were they more densely stationed in front of the garage than elsewhere?
Mr. Beers.
They were probably a little more concentrated right across the ramp.
Mr. Griffin.
Main Street ramp?
Mr. Beers.
Not here. They were fairly well strung out this way [pointing]. I couldn't see too far up this ramp here without leaning out and around and looking up this Poet, but from my observation, they were fairly well strung out up toward the Commerce Street exit there for a number of feet or yards.
Mr. Griffin.
Do you recall how many persons deep the people were that were strung across the Main Street ramp?
Mr. Beers.
I am sure that would vary from two to maybe five.
Mr. Griffin.
Well, could there have been as few as 15 people strung across the Main Street ramp?
Mr. Beers.
There was probably more actually, they came around this corner just a little bit and almost up to this door.
Mr. Griffin.
You are pointing towards the entrance of the jail office?
Mr. Beers.
The entrance to the jail office; yes. There were actually a few at the corner there, and strung out across there, and I didn't particularly look over in that area because I was concentrating most of my attention towards the jail office door, because we didn't know exactly what time they would be coming out, and we didn't know what, if any, advance warning we would have, so I didn't dare look around too much. I had already seen everybody I wanted to see, I think.
Mr. Griffin.
Did you ever have occasion to look up the Main Street ramp?
Mr. Beers.
I did look up there earlier.
Mr. Griffin.
From where you were in the basement, was it possible to see anybody up at the top of the Main Street ramp?
Mr. Beers.
There was a policeman standing up at the top of the ramp up there. Looked like he was out on the sidewalk.
Mr. Griffin.
Was the visibility such that his features were distinguishable?
Mr. Beers.
No; it was a silhouette.
Mr. Griffin.
Can you tell us what kind of advance warning you had that Oswald-was coming down?
Mr. Beers.
I believe there were some of the news media in this hallway which I pointed out, that goes from the elevator to the Harwood Street side of the city hall, and the hallway goes past the jail office and goes into the police parking area.
I believe there were some members of the news media in the hall in front of the window of the jail office, and someone, I think, shouted, "Oh, here he comes."
Then there was just a lot of noise and the door opened and he came in.
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