(Testimony of Rufus Wayne , Special Agent, Youngblood)
Mr. Specter.
the Vice President. Would you continue and describe for us what occurred thereafter?
Mr. Youngblood.
At what point?
Mr. Specter.
I interrupted you. You were in the room, you had pulled the shades down, and were making security arrangements for the Vice President.
Mr. Youngblood.
Well, we were in a corner of this room, and there was the Vice President, Mrs. Johnson, and myself at first, with agents Kivett and Warren Taylor also in the big room, but not right over in the corner at the beginning. And shortly thereafter Emory Roberts came in. He was one of the White House detail agents. He told us that the situation--situation with President Kennedy looked very bad. The Vice President asked me what I thought--what we should do. And I said I think we should evacuate the hospital as soon as we can, and get on the plane, and return to Washington. And Emory Roberts concurred. And the Vice President agreed. But he wanted to get a better report on the condition and so forth.
Then we were joined by many others. Congressman Homer Thornberry came in, and Congressman Brooks, and Cliff Carter, and the Vice President had some conversations with these gentlemen. And at one time Cliff went out and got coffee. And then Mr. Ken O'Donnell and Roy Kellerman came down on one occasion, and Ken O'Donnell said for us to return to Washington, and to go ahead and take the President's plane.
The Vice President was worried about Mrs. Kennedy. So Mrs. Johnson thought that she would go see Mrs. Kennedy and Mrs. Connally. She did. Agents Kivett and Taylor went with her. Then later, after she came back, Ken O'Donnell and Roy Kellerman came down again and told us that the President had died.
Mr. Specter.
About what time was that, sir?
Mr. Youngblood.
I don't know. I had told Lem Johns to try to keep up with all the times. I think it is a matter of record. I believe you have it in other documents.
Mr. Specter.
Now, are you referring to a document which I will mark as Commission Exhibit 355?
(The document referred to was marked Commission Exhibit No. 355 for identification.)
Mr. Youngblood.
This is our shift report, and this is the times that Lem Johns was keeping that day. He shows 1 p.m., President Kennedy died at Parkland Hospital.
Mr. Specter.
Was that daily shift report prepared under your supervision, Mr. Youngblood?
Mr. Youngblood.
Yes, sir.
Mr. Specter.
Did you review it and approve it when it was completed, after the end of the workday on November 22?
Mr. Youngblood.
Well, not exactly at the end of the workday, sir. These agents would keep notes. And in this particular case you can see that this one, it says, "Date completed, December 2" down at the bottom. That is when he got around to typing it.
Mr. Specter.
Well, does this document bear your initial in any place?
Mr. Youngblood.
Yes, sir; up at the top. The "RYW" is my initials.
Mr. Specter.
And does that signify your approval shortly after completion of the document?
Mr. Youngblood.
Yes, sir.
Mr. Specter.
All right. Would you go ahead and tell us what your activities were from the time you had learned that the President had died?
Mr. Youngblood.
Well, when Mr. O'Donnell and Roy Kellerman told us that he had died, the Vice President said, "Well, how about Mrs. Kennedy?"
O'Donnell told the Vice President that Mrs. Kennedy would not leave the hospital without the President's body. And O'Donnell suggested we go to the plane and that they just come on the other plane. And I might add that, as a word of explanation, there were two jet planes, one Air Force 1, in which the President flew, and the other Air Force 2, in which the Vice President and his party flew on. And O'Donnell told us to go ahead and take Air Force 1. I
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