(Testimony of Winston G. , Accompanied By Fred B. Smith, Lawson)
Mr. Lawson.
who had put them out or when they had been put out, and Mr. Sorrels said some had been brought over to his office by the FBI, which is how he had known about it, and that neither he nor they knew the source of them.
Mr. Dulles.
And nobody was apprehended or seen in the act of circulating these.
Mr. Lawson.
Not to my knowledge.
Mr. Dulles.
By any authority as far as you know?
Mr. Lawson.
That is right.
Mr. Stern.
In respect to questions like what steps are taken to assure the security of the President on the trip and how to work out liaison arrangements with local Federal and municipal authorities, what is your understanding of the division of responsibility between yourself as the advance agent and the head of the local Secret Service office?
Mr. Lawson.
The advance agent who goes out from Washington is responsible for the overall stop, for making the advance arrangements, and on the day of the movement would have authority over the other agents at the stop already or the agents accompanying the President, and of course the agent in charge of the detail coming from Washington would also have authority naturally over the agents.
However, he is just arriving in the city probably for the first time, and the advance agent would have certain knowledge about certain events and would have more authority than he does in certain respects or he would ask his advice. So that there is a boss over the agents which would be the advance agent and also the gentleman in charge of the detail coming from Washington. The local agent in charge of the local office assists the advance agent in all of his arrangements in the territory that is to be visited, and the local agent in charge conducts such investigations to assist the advance agent, and the local agent in charge would be in charge of any liaison with local officials, local police officials.
Mr. Stern.
Insofar as the concern is for persons who might be dangerous or threatening to the President, the agent in charge of the Dallas office would be responsible for liaison arrangements with local authorities but you ultimately would be responsible as the delegate of the head of the White House detail, for decisions as to what steps should be taken?
Mr. Lawson.
That is correct.
Mr. Dulles.
What police powers, if any, can you exercise in that situation in a sovereign State?
Mr. Lawson.
I believe the actual police powers as such would only be in the event of actual knowledge of a threat on the President's life, anything that we have jurisdiction of. If we hear of an oral threat or see a written threat on the life of the President or see someone attempt to take his life, this is our jurisdiction, and we would be able to act as such.
Mr. Dulles.
You could effect an arrest.
Mr. Lawson.
Yes, sir; however, anything which would fall under the jurisdiction of the local police such as firearms laws or picketing laws or disturbances or anything like that we have to depend upon the local police to use their jurisdiction.
Mr. Mccloy.
Suppose the President is shot and you apprehend the murderer. Can you arrest him and put him into custody?
Mr. Lawson.
Yes, sir; I could arrest him for the shooting of the President, but it is my understanding actually for the murder, no, but because he tried to take the life of the President I could.
Mr. Mccloy.
I understand there may be some question, there is a gap in the law there that it fits no Federal crime.
Mr. Lawson.
I will have to refer to counsel here as to just where it stops, when it becomes murder actually where we have no jurisdiction, and an attempt on the life of the President.
Mr. Dulles.
Let's take a less-clear case. If you suspected Mr. X was a man who was going to interfere with the President, although he had committed no overt act, could you move in then or would you call upon the local police?
Mr. Lawson.
If he was a suspect, sir, and we had a belief that he might try to ham the President while he was in Dallas, I would try to assign a Secret
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