(Testimony of James J. Rowley)
Mr. Rowley.
Well, it ties in with the crime, because he said he was framed. Now, he said he was framed because he was prepared to go before your Commission, sir, to testify about this thing that happened 3 years ago, and in the charges he said he advised me, as well as others, and nothing was done. He said he was framed for this reason.
The Chairman.
Had he ever made any complaint to you before?
Mr. Rowley.
He had never made any complaint to me. It came as a complete surprise.
Representative Ford.
The complaint to you came subsequent to the filing of criminal charges against him?
Mr. Rowley.
He said he had made the charges at the time the alleged incidents occurred, Mr. Congressman, that he notified me, before he left an assignment 3 years ago.
Let me give you the background, so there is no misunderstanding. We have what we call an orientation program. The men we recruit from the colleges, and the type of men that we want, we cannot always get off the civil service roster. Therefore, we have an understanding with Civil Service that we can take men under schedule A. Within a period of 2 years, they will have to be assigned to the White House or dropped from the Service.
Now, in order to determine their ability and fitness for assignment, since some people are better criminal investigators than they are in protection work, we have an orientation program which includes duty on the White House detail. Mr. Bolden was one of the men selected to come in the summer of 1961. He was also a replacement for some regular agent on the detail who was on leave. It was a 30-day assignment. This afforded us an opportunity to observe him, determine whether he was equipped and so forth.
And he was on the White House detail for this short period of time. The time that he describes was a 5-day weekend up in Hyannis Port.
Mr. Rankin.
I don't think that quite answers----
Mr. Rowley.
I am giving the background.
Mr. Rankin.
I think the question is as to when you got the complaint.
Mr. Rowley.
Well--excuse me. [Continuing.] Before he left his detail assignment, you see, he alleges that he told me about the condition that was going on up in Hyannis.
Representative Ford.
Before he left on this 30-day assignment?
Mr. Rowley.
When he left to return to his office in Chicago.
Mr. Rankin.
And what is the fact in that regard?
Mr. Rowley.
The fact is he never informed me. He never informed any of his supervisors or anyone on the detail.
Mr. Rankin.
I think the record should show, Mr. Chairman, :that we were never advised that he wanted to testify, nor had we any inquiry or anything about the matter, until after we learned about it in the newspapers. And, even then, he didn't ask to testify. And we asked the FBI to check into it, and he had counsel and they refused to tell anything about the matter at final time.
Mr. Dulles.
Could I ask a question?
Did I understand you to say that the Civil Service prescribes that certain men must be assigned to the White House for a certain detail?
Mr. Rowley.
No, Mr. Dulles; we have an arrangement with the Civil Service that they will permit us to recruit these men, not from the register, but under What they call schedule A. They give us an opportunity, 2 years, to train these men, with the understanding that within 2 years' time they will have to be assigned to the White House detail or we will not be able to retain them in the Service.
However, during that 2 years, we urge them to take the civil service examination, so that they get on the register. And then when they do--quite frequently this occurs--they are selected from the register, and once they become permanent, if they are not interested in the White House detail, then they continue their work as a criminal investigator in the field.
Mr. Dulles.
But if they do not take that special examination, then--and become a part of the civil service, then they have to be assigned to the White House, to stay on?
Mr. Rowley.
Yes.
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