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(Testimony of H. Louis Nichols)
Mr. Nichols.
that interview is something, I assume, that you have, or will be made available. I don't remember exactly what transpired, and then--but they asked me what his attitude was, whether he was belligerent and--or scared, and to me, he appeared to be neither belligerent nor scared. He appeared to be a man that was pretty calm, I thought, under the circumstances. He appeared to me that he knew where he was and pretty much what his rights were with regard to being represented, and he knew apparently--at least the conversation was that if he didn't get somebody to represent him that he wanted that he could always fall back on the bar association, or somebody, and I had told him that I would see him next week if he wanted me to, and I satisfied myself at least, to the extent, that the man appeared to know what he was doing. He did not appear to be irrational. He appeared to be calm. He turned down my offer of help, and I felt like at that point that was all I needed to do, and this was later Saturday afternoon, and I had no inkling that anything else, except maybe that the next week if he didn't get a lawyer I might hear from him, or check into it, and that's all I know about Mr. Lee Harvey Oswald.
Mr. Stern.
That's quite a complete statement. Let's just cover a few details. What was his physical condition, as you observed it?
Mr. Nichols.
Well, he had a little scratch, or bruise over one eye. I have forgotten whether over the left or right, ,but other than that, as I recall, there were no indication of any other injuries or marks on him that I could tell. He was dressed, I believe, in a white T-shirt and slacks, and appeared to me to be in normal condition. I mean, there was nothing obviously wrong with him from a physical standpoint, as I could observe.
Mr. Stern.
Did he seem well rested, or tired?
Mr. Nichols.
No; he seemed all right. When I went in there he was lying on his back and he got up and he didn't--he looked like he was calm, and was rested, and it---didn't appear to have now this is a guess, and my own observation, did not appear to me to have been mistreated. I was interested in observing whether or not he---it looked like he had been mistreated, because, as a lawyer, I anticipate perhaps that he if he had been mistreated, or might claim he had been mistreated it was something I should have observed at that time, and I observed nothing to indicate that.
Mr. Stern.
He, I gather, used the word "incommunicado" to describe----
Mr. Nichols.
Yes; that was his word.
Mr. Stern.
Did he elaborate on that, or any---or indicate to you that he had not been able to see members of his family or other people of his choice?
Mr. Nichols.
No; he did not say that he had been refused anything. Just didn't elaborate, and I really didn't ask him at that point. My inquiry was intentionally very limited. I merely wanted to know whether he had a lawyer, if he had a lawyer then I had no problems.
If he asked for a lawyer and they did not offer him one, that was contrary to what I had been told, because I had been told, as far as the police were concerned, and Mr. Wade, as he recalled, that the man had never asked for a lawyer. Nor had he asked to call a lawyer, for the right to call a lawyer, so that I was interested in knowing whether or not he had a lawyer and whether or not he had requested a lawyer and been refused, because the story up east was that he couldn't get a lawyer to represent him, and I knew that that wasn't true, because I know Dallas lawyers, and I know that if the man had to have a lawyer, we could have gotten one for him. So, I didn't go into the other questions, or whether or not he wanted to see his family and hadn't been permitted. I really was concerned about whether or not he had a lawyer or wanted a lawyer, or whether we had any obligations to furnish him one.
Mr. Stern.
Yes; I see. Did he elaborate on his statement to you that he preferred a lawyer who believed in what he believed in, or was this as----
Mr. Nichols.
Not at all. He said--I didn't ask him, because I didn't know any lawyers--and I didn't know what he believed in, and I really wasn't concerned at that stage in' the man's beliefs or what he had done or not done, actually, I just wanted--the man was in jail, and it occurred to me that it would be easy to overlook his fights at that time in view of the great emotion and somebody ought to determine whether or not he wanted a lawyer, and I decided
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