JFK Assassination Hearings - Ida Cox, Dr. Lowell Levine, Calvin S. McCamy
JFK Assassination Hearings - Ida Cox, Dr. Lowell Levine, Calvin S. McCamy
Opening shot of Hearing room from back, people beginning to congregate in audience and committee stand (00:00:18) SANDFORD UNGAR introduces hearing as second day - shot switches to him and panel who he introduces: DAVID LIFTON, critic of the Warren Commission, and JEREMIAH O'LEARY, of the Washington Star - Ungar gives a summary of the testimony to follow: forensic pathologists will scrutinize the original JFK autopsy - the panel discusses the original autopsy and it's short comings, namely that it did not recognize that JFK had been shot through the back and out the neck and that many of the measurements differ between illustrations and the autopsy reports - Ungar explains that the Chairman of the committee LEWIS STOKES and two other members will have to petition for more funds during today's hearings (I 09:00:20 - O 09:09:30) Committee convenes - Professor G. ROBERT BLAKEY introduces day's testimony, he says that autopsy the biggest source of controversy over the assassination and goes on to give a very detailed account of JFK's medical treatment from the moment he arrived at Parkland hospital through to his autopsy back east by Captain JAMES J. HUMED M.D., important issues he brings up in this account are that the doctors at Parkland did not notice the entry wound through the back and that they performed a tracheotomy through the wound in JFK's neck, obscuring the wound so that it was not recognized in the autopsy, also the discovery of the infamous bullet 399 on a stretcher that was thought to have passed through both JFK and Governor JOHN CONNALLY (09:09:32) Blakey brings up that because autopsy doctors had to keep their findings secret, the press went nuts with speculation, the effect of which must be taken in consideration as a force behind conspiracy theories Blakey tells the committee and then sites New York Times' articles with contradictory and incorrect information about the bullet's points of entry and passage through JFK (09:17:12) Blakey talks about the Warren Commission and the single bullet theory, mentioning that no member of the commission really investigated the autopsy (09:18:00) Blakey gives the Warren Commission findings which supported the single bullet theory, Blakey goes on to list in detail the serious criticisms of the Warren Commission findings and subsequent research and investigation to go on since then and now (1978) (09:19:20) Blakey lists all the medical issues the committee determined it needed to investigate: the number of bullets that struck JFK and Connally, the number, type and location of wounds each man received, the ten centimeter discretion between the autopsy reports and illustrations in the wound in the back of JFK's head, the course of the single bullet through both JFK and Connally, the apparent backward motion of JFK's head, the possibility that the president was hit in both the rear and the front of the head, the statements of the Parkland doctors concerning JFK's wounds, the authenticity of the autopsy's X-rays and photographs, and the competency of the autopsy and the consideration that it was ordered to be incomplete (09:23:10) Blakey explains the panel of forensic pathologists, two groups, one that had previously reviewed the X-rays and photographs and one that had not, lists thier names and positions (09:24:45) Blakey lists the assignments of the forensic pathologist panel (09:26:00) Blakey mentions that the committee has done its own investigation to come up with missing autopsy materials including JFK's brain - but could not find these materials, it is thought that ROBERT KENNEDY had them destroyed (09:27:00) Blakey introduces and lists the credentials of IDA DOX, medical illustrator (09:28:27) Dox is sworn in, Representative ANDREW PURDY is recognized to question Dox and asks her how she was chosen and how she decided what to illustrate - Dox answers that she was Georgetown's pick when the school was contacted by the committee and that the decision of what to illustrate was chosen based on what best showed the injuries and represented the medical panel's findings - Dox goes on to explain her technique in replicating the photographs and gives details to Purdy of her access to the original photographs and her use of duplicates (09:29:10) Dox explains in detail how she did other illustrations for panel that were not replicas of photos but illustrations of their their conclusions - much of this was done superimposing images of interior stucture over the photos of JFK, very meticulous, detailed work (09:34:27) Dox is excused and Profesor Blakey introduces Dr. LOWEL LEVINE and CALVIN S. MCCAMY to testify as to the authenticity of the autopsy photos and X-rays who are then simultaneously called (09:37-50) Levine and McCamy sworn in, Purdy asks Levine to explain the process of dental identification and how he can conclude that the autopsy X-rays are actually of JFK - Levine explains in detail (09:39:36) Levine walks over to exhibit of dental and autopsy X-rays shows the comparison and confirms that the autopsy X-rays are of JFK (09:43:57) Purdy's questioning turns to McCamy who he asks about the authenticity of the autopsy photographs (09:49:17) A new exhibit is introduced explaining paralax of human vision - McCamy explains how he can conclude photos are authentic and unaltered (09:52:30) McCamy and Levine are excused (09:56:18) Blakey introduces and calls Dr. MICHAEL BADEN, the chairman of the forensic pathology department (00:56:28) Baden is sworn in and tape cuts off (09:57:42)