John Fitzgerald Kennedy Assassination - Case Study Example

Cold Case: JFK On November 13, PBS in partnership with NOVA aired a documentary that was aimed at shedding light and solving the biggest conspiracy theory of all time. Was Pres. John Fitzgerald Kennedy assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald alone or did he act with a partner? Using the most modern forensic tools available, a forensic anthropology investigation took place that studied the gun, the bullets, the clothing, and other still existing information regarding that fateful day on November 22, 1963. The investigation also did its best to answer questions about the more popular conspiracies related to the event such as “The Single Bullet Theory” and “The Grassy Knoll Theory” which was propagated by the Warren Commission and public imagination respectively. Using the 26 second video footage taken by Abraham Zapruder, on his 8mm camera, which is the only existing footage of the assassination in progress, forensic anthropology experts, weapons experts, forensic pathologists, and historians set out to possibly finally give an answer to the mysterious events surrounding the Kennedy assassination via the most modern technological forensic tools at their disposal. Their answer to the questions, using evidence and the relatively new field of forensic science, the evidence analysis manages to shed new light and bring new information to the public eye regarding the assassination and conspiracy theories. Very little was known about forensic science at the time of the assassination. Even much less was known about the rifle used. Modern forensic science has finally given us the ability to look back into this cold case by re-evaluating the evidence present. and studying the answers that have been resting within them all along. The investigation begins with an examination of gun and bullet that Oswald used, a Manlincher - Carcano, was a WWII Italian made rifle purchased by Oswald under the alias A. Hidell from Kleins Sporting Goods - Chicago. It is a rifle that was not really known for ease of use, nor accuracy of shot. However, when tested under various conditions by firearms expert Luke Haag, the gun and bullet held up to the Warren Commission version of the events. The “Single Bullet” Theory was not only a possibility but a reality. In various testing stages, the 6.6 millimeter rifle proved to be an unreliable choice of weapon for such an undertaking being a bolt action rifle and very clumsy to use. The conclusion however, was that it was chosen based on its price, $13, being one of the cheapest in its class. Shooting simultaneously from the top of the printing building would not have been possible. However, weapons testing showed how it would have been possible for the gun to have accomplished its task. While Governor Connelly, the second victim of the assassination who survived claims that three bullets were shot, weapons investigation prove that only 2 bullets were fired that fateful day. The confusion about the number of bullets rests in the way the Carcano bullets are created and how it responds to exposure after exiting the chamber. Made from a full metal jacket, the bullet had a hard copper shell around a soft lead core. This discovery changes the way that the “Magic Bullet” or “Single Bullet Theory” was viewed. The single bullet in fact had the ability to penetrate two people at once. This is due to the reaction that the bullet has with air upon exiting its first target. Mike Haag, son of Luke, is a ballistic expert who helps his father on occasion It was his observation that under experimentation, the bullet exits in pristine form, making sure that the tip can still penetrate another target. Through wind direction, the bullet will move off path slightly and penetrate anything in its path. This is what happened with Gov. Connelly, the bullet essentially lost wind as it traveled through his body, resting in his thigh. The wind movement caused the bullet to hit him sideways, which is why the bullet showed indentations upon impact. This was caused by the way the bullet was structured with the soft lead core. All of these findings were discovered through the use of various testing methods that studied the rifling method of the bullet and how it functioned upon impact using stand in ballistic gelatin and soap, which are similar to the human tissue, in a similar scenario as the assassination. Such methods of testing suing a Doppler radar, chronograph, and high speed cameras did not exist at the time and information about the rifle were not available at the time of the Warren investigation either. That explains how this particular unique behavior of the gun and bullet were overlooked. As for the third bullet theory, more recent research about the human nerves and tissues have proposed an answer as to why the president shook backward upon the impact of the bullet, his body muscles were reacting violently to the separation from the brain. This reaction caused a backward force in the system of the president. Making it look like he was shot from the front. However, inspection of the evidence showed only rear entry wounds, there was nothing that could have been considered a front entry point in the brain. This understanding almost completely gave credibility to the Warren Commission investigation results. However, there was still the consideration of the third bullet and autopsy report to contend with. With regards to the third bullet, the investigation showed that the third shot was simply a matter of public perception in relation to sound direction. Having the sound of the bullet come off from such a high point on the sixth floor of the Depository, the Carcano would have created two independent sounds that could have been mistaken by onlookers for 2 gunshots. Due to the high reverberation rate, the witnesses thought the shots came from 2 places, the depository and the grassy knoll. In such high noise resolution settings, it becomes almost impossible to accurately pinpoint the source of the firing sound(s) . However, modern forensics has allowed us to better source the sounds of gunfire and bullets using a high speed camera, extremely bright focused light and a reflective screen. Better known in the forensic circles as 3-D laser scanning. Prof. Michael Hargarther of New Mexico Tech who conducted the experiment believes that these type of analysis helps to source air density differences. It is his opinion that what the people heard were actually the supersonic sounds created by the bullet leaving the chamber and the shock wave that followed after it. A supersonic bullet, just like the Carcano can produce. These were the sounds that bounced around Dealey Plaza during the assassination. According to 3-D technical Advisor and laser scanning specialist Tony Grissim, this is the most accurate way of recording sound evidence from such high traffic locations since the scan offers 360 degrees of data. While the distance of the knoll from the presidential motorcade could have allowed for a second shooter, the problem with that theory is that there was no right side wound to the presidents head, which would have been present with a second shot coming from the front. Perhaps the biggest problem with the way the Kennedy assassination investigation that caused all of these conspiracy theories, was the fact that the evidence and autopsy were mishandled from the very beginning. At the time, only a regular autopsy was performed on the president, not a forensic autopsy which goes into greater detail regarding the cause of death. It was performed by ordinary pathologists instead of forensic pathologists at the Bethesda Navy Hospital. In the event of an assassination, the forensic autopsy is the more accurate method to perform. According to forensic pathologist Vincent Di Maio, important and telling evidence, such as the bullet wound to the throat where a tracheotomy was also performed was overlooked. That crucial evidence could have prevented the rise of conspiracy theories as the proper bullet wounds would have been revealed and counted. There was also the problem of the bullet wound at the back of the head but no bullet found on the presidents body. This became the basis of the “magic bullet” theory of the commission. The clothes of the president were not properly processed as part of evidence either. It is very easy to see that at the time of the Kennedy assassination, forensic science was either at its very infancy or did not exist yet. Which is why such a high profile case ended up being bungled in the investigation. That is why when it was placed under the scrutiny of modern forensic science, fact and fiction were finally and clearly separated. Made easily understandable for everyone to read and see. Under the modern investigative microscope, this tv documentary shows that the Kennedy assassination would not have become a cold case. It would have been solvable regardless of the abscence of the primary suspect. While primitive scientific investigative methods were used in the original investigation, the fact remains that it left more questions than answers due to limits of the then existing technology. Modern forensics has finally filled in the blanks the original investigation left. Sources De Nooyer R., & Tiffany, S. (Producers). (2013, November 13). Cold case JFK. 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