# JFK fatal head shot **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [October 24, 2013, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jfk-fatal-head-shot/672117 "2013-10-24T15:13:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2013, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jfk-fatal-head-shot/672117/61 "2013-10-25T04:15:38Z")
I’m not going to argue this point but I read a very interesting book years ago on the subject. The author was asked to review the Warren Report. He started from scratch by looking at the entry/exit wounds. He thought one of the shots came from street level and was a different caliber because the entry wound was at the base of the skull and a smaller caliber than Oswald’s. But had nothing to go on until he came across a photo of the Secret Service car following the President showing one of the agents holding an AR-15. He speculates that one of the agents (which he names in the book) reacted first to the shooting and stood up in the car. When the cars lurched forward to rush the President away he would have been thrown backwards and the natural reaction would be to move his arms forward for balance (thus accidentally firing the gun). [There is some doubt](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/16/AR2007051601967.html)that there are enough fragments to account for 3 bullets. What’s interesting in his claims is that the AR-15 uses a thin-jacketed bullet and according to him would have fragmented instead of staying intact. this would have created something of a shotgun effect. What might have proved his theory would be the fragments in Kennedy’s brain. The agent in question waited for the statute of limitations to expire before suing the author and the publisher which I find remarkable. I would have thought it was like winning the lottery if someone was slandered so badly. He did get some money from the publisher but it was not much. but as has been pointed out before, there is one person we know for a fact who was shooting at JFK. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2013, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jfk-fatal-head-shot/672117/62 "2013-10-25T05:12:13Z")
What is the statute of limitations on shooting the President in the head, anyway? ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2013, 5:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jfk-fatal-head-shot/672117/63 "2013-10-25T05:21:57Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > What is the statute of limitations on shooting the President in the head, anyway? there isn’t one for murder. Not sure about homicide. Which is a very interesting question when you think about it. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2013, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jfk-fatal-head-shot/672117/64 "2013-10-25T12:23:49Z")
> [@Dissonance](#): > > there’s the first person shooter JFK:Reloaded where you can take the shot yourself. It’s a remarkably easy shot. When I first read this, I honestly thought you meant JFK could’ve easily shot himself. _(“They made a whole video game out of that?”)_ ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Miskatonic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.miskatonic/32/310_2.png) [@Mr.Miskatonic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Miskatonic)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2013, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jfk-fatal-head-shot/672117/65 "2013-10-25T12:43:01Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > The agent in question waited for the statute of limitations to expire before suing the author and the publisher which I find remarkable. Waiting until the last minute to file a civil suit is actually not uncommon. The fact that Hickey filed it too late could also have been from a number of issues: his lawyer stated that he was critically ill. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2013, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jfk-fatal-head-shot/672117/66 "2013-10-25T13:51:23Z")
> [@Mr.Miskatonic](#): > > Waiting until the last minute to file a civil suit is actually not uncommon. The fact that Hickey filed it too late could also have been from a number of issues: his lawyer stated that he was critically ill. To ill to call a lawyer? Doesn’t sound right. And why is waiting to the last minute not uncommon? ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Miskatonic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.miskatonic/32/310_2.png) [@Mr.Miskatonic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Miskatonic)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2013, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jfk-fatal-head-shot/672117/67 "2013-10-25T14:17:05Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > To ill to call a lawyer? Doesn’t sound right. And why is waiting to the last minute not uncommon? ’ _Critically_ ill. As in: not sure if he is even going to live [http://articles.baltimoresun.com/1997-09-30/news/1997273060\_1\_hickey-defamation-mortal-error](http://articles.baltimoresun.com/1997-09-30/news/1997273060_1_hickey-defamation-mortal-error) > [@](#): > > Mark S. Zaid, Hickey’s lawyer, said Hickey delayed filing suit because he was critically ill when the book was initially released. > > “He was essentially on his deathbed and his family didn’t expect him to live,” Zaid said. As to why waiting to the last minute is uncommon, IANAL. All I know is that not very long ago I was talking with a lawyer who is in the same hobby as me and he mentioned that someone had died on property where said hobby was taking place. In PA the statute is 2 years and at the time it had been 1 year since the death. His comment to me was that it was fairly common practice to wait until just the last minute to file a case. I don’t know if it is just a unnerving tactic (people lawyer up right after the incident but let things loose as time goes by), simply maximizing time needed to build your case, or whatever. ---
**Author:** ![snorlax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@snorlax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snorlax)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2013, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jfk-fatal-head-shot/672117/68 "2013-10-25T15:10:03Z")
> [@Dissonance](#): > > A picture being worth a thousands words, there’s the first person shooter JFK:Reloaded where you can take the shot yourself. It’s a remarkably easy shot. What I found interesting about this game is that it seemed an easier shot as the limo was approaching rather than after it turned the corner. It seems he made his job harder for himself by waiting. Mind you, he got the intended result. ---
**Author:** ![mlees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@mlees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlees)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2013, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jfk-fatal-head-shot/672117/69 "2013-10-25T15:15:36Z")
> [@bump](#): > > Regardless, the shot from the Book Depository would have been an absolute pot shot. You’d be shooting down Elm at a relatively short distance (less than 100 yards, IIRC) with a gentle curve to the right. Nothing a trained marksman with a scoped large bore rifle would have any trouble at all with. The rifle used was this: [link](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_F._Kennedy_assassination_rifle) Is 6.5mm “large bore”? ---
**Author:** ![mlees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@mlees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlees)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2013, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jfk-fatal-head-shot/672117/70 "2013-10-25T15:20:36Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > 1. The time span isn’t as short as people think it is. The absolute LOW estimate from first to third short is 5.6 seconds and it may have been as high as 8. Just use a stopwatch. Bang, three seconds, bang, three seconds, bang. It’s not exactly forever between shots but it’s not super quick. The bolt could be worked in a second. I’m new to these JFK debates… Question: Does the stop watch start with the first shot? Wouldn’t that mean he only needs to get off TWO more shots in 6 seconds? ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2013, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jfk-fatal-head-shot/672117/71 "2013-10-25T15:28:35Z")
> [@mlees](#): > > The rifle used was this: [link](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_F._Kennedy_assassination_rifle) > > Is 6.5mm “large bore”? .256 caliber. This page say [large bore](http://www.chuckhawks.com/intro_big_bore.htm) starts at .40. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2013, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jfk-fatal-head-shot/672117/72 "2013-10-25T15:31:15Z")
> [@mlees](#): > > The rifle used was this: [link](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_F._Kennedy_assassination_rifle) > > Is 6.5mm “large bore”? Well, it was large _enough_. ---
**Author:** ![Human\_Action](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ac91a4/32.png) [@Human\_Action](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Human_Action)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2013, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jfk-fatal-head-shot/672117/73 "2013-10-25T15:31:53Z")
> [@mlees](#): > > The rifle used was this: [link](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_F._Kennedy_assassination_rifle) > > Is 6.5mm “large bore”? It’s not, a better term that conveys what **bump** probably meant is a “full-power” cartridge, as opposed to [intermediate](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intermediate_cartridge) or weaker. ---
**Author:** ![Dissonance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/85f322/32.png) [@Dissonance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dissonance)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2013, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jfk-fatal-head-shot/672117/74 "2013-10-25T16:45:19Z")
> [@mlees](#): > > I’m new to these JFK debates… > > Question: Does the stop watch start with the first shot? Wouldn’t that mean he only needs to get off TWO more shots in 6 seconds? Yes, he only needed to work the bolt twice in 6 seconds. There’s absolutely nothing remarkable about that; in the British Army at the start of WW1 a soldier was expected to be able to fire 20 aimed shots a minute with a Lee-Enfield, this includes needing to reload the magazine. [The current world record for aimed bolt-action fire was set in 1914 by a musketry instructor in the British Army—Sergeant Instructor Snoxall—who placed 38 rounds into a 12-inch-wide (300 mm) target at 300 yards (270 m) in one minute.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lee-Enfield) ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2013, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jfk-fatal-head-shot/672117/75 "2013-10-25T16:49:18Z")
> [@Dissonance](#): > > The current world record for aimed bolt-action fire was set in 1914 by a musketry instructor in the British Army—Sergeant Instructor Snoxall—who placed 38 rounds into a 12-inch-wide (300 mm) target at 300 yards (270 m) in one minute. _Damn._ ETA:screwed up the link. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2013, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jfk-fatal-head-shot/672117/76 "2013-10-25T16:56:36Z")
> [@Dissonance](#): > > Yes, he only needed to work the bolt twice in 6 seconds. There’s absolutely nothing remarkable about that; in the British Army at the start of WW1 a soldier was expected to be able to fire 20 aimed shots a minute with a Lee-Enfield, this includes needing to reload the magazine. [The current world record for aimed bolt-action fire was set in 1914 by a musketry instructor in the British Army—Sergeant Instructor Snoxall—who placed 38 rounds into a 12-inch-wide (300 mm) target at 300 yards (270 m) in one minute.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lee-Enfield) They also found the location where Oswald had fired off thousands of rounds practicing with the rifle. The number I recall is something like 10,000 rounds, but I’m working off of memory. But any number of thousands would be enough for him to be very skilled in firing off rounds quickly. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2013, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jfk-fatal-head-shot/672117/77 "2013-10-25T17:03:46Z")
[Zapruder film stabilized](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9w6zveedj0o) ---
**Author:** ![Human\_Action](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ac91a4/32.png) [@Human\_Action](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Human_Action)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2013, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jfk-fatal-head-shot/672117/78 "2013-10-25T17:06:09Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > They also found the location where Oswald had fired off thousands of rounds practicing with the rifle. The number I recall is something like 10,000 rounds, but I’m working off of memory. But any number of thousands would be enough for him to be very skilled in firing off rounds quickly. He also practiced dry. From the [Warren Report:](http://books.google.com/books?id=lOpMVJB0V1IC&pg=PA271&lpg=PA271&dq=marina+oswald+practicing+bolt&source=bl&ots=McwfUO2tSO&sig=hgw0ndntxi3DUKHhqCHeW0Nn2JQ&hl=en&sa=X&ei=vaNqUr-pM43lyAG0joCgDw&ved=0CD0Q6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=marina%20oswald%20practicing%20bolt&f=false) > [@](#): > > Marina Oswald testified that in New Orleans in May of 1963, she observed Oswald sitting with the rifle on their screened porch at night, sighting with the telescopic lens and operating the bolt. Examination of the cartridge cases found on the sixth floor of the Depository Building established that they had been previously loaded and ejected from the assassination rifle, which would indicate that Oswald practiced operating the bolt. Once he was comfortable operating the bolt, and, crucially, doing so without taking his eye away from the scope, then he had most of the skills needed for the assassination. His military training would have provided the rest: trigger and breath control, for instance. ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2013, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jfk-fatal-head-shot/672117/79 "2013-10-25T17:42:34Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > No, it doesn’t. The Zapruder film shows JFK’s head moving forward before it is hit, then it jerks backward after it is hit. This. He was already leaning his head forward. It looks like he was listening to something Jackie was saying to him. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2013, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jfk-fatal-head-shot/672117/80 "2013-10-25T17:45:58Z")
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