07-12-2012, 08:38 PM
Kelly's Response
JFKcountercoup: Open Letter to Judge John Tunheim
To: Judge John Tunheim
Former Chairman of the Assassinations Records Review Boad
From: William Kelly
Co-Founder of Committee for an Open Archives and COPA.
Re: Statements to the Minnesotta CBS local and as publishedand posted:
It was with deep regret and some indignation that I readyour comments regarding the JFK Assassination records that remain withheld,their numbers and the lack of any other cache of records someplace.
[ http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2012/12/04...shoot-jfk/]
The article reports: "But a prominent federal judge says allthe evidence is out there and the verdict is in. In fact, assassination expertssay virtually every known document is public. Minnesota Federal District JudgeJack Tunheim led an independent fact-finding commission in Washingtonin the 1990s to review, and declassify, millions of pages of documents relatedto the Kennedy assassination. Tunheim says all but a few of those documents arenow public."
In fact, there are many thousands of records, especially CIAdocuments that are still being withheld, so many in fact that the NationalArchives and Records Administration (NARA)can't say exactly how many.
The article quotes you saying: "Is there a cache of recordssomeplace? I don't think so. We looked as far and as wide as we possibly could.It would have been a violation of law to not turn over records to us for ourdecision making. I just don't think there was much left.'"
As you know, the ARRB, which you led, was unable to obtainmany assassination records, especially those from the office of the Director ofNaval Intelligence (ONI), the White House Communications Agency (WHCA) and formerchief council to the House Select Committee on Assassinations (HSCA) RichardSprague.
The failure of the ARRB to obtain and secure there recordsbecame apparent when some of them surfaced in private hands, including an editedbut longer version of the Air Force One radio transmission from the effects ofthe President's military aide Gen. Chester Clifton. Other records, includingsome from the director of ONI Rufus Taylor have also been located even thoughthe ARRB could not get any records whatsoever from that office. And I ampersonally in possession of some original assassination records, copies of whichwere given to Richard Sprague when he was counsel to the HSCA, copies he keptafter being forced to leave his post and records that are sill not among theJFK Assassination Records Collection at the NARA.
[http://jfkcountercoup.blogspot.com/2012/...cords.html]
So, off the top of my head there are three "caches of records" that are someplace other than wherethey should be the JFK Collection, and there are more that I will continue tolist until they are obtained and properly secured. I'vestarted The Great JFK Assassination Records Scavanger Hunt to try to locatethem.
[http://jfkcountercoup.blogspot.com/2012/...anger.html]
I was especially dismayed to read your remark - "Tunheimsays after many years of seeing all the available evidence from Oswald'srifle and bullets to Kennedy's autopsy photos to FBI and CIAdocuments he has not seen any direct evidence of any kind to change theverdict, which is that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone."
As you know there never was a verdict, there was no trial,Oswald was executed while in the custody of the law and you have not seen allof the available evidence, certainly not the documents still being withhelduntil 2017 or the "caches" that have been kept out of the JFK Collection, soyou are not in a position to determine a verdict.
As you certainly know, your job and the responsibility ofthe ARRB was not to investigate or even find "facts," but to locate, secure andrelease to the public the government records on the assassination, a job thatremains unfinished now over twenty years after Congress passed the JFK Act of1992.
It has been over fifteen years since Congress conducted themandated oversight hearings on the JFK Act, which when it happens, shoulddocument for the record all of the JFK Assassination records that weredestroyed, are missing or remain withheld.
The next time you are questioned by reporters about the JFKassassination records, I suggest that you don't speculate as to the guilt orinnocence of Oswald or the accuracy of the Warren Report conclusions, butinstead call on the NARA to determine theexact number of documents that remain withheld, to include the JFK records inthe 2013 National Declassification review and for Congress to conduct oversighthearings on the JFK Act so the work of the ARRB can be properly evaluated.
Twenty years after, you should be the one asking thequestions.
How many assassination records were destroyed?
How many JFK Assassination records remain withheld?
How many of the ARRB recommendations have been enacted?
Where are the assassination record "caches" that are notpart of the JFK Collection?
Why won't Congress or NARAproperly oversee the JFK Act?
If you could get answers to these questions then you willhave completed the job you began over two decades ago and remains unfinished.
William E. Kelly, Jr.
http://jfkcountercoup.blogspot.com/2012/...still.html
http://jfkcountercoup.blogspot.com/2012/10/jf.html
JFKcountercoup: Open Letter to Judge John Tunheim
To: Judge John Tunheim
Former Chairman of the Assassinations Records Review Boad
From: William Kelly
Co-Founder of Committee for an Open Archives and COPA.
Re: Statements to the Minnesotta CBS local and as publishedand posted:
It was with deep regret and some indignation that I readyour comments regarding the JFK Assassination records that remain withheld,their numbers and the lack of any other cache of records someplace.
[ http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2012/12/04...shoot-jfk/]
The article reports: "But a prominent federal judge says allthe evidence is out there and the verdict is in. In fact, assassination expertssay virtually every known document is public. Minnesota Federal District JudgeJack Tunheim led an independent fact-finding commission in Washingtonin the 1990s to review, and declassify, millions of pages of documents relatedto the Kennedy assassination. Tunheim says all but a few of those documents arenow public."
In fact, there are many thousands of records, especially CIAdocuments that are still being withheld, so many in fact that the NationalArchives and Records Administration (NARA)can't say exactly how many.
The article quotes you saying: "Is there a cache of recordssomeplace? I don't think so. We looked as far and as wide as we possibly could.It would have been a violation of law to not turn over records to us for ourdecision making. I just don't think there was much left.'"
As you know, the ARRB, which you led, was unable to obtainmany assassination records, especially those from the office of the Director ofNaval Intelligence (ONI), the White House Communications Agency (WHCA) and formerchief council to the House Select Committee on Assassinations (HSCA) RichardSprague.
The failure of the ARRB to obtain and secure there recordsbecame apparent when some of them surfaced in private hands, including an editedbut longer version of the Air Force One radio transmission from the effects ofthe President's military aide Gen. Chester Clifton. Other records, includingsome from the director of ONI Rufus Taylor have also been located even thoughthe ARRB could not get any records whatsoever from that office. And I ampersonally in possession of some original assassination records, copies of whichwere given to Richard Sprague when he was counsel to the HSCA, copies he keptafter being forced to leave his post and records that are sill not among theJFK Assassination Records Collection at the NARA.
[http://jfkcountercoup.blogspot.com/2012/...cords.html]
So, off the top of my head there are three "caches of records" that are someplace other than wherethey should be the JFK Collection, and there are more that I will continue tolist until they are obtained and properly secured. I'vestarted The Great JFK Assassination Records Scavanger Hunt to try to locatethem.
[http://jfkcountercoup.blogspot.com/2012/...anger.html]
I was especially dismayed to read your remark - "Tunheimsays after many years of seeing all the available evidence from Oswald'srifle and bullets to Kennedy's autopsy photos to FBI and CIAdocuments he has not seen any direct evidence of any kind to change theverdict, which is that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone."
As you know there never was a verdict, there was no trial,Oswald was executed while in the custody of the law and you have not seen allof the available evidence, certainly not the documents still being withhelduntil 2017 or the "caches" that have been kept out of the JFK Collection, soyou are not in a position to determine a verdict.
As you certainly know, your job and the responsibility ofthe ARRB was not to investigate or even find "facts," but to locate, secure andrelease to the public the government records on the assassination, a job thatremains unfinished now over twenty years after Congress passed the JFK Act of1992.
It has been over fifteen years since Congress conducted themandated oversight hearings on the JFK Act, which when it happens, shoulddocument for the record all of the JFK Assassination records that weredestroyed, are missing or remain withheld.
The next time you are questioned by reporters about the JFKassassination records, I suggest that you don't speculate as to the guilt orinnocence of Oswald or the accuracy of the Warren Report conclusions, butinstead call on the NARA to determine theexact number of documents that remain withheld, to include the JFK records inthe 2013 National Declassification review and for Congress to conduct oversighthearings on the JFK Act so the work of the ARRB can be properly evaluated.
Twenty years after, you should be the one asking thequestions.
How many assassination records were destroyed?
How many JFK Assassination records remain withheld?
How many of the ARRB recommendations have been enacted?
Where are the assassination record "caches" that are notpart of the JFK Collection?
Why won't Congress or NARAproperly oversee the JFK Act?
If you could get answers to these questions then you willhave completed the job you began over two decades ago and remains unfinished.
William E. Kelly, Jr.
http://jfkcountercoup.blogspot.com/2012/...still.html
http://jfkcountercoup.blogspot.com/2012/10/jf.html