My new book, "Into the Nightmare"

[Joseph McBride]

Joseph:


FIrst, who do you think was the most important witness in the Tippit case?

Second, should we trust any of the radio log transcripts?

I ask because Barry Ernest's book quotes Wiggins as saying the shots rang out at 1:06. But according to the logs Tippit made a a call at 1:08.

Would you like to do an interview on Black Op Radio?

JIM D

Jim, I'd be happy to do an interview on Black Op Radio.

I think the most important witnesses were Acquilla Clemmons and Domingo Benavides, but you
have to look at the whole complicated Tippit shooting scene as a mosaic. And there is conflicting
testimony that needs to be sorted out, as I do my best to do in INTO THE NIGHTMARE. The scene is like
RASHOMON. Another key witness was T. F. Bowley. In 1992 he gave me what he said was the first interview he had given in person to a non-government investigator, and he spoke in careful detail about what he experienced that day.

As you know, there have long been credible accusations of tampering with
the police radio transmissions. I go into a lot of detail about the transmissions
in the book.

I tend to agree with Larry Ray Harris that Tippit was shot at 1:09. Greg
Lowrey told me he thought it was 1:08. Helen Markham told the police
that day it was "approximately 1:06." Mrs. Donald Higgins in the Ernest book says 1:06. She was only questioned
by that one author, and it seems odd and improbably convenient that a TV announcer mentioned
the time, so I am dubious about that. The Tippit transmissions at 1:08
seem authentic, as far as we can tell. So it's logical that he was shot
shortly after that. And Bowley said he came on the scene and found
the dead officer at 1:10.

These times seem to come together credibly. Oswald couldn't have made it there in time, unless
he was driven there, for which there is no specific evidence. But there were cars at the
scene that seemed suspicious. I don't think he was there, but it cannot be ruled out,
and if he was, he was being set up and wasn't a shooter.

There is no Zapruder film of the Tippit shooting -- and even if there
were, it wouldn't necessarily be definitive, as we've learned with the Z
film. So what's needed is a critical and analytical study of all the
evidence and "so-called evidence" to try to get as close as possible to
the truth of what happened when Tippit was killed. I believe my book
gets as close as we've been able to come.