JFK Assassination: Jim Garrison and Clay Shaw Criminal & Civil Court Documents & Transcripts

Description

Garrison’s JFK Conspiracy Trial: A Timeline and Cast

• November 22, 1963: President John F. Kennedy is assassinated.
• Late 1963 – September 1964: The Warren Commission conducts its federal inquiry into President Kennedy’s death.
• September 1964: The Warren Commission completes its inquiry and concludes its findings regarding the assassination.
• Early February 1967: The FBI and CIA learn that New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison has opened his own investigation into the JFK assassination, two years after the Warren Commission’s completion.
• March 1, 1967: New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison arrests Clay L. Shaw, a prominent New Orleans businessman, in connection with his investigation into the assassination. Shaw is charged with conspiring to assassinate President John F. Kennedy.
• 1967-1969: The Orleans Parish Grand Jury convenes for a special investigation, hearing testimony from numerous witnesses including Dean Andrews, Perry Russo, Layton Martens, Kerry Thornley, Maria Oswald Porter, Ruth Hyde Paine, and critics of the Warren Commission (Harold Weisberg, Mark Lane, William Turner). These testimonies are part of Jim Garrison’s investigation.
• January 1969: The criminal trial of State of Louisiana v. Clay Shaw begins. This is the only trial ever held in connection with the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
• March 1, 1969: After a six-week trial, the jury acquits Clay Shaw of conspiracy to assassinate President John F. Kennedy after deliberating for only forty-five minutes.
• 1971: Clay Shaw initiates a civil case, Clay Shaw v. Jim Garrison, seeking injunctive relief from prosecution for perjury. This legal action targets Jim Garrison, the District Attorney of Orleans Parish.
• 1971 (Date not specified, likely after Clay Shaw v. Jim Garrison civil trial concludes): A U.S. District judge in the Eastern District of Louisiana finds Jim Garrison to have abused his power in an attempt to prove his conspiracy theory regarding the murder of the president. Shaw is granted injunctive relief in his civil case.
• 1991: Oliver Stone’s film “JFK” is released, using one of Jim Garrison’s books as its prime source. Jim Garrison is portrayed by actor Kevin Costner in the film.
• 2001: The CIA journal “Studies in Intelligence,” Volume 45, Number 5, publishes a 25-page article titled “The Lie That Linked CIA to the Kennedy Assassination,” discussing the complex story of Garrison’s investigation.

Cast of Characters

• John F. Kennedy (JFK): The 35th President of the United States, whose assassination in November 1963 sparked the investigations and legal proceedings covered in the sources.
• Jim Garrison (1921-1992): The District Attorney of Orleans Parish, New Orleans. He initiated the only criminal trial ever held in connection with the JFK assassination, prosecuting Clay Shaw for conspiracy. He was later found by a U.S. District judge to have abused his power. One of his books served as the prime source for Oliver Stone’s 1991 film “JFK,” where he was portrayed by Kevin Costner.
• Clay L. Shaw (1913-1974): A prominent New Orleans businessman who was arrested by Jim Garrison on March 1, 1967, and subsequently tried in 1969 for conspiring to assassinate President John F. Kennedy. He was acquitted after a six-week trial. He later sued Jim Garrison in a 1971 civil case, seeking injunctive relief from perjury prosecution, which was granted.
• Dean Andrews: A witness who provided testimony to the Orleans Parish Grand Jury Special Investigation convened by Jim Garrison.
• Perry Russo: A witness who provided testimony to the Orleans Parish Grand Jury Special Investigation convened by Jim Garrison.
• Layton Martens: A witness who provided testimony to the Orleans Parish Grand Jury Special Investigation convened by Jim Garrison.
• Kerry Thornley: A witness who provided testimony to the Orleans Parish Grand Jury Special Investigation convened by Jim Garrison.
• Maria Oswald Porter: A witness who provided testimony to the Orleans Parish Grand Jury Special Investigation convened by Jim Garrison.
• Ruth Hyde Paine: A witness who provided testimony to the Orleans Parish Grand Jury Special Investigation convened by Jim Garrison.
• Harold Weisberg: A critic of the Warren Commission’s conclusions who provided testimony to the Orleans Parish Grand Jury Special Investigation.
• Mark Lane: A critic of the Warren Commission’s conclusions who provided testimony to the Orleans Parish Grand Jury Special Investigation.
• William Turner: A critic of the Warren Commission’s conclusions who provided testimony to the Orleans Parish Grand Jury Special Investigation.
• Oliver Stone: The director of the 1991 film “JFK,” which was based on one of Jim Garrison’s books.
• Kevin Costner: The actor who portrayed Jim Garrison in Oliver Stone’s 1991 film “JFK.”

JFK Assassination: Jim Garrison and Clay Shaw Criminal & Civil Court Documents & Transcripts

5,886 pages of court documents and transcripts covering the 1969 criminal trial State of Louisiana v. Clay Shaw and the 1971 civil trial Clay Shaw v. Jim Garrison.

This collection includes:

Orleans Parish Grand Jury Special Investigation Testimony Transcripts (1967-1969)

1,963 pages of Orleans Parish Grand Jury Special Investigation testimony transcripts. These records were created as a verbatim record of the proceedings of the grand jury convened by New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison to investigate an alleged conspiracy to assassinate President John F. Kennedy and the alleged involvement of New Orleans businessman Clay L. Shaw.

Included is testimony from witnesses Dean Andrews; Perry Russo; Layton Martens; Kerry Thornley; Maria Oswald Porter; and Ruth Hyde Paine. The grand jury also heard testimony from critics of the Warren Commission’s conclusions, including Harold Weisberg; Mark Lane; and William Turner.

State of Louisiana v. Clay Shaw (1969)

3,201 pages of documents and transcripts from the criminal trial State of Louisiana v. Clay Shaw (1969).

On March 1, 1967, New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison (1921-1992) arrested Clay L. Shaw (1913-1974), a prominent New Orleans businessman. Shaw was tried in 1969 for conspiring to assassinate President John F. Kennedy. The State of Louisiana v. Clay Shaw was the only trial ever held in connection with the assassination. The case was initiated by Jim Garrison. After a six-week trial, the jury acquitted Clay Shaw after forty-five minutes of deliberation on March 1, 1969. A U.S. District judge in the Eastern District of Louisiana found Garrison to have abused his power in an attempt to prove his conspiracy theory regarding the murder of the president.

Clay Shaw v. Jim Garrison (1971)

722 pages of court documents and transcripts from the 1971 civil case of Clay Shaw v. Jim Garrison, the District Attorney of Orleans Parish. Shaw, a New Orleans businessman, was the plaintiff seeking injunctive relief from prosecution for perjury during his state trial in which Shaw was charged with conspiracy to assassinate President John F. Kennedy. One of Garrison’s books was the prime source for Oliver Stone’s film JFK in 1991, in which Garrison was portrayed by actor Kevin Costner. Shaw was granted injunctive relief.

Additional material includes:

The Lie That Linked CIA to the Kennedy Assassination (2001)

A 25-page article from the CIA journal “Studies in Intelligence,” Volume 45, Number 5 (2001).

Abstract: The complex story begins in early February 1967, when the FBI and CIA learned about a striking development in New Orleans. Two years after the completion of the federal inquiry into President Kennedy’s death by the Warren Commission, the local district attorney, Jim Garrison, had opened his own investigation into the November 1963 assassination. Whatever Garrison was up to, he did not seem intent on involving the federal government. So, both the Bureau and the CIA simply awaited the next development, believing, like most Americans, that no responsible prosecutor would dare reopen the case unless he truly had something.