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Warren Commission Report: Page 198« Previous | Next »

(CHAPTER V - Detention and Death of Oswald)

belonging to the homicide and robbery bureau, headed by Capt. J. Will Fritz.1 (See Commission Exhibit No. 2175, p. 197.)

Chronology

The policemen who seized Oswald at the Texas Theatre arrived with him at the police department building at about 9 p.m. and brought him immediately to the third floor offices of the homicide and robbery bureau to await the arrival of Captain Fritz from the Texas School Book Depository. After about 15 or 20 minutes Oswald was ushered into the office of Captain Fritz for the first of several interrogation sessions.2 At 4:05 p.m. he was taken to the basement assembly room for his first lineup.3 While waiting outside the lineup room, Oswald was searched, and five cartridges and other items were removed from his pockets.4 After the lineup, at about 4 :20, Oswald was returned to Captain Fritz' office for further questioning.5 Two hours later, at 6:20 p.m., Oswald was taken downstairs for a second lineup and returned to Captain Fritz' office within 15 minutes for additional interrogation.6 Shortly after 7 p.m., Captain Fritz signed a complaint charging Oswald with the murder of Patrolman Tippit. Oswald was formally .arraigned, i.e., advised of the charges, at 7:10 p.m., before Justice of the Peace David L. Johnston, who came to Captain office for the occasion.7


After a third lineup at about 7:40 p.m., Oswald was returned to Fritz' office.8 About. an hour later, after further questioning, Oswald's fingerprints and palmprints were taken and a paraffin test (see app. XI) administered in Fritz' office, after which the questioning resumed.9 At 11:26 p.m. Fritz signed the complaint charging Oswald with the murder of President Kennedy. 10 Shortly after midnight, detectives took Oswald to the basement assembly room for an appearance of several minutes before members of the press.11 At about 12 :20 a.m. Oswald was delivered to the jailer who placed him in a maximum security cell on the fifth floor. 12 His cell was the center one in a block of three cells that were separated from the remainder of the jail area. The cells on either side of Oswald were empty and a guard was nearby whenever Oswald was present.13 Shortly after 1 :30 a.m. Oswald was brought to the identification bureau on the fourth floor and arraigned before Justice of the Peace Johnston, this time for the murder President Kennedy.14


Questioning resumed in Fritz' office on Saturday morning at about 10:25 a.m., and the session lasted nearly an hour and 10 minutes.15 Oswald was then returned to his cell for an hour, and at 12:35 p.m. he was brought back to Fritz' office for an additional half-hour of questioning.16 From 1:10 to 1:30 p.m., Oswald's wife and mother visited him in the fourth floor visiting area;17 at 1:40 p.m. he tempted to call an attorney in New York. 18 He appeared in another lineup at, 2 :15 p.m.19 At 2:45 p.m., with Oswald's consent, a member of the identification bureau obtained fingernail scrapings and specimens of hair from him.20 He returned to the fourth floor at 3:30

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