The Warren Commission Report - Findings of President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy

Monday, February 3, 1964

TESTIMONY OF MRS. LEE HARVEY OSWALD

The President's Commission met at 10:35 a.m. on February 3, 1964, at 200 Maryland Avenue NE., Washington, D.C.

Present were Chief Justice Earl Warren, Chairman; Senator John Sherman Cooper, Representative Hale Boggs, Representative Gerald R. Ford, and Allen W. Dulles, members.

Also present were J. Lee Rankin, general counsel; John M. Thorne, attorney for Mrs. Lee Harvey Oswald; William D. Krimer and Leon I. Gopadze, interpreters.

The Chairman. Well, Mrs. Oswald, did you have a good trip here?

The Commission will come to order, and at this time, I will make a short statement for the purpose of the meeting. A copy of this statement has been given to counsel for Mrs. Oswald, but for the record, I should like to read it.

On November 29, 1963, President Lyndon B. Johnson issued Executive Order No. 11130 appointing a Commission "to ascertain, evaluate, and report upon the facts relating to the assassination of the late President John F. Kennedy, and the subsequent violent death of the man charged with the assassination."

On December 13, 1963, Congress adopted Joint Resolution S.J. 137 which authorizes the Commission, or any member of the Commission or any agent or agency designated by the Commission for such purpose to administer oaths and affirmations, examine witnesses, and receive evidence.

Mr. Rankin. Mr. Chairman, excuse me, the interpreter——

The Chairman. I understood they have a copy and if they want to at the end he may do that.

On January 21, 1964, the Commission adopted a resolution authorizing each member of the Commission and its General Counsel, J. Lee Rankin, to administer oaths and affirmations, examine witnesses, and receive evidence concerning any matter under investigation by the Commission.

The purpose of this hearing is to take the testimony of Mrs. Marina Oswald, the widow of Lee Harvey Oswald who, prior to his death, was charged with the assassination of President Kennedy. Since the Commission is inquiring fully into the background of Lee Harvey Oswald and those associated with him, it is the intention of the Commission to ask Mrs. Marina Oswald questions concerning Lee Harvey Oswald and any and all matters relating to the assassination. The Commission also intends to ask Mrs. Marina Oswald questions relating to the assassination of President Kennedy and the subsequent violent death of Lee Harvey Oswald.

Mrs. Marina Oswald has been furnished with a copy of this statement and a copy of the rules adopted by the Commission for the taking of testimony or the production of evidence. Mrs. Marina Oswald has also been furnished with a copy of Executive Order No. 11130 and Congressional Resolution S.J. Res. 137 which set forth the general scope of the Commission's inquiry and its authority for the examining witnesses and the receiving of evidence.

The Chairman. Mrs. Oswald, do you have an attorney, a lawyer?

Mrs. Oswald. Yes.

The Chairman. And your lawyer is Mr. Thorne?

Mrs. Oswald. Yes.

The Chairman. He is the only lawyer you wish to represent you here?

Mrs. Oswald. Yes.

The Chairman. And may I ask you, Mr. Thorne, if you have received a copy of this?

Mr. Rankin. Mr. Chairman, that is the copy he received there.

Mr. Thorne. I have read a copy of it, Mr. Chief Justice, yes, sir.

The Chairman. Are there any questions about it?

Mr. Thorne. There are no questions.

The Chairman. Very well.

Very well, we will proceed to swear Mrs. Oswald as a witness.

Will you please rise, Mrs. Oswald.

(The Chairman administered the oath to the witness, Mrs. Oswald, through the interpreter.)

The Chairman. Mr. Reporter, will you rise, please, and be sworn.

(The Chairman administered the oath to the interpreter and the stenotype reporter, following which all questions propounded to the witness and her answers thereto, were duly translated through the interpreter.)

The Chairman. Now, Mr. Thorne and Mrs. Oswald, I want to say to you that we want to see that Mrs. Oswald's rights are protected in every manner and you are entitled to converse with her at any time that you desire. You are entitled to give her any advice that you want, either openly or in private; if you feel that her rights are not being protected you are entitled to object to the Commission and have a ruling upon it, and at the conclusion of her testimony if you have any questions that you would like to ask her in verification of what she has said you may feel free to ask them.

After her testimony has been completed, a copy will be furnished to you so that if there are any errors, corrections or omissions you may call it to our attention, is that satisfactory to you?

Mr. Thorne. Very satisfactory, Mr. Chairman.

The Chairman. I might say also to her we propose to ask her questions for about 1 hour, and then take a short recess for her refreshment, and then we will convene again until about 12:30. At 12:30 we will recess until 2 o'clock, and then we may take her to her hotel where she can see her baby and have a little rest, and we will return at 2 o'clock, and we will take evidence until about 4:30. If at any time otherwise you should feel tired or feel that you need a rest, you may feel free to say so and we will take care of it.

Mrs. Oswald. Thank you.

The Chairman. The questions will be asked of you by Mr. J. Lee Rankin, who is the general counsel of the Commission.

I think now we are ready to proceed, are we not, Mr. Rankin?

Mr. Rankin. Mrs. Oswald, you be at your ease, and the interpreter will tell you what I ask and you take your time about your answers.

Will you state your name, please?

Mrs. Oswald. Marina, my name is Marina Nikolaevna Oswald. My maiden name was Prussakova.

Mr. Rankin. Where do you live, Mrs. Oswald?

Mrs. Oswald. At the present time I live in Dallas.

Mr. Rankin. And where in Dallas?

Mrs. Oswald. Mr. Thorne knows my address.

Mr. Thorne. 11125 Ferrar Street, Dallas, Dallas County, Tex.

Mr. Rankin. Do you live with friends there?

Mrs. Oswald. I live with Mr. Jim Martin and his family.

Mr. Rankin. Mrs. Oswald, do you have a family?

Mrs. Oswald. I have two children, two girls, June will be 2 years old in February, and Rachel is 3 months old.

Mr. Rankin. Are you the widow of the late Lee Harvey Oswald?

Mrs. Oswald. Yes.

Mr. Rankin. Mrs. Oswald, did you write in Russian a story of your experiences in the United States?

Mrs. Oswald. Yes, I have. I think that you are familiar with it.

Mr. Rankin. You furnished it to the Commission, did you not, or a copy of it?

Mrs. Oswald. Yes.

Mr. Rankin. Will you describe for the Commission how you prepared this document in Russian that you furnished to us?

Mrs. Oswald. I wrote this document not specifically for this Commission, but merely for myself. Perhaps there are, therefore, not enough facts for your purpose in that document. This is the story of my life from the time I met him in Minsk up to the very last days.

Mr. Rankin. And by "him" who did you mean?

Mrs. Oswald. Lee Harvey Oswald.

Mr. Rankin. Did you have any assistance in preparing this document in Russian?

Mrs. Oswald. No, no one.

Mr. Rankin. Are all the statements in that document true insofar as you know?

Mrs. Oswald. Yes.

Mr. Rankin. Since your husband's death and even back to the time of the assassination of President Kennedy, you have had a number of interviews with people from the Secret Service and the FBI, have you not?

Mrs. Oswald. Yes, I did.

Mr. Rankin. We have a record of more than 46 such interviews, and I assume you cannot remember the exact number or all that was said in those interviews, is that true?

Mrs. Oswald. I don't know how many there were.

Mr. Rankin. As far as you can recall now, do you know of anything that is not true in those interviews that you would like to correct or add to?

Mrs. Oswald. Yes, I would like to correct some things because not everything was true.

Mr. Rankin. Will you tell us——

Mrs. Oswald. It is not just that it wasn't true, but not quite exact.

Mr. Rankin. Do you recall some of the information that you gave in those interviews that was incorrect that you would like to correct now? Will you tell us that?

Mrs. Oswald. At the present time, I can't remember any specific instance, but perhaps in the course of your questioning if it comes up I will say so.

Mr. Rankin. Do you recall the date that you arrived in the United States with your husband, Lee Harvey Oswald?

Mrs....