Report of the President's Commission on the Assassination of President John F. Kennedy

General Testing Conditions

The Commission provided the Edgewood scientists with all relevant facts about the wounds inflicted on President Kennedy and Governor Connally, including the President’s autopsy report and the reports and X-rays from Parkland Hospital. Drs. Olivier and Light personally discussed the Governor’s wounds with his attending surgeons, Drs. Robert R. Shaw and Charles F. Gregory, and viewed the Zapruder films with Governor and Mrs. Connally. The Commission also supplied all known data on the source of the shots, the rifle and bullets used, and the distances involved. The Mannlicher-Carcano rifle found on the sixth floor of the Depository Building was turned over to the Edgewood testers, who obtained Western bullets of the type used by the assassin for their experiments.

Tests on Penetration Power and Bullet Stability

The Edgewood scientists compared the penetrating power of Western bullets fired from the assassination rifle with other ammunition types. Western bullets fired from the Mannlicher-Carcano through two gelatin blocks totaling 72½ centimeters traveled in a straight line through 1½ blocks before their trajectory curved, ultimately burying themselves in a mound of earth. For comparison, an M-80 NATO round fired from an M-14 rifle showed substantially less penetrating power with quicker tumbling and earlier energy release. A .257 Winchester Roberts soft-nosed hunting bullet became deformed almost immediately upon entering the gelatin and released its energy very rapidly. The tests concluded that the Western bullet fired from the Mannlicher-Carcano had “terrific penetrating ability” and would retain substantial velocity after passing through portions of the human body.

Tests Simulating President Kennedy’s Neck Wound

After reviewing the autopsy report, the Edgewood scientists simulated the portion of the President’s neck through which the bullet passed, determining it traveled through 13½ to 14½ centimeters of tissue. They constructed three blocks—one 20-percent gelatin composition and two from different animal meats—to duplicate the neck tissue. Using the assassination weapon at a range of 180 feet (later confirmed between 174.9 and 190.8 feet), Western bullets were fired through the substances, producing an average entrance velocity of 1,904 feet per second. The materials were covered with clipped animal skin to simulate human skin, and the average exit velocities were 1,779 fps from gelatin, 1,798 fps from the first meat, and 1,772 fps from the second meat. The tests concluded that the bullet lost little velocity in penetrating the President’s neck, retained most of its stability (producing only slightly elongated exit holes compared to round entry holes), and would have had substantial impact on the Presidential limousine or anyone else struck by the exiting bullet.

Tests Simulating Governor Connally’s Chest Wounds

To approximate the Governor’s chest injuries, an animal was shot with the assassination weapon using Western bullets at a distance of 210 feet (later determined to be 176.9 to 190.8 feet in the actual events). The average striking velocity of 11 shots at 210 feet was 1,929 feet per second, with an average exit velocity of 1,664 feet per second. One shot produced an injury on the animal’s rib very similar to that inflicted on Governor Connally, with the bullet traveling along the eighth left rib and causing a similar fracture pattern. The X-ray of the animal wound (Commission Exhibit No. 852) showed remarkable similarity to the Governor’s chest wound (Commission Exhibit No. 681). The bullet that produced this wound (Commission Exhibit No. 853) was flattened similarly to Commission Exhibit No. 399 found on Governor Connally’s stretcher, though the animal bullet was somewhat flatter, indicating greater speed. After passing through the animal, the bullet left an imprint on the velocity screen nearly the length of the bullet, indicating it was traveling sideways or end over end. Accounting for the Governor’s greater girth, the bullet’s velocity reduction in passing through his body was estimated at 400 feet.

Tests Simulating Governor Connally’s Wrist Wounds

Following identical procedures used in the chest wound simulation, the wound ballistics experts reproduced the Governor’s wrist wound by firing Western bullets from the assassination weapon at 210 feet into bone structures. The most similar test shot was analyzed in testimony, with X-rays (Commission Exhibits Nos. 854 and 855) showing a fracture very similar to the Governor’s wrist wound depicted in Commission Exhibits Nos. 690 and 691. The average striking velocity was 1,858 feet per second, with an average exit velocity of 1,786 fps (measured for 7 of 10 shots). These tests demonstrated that Governor Connally’s wrist was not struck by a pristine bullet, because the bone structure suffered greater damage than the Governor’s wrist, and the bone structure exhibited a smaller entry wound and larger exit wound characteristic of pristine bullets, while the Governor’s wrist showed a larger entry wound indicating a tumbling bullet with substantially reduced velocity. Additionally, if Commission Exhibit No. 399 (the bullet found on the Governor’s stretcher) had caused the wrist wound as a pristine bullet, its nose would have been considerably flattened as was Commission Exhibit No. 856.