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

第八章 She did not then know Oswald’s address in Dallas.[C6-367]

This chapter documents Jack Ruby’s activities, movements, and statements in the roughly 24 hours following the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, from the evening of November 22 through the late night of November 23, 1963, including his emotional responses to the killing, his investigation of controversial political signage and advertising, his visits to Dallas businesses and venues, his numerous phone calls, and the conflicting witness testimony surrounding his whereabouts in the hours before he fatally shot Lee Harvey Oswald.

Pursuing the Billboard and Newspaper Ad Connection

Ruby examined a billboard and a related newspaper advertisement, and told associates he believed the two were the work of the John Birch Society, the Communist Party, or a combination of both. He drove to a post office to ask a postal employee for the name of the person who rented the mailbox featured on the billboard, but the employee refused to provide the information; Ruby found the mailbox stuffed with mail. He then went to a coffeeshop with three associates to discuss the two advertisements for roughly 30 minutes. Afterward, Crafard was taken to the Carousel Club, and Ruby returned to his apartment with an associate named Senator, going to bed around 6 a.m.

Crafard’s Departure from the Carousel Club

At 8 or 8:30 a.m. on November 23, Crafard—who had been tasked with feeding Ruby’s dogs—called Ruby to ask about food for the animals. Ruby, who had forgotten he planned to stay up late, reprimanded Crafard for waking him. A few hours later, Crafard gathered his few belongings, took $5 owed to him from the Carousel Club cash register, left a receipt and thank-you note, and began hitchhiking to Michigan. Later that day, Andrew Armstrong found the note and telephoned Ruby.