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

Tippit’s Post-Assassination Encounter With Oswald

Tippit’s Post-Assassination Encounter With Oswald Investigation found no evidence Officer J.D. Tippit was acquainted with either Ruby or Oswald. Tippit did not frequent nightclubs, had no reason to enter Ruby’s clubs as part of his police duties, was not a member of any political organization, rarely discussed politics with others, and telephone records for his household after September 26, 1963 showed no suspicious long-distance calls. His November 22 encounter with Oswald was consistent with standard Dallas Police Department procedure: following the assassination, Tippit was directed as part of general orders to all officers to patrol the Oak Cliff area, where he came across Oswald, who matched the general suspect description broadcast to all police cars 15 minutes after the shooting. There is no basis to infer Tippit was acting outside his official duties when he approached Oswald.

Investigation of Pro- and Anti-Castro Activity Allegations

Investigation of Pro- and Anti-Castro Activity Allegations No evidence substantiates rumors linking Ruby to pro- or anti-Castro Cuban activities, except a 1959 incident where Ruby made preliminary inquiries as a middleman for a potential surplus jeep sale to Cuba and a prisoner release request, which never progressed beyond a preliminary possibility. Ruby stated the inquiry was a money-making opportunity amid favorable U.S. sentiment toward Cuba at the time. A passing acquaintance of Ruby who returned from Havana in 1959 had no known ties to the jeep transaction or to Oswald, and a 1963 phone call from the Carousel Club to the acquaintance’s ex-wife yielded no relevant information. Ruby’s 1959 social trip to Havana with gambler Lewis J. McWillie was unrelated to political activity, and there is no evidence McWillie engaged in pro- or anti-Castro activity after leaving Cuba or was involved in Ruby’s abortive jeep transaction. A 1962 telegram charged to Ruby’s brother Earl’s business telephone to Havana had no substantiated links to Ruby or subversive activity. FBI and CIA records for 1963 found no connections between Ruby, his closest associates, and Cuban revolutionary or subversive groups.