Chapter XVIII: Part 18

Mr. HUBERT. The time you saw him at the drug store, though, he was getting into his automobile, was that after Mr. Ruby got into trouble?

Mrs. PITTS. Yes, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. How long after, about?

Mrs. PITTS. I don’t know just how long.

Mr. HUBERT. Around Christmastime or before the trial?

Mrs. PITTS. Well, yes; it was before the trial, as I had never been down here. At least I hadn’t been down here, and I don’t know if he had been or not, but he did tell me the FBI men had been out talking to him?

Mr. HUBERT. After New Year’s that you saw him?

Mrs. PITTS. I just don’t know how--when it was. Might have been after New Year’s, but I know it hadn’t been down here, you know, at the trial. And he said they had been out to talk to him and found him and talked with him, so, I guess he told them, you know, where he was. Told me he was living over at the Freeman’s Apartments, and I don’t know if he is still over there or not.

Mr. HUBERT. Once again, he doesn’t look like the man whose pictures I showed you?

Mrs. PITTS. No, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. All right, have you ever been interviewed by any member of the Commission’s staff before? I am a member of the Commission’s staff, and have you been interviewed by me before this?

Mrs. PITTS. No, sir; I don’t think so.

Mr. HUBERT. Well, you have never seen me before today, isn’t that right?

Mrs. PITTS. That’s right.

Mr. HUBERT. Then there was no interview between you and me before we began this deposition?

Mrs. PITTS. No, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. All right, Elnora, thank you very much.

Mrs. PITTS. Yes, sir.

TESTIMONY OF HAL PRIDDY, JR.

The testimony of Hal Priddy, Jr., was taken at 5:05 p.m., on March 31, 1964, in the office of the U.S. attorney, 301 Post Office Building, Bryan and Erway Streets, Dallas, Tex., by Mr. Leon D. Hubert, Jr., assistant counsel of the President’s Commission.

Mr. HUBERT. This is the deposition of Mr. Hal Priddy [spelling] P-r-i-d-d-y, Jr. Mr. Priddy, my name is Leon Hubert. I am a member of the advisory staff of the General Counsel of the President’s Commission. Under the Provision of Executive Order 11130, dated November 29, 1963, Joint Resolution of Congress 137, and rules of procedure adopted by the Commission in conformance with the Executive order and the joint resolution I have been authorized to take the sworn deposition from you, Mr. Priddy, as the former employee of the O’Neal Funeral Home.

I state to you now that the general nature of the Commission’s inquiry is to ascertain and evaluate and report upon the facts relating to the assassination of President Kennedy and the subsequent violent death of Lee Oswald.

I state to you now, Mr. Priddy, that the nature of the inquiry is to determine the facts you know about the death of Oswald and any other facts you may know about the general inquiry. In particular the ambulance call at the O’Neal Funeral Home. Now, you have appeared here today by virtue of a general request made by Mr. J. Lee Rankin, General Counsel for the President’s Commission, addressed to the O’Neal Funeral Home, and asked them to produce certain documents and witnesses relevant to those documents and other matters, I take it that you have not, yourself, received a copy of that letter?

Mr. PRIDDY. No, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. Let me say that under the rules of the Commission, any witnesses--any witness is entitled to a 3-day written notice prior to the taking of his deposition, but the rules also provide that a witness may also waive the 3-day notice if he sees fit, and I ask you now if you are willing to waive the 3-day notice?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes.

Mr. HUBERT. Will you stand and be sworn. Do you solemnly swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God?

Mr. PRIDDY. I do.

Mr. HUBERT. Will you please state your full name?

Mr. PRIDDY. Hal Arthur Priddy, Jr.

Mr. HUBERT. Your age?

Mr. PRIDDY. Twenty-five.

Mr. HUBERT. Your residence?

Mr. PRIDDY. 1857 Swan.

Mr. HUBERT. And your present occupation?

Mr. PRIDDY. Salesman for Shaw Jewelers.

Mr. HUBERT. Now, on November 24, 1963, which was the Sunday after the assassination of President Kennedy, where were you employed?

Mr. PRIDDY. O’Neal Funeral Home.

Mr. HUBERT. In what capacity?

Mr. PRIDDY. I was the rider. I was riding with Mike, but I just relieved----

Mr. HUBERT. You were riding with Mike whom?

Mr. PRIDDY. Mike Hardin, and I just relieved the dispatcher, and he had taken my place.

Mr. HUBERT. Who was the dispatcher?

Mr. PRIDDY. Wayne Wolfe.

Mr. HUBERT. So, that you were acting as dispatcher around, say 11 or 11:30?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. At the O’Neal Funeral Home?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. What are your duties as dispatcher?

Mr. PRIDDY. Well, we receive incoming calls from the police department and in turn dispatch them to the various funeral homes in their district, you know----

Mr. HUBERT. You mean the O’Neal Funeral Home dispatches them, they receive calls from the police office and dispatch these calls to the various funeral----

Mr. PRIDDY. You see, we have a direct line from the police department. All they do is pick up a phone and it rings and we have a direct line to the Dudley Hughes Funeral Home and to the Camp Funeral Home, so that if the call is in their area that way the ambulance will get there quicker, you know, than O’Neal’s having to drive clear across town.

Mr. HUBERT. In other words, O’Neal’s is sort of central for all ambulance calls----

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. Which come to you from the police and in turn are sent out by you to the appropriate funeral home operating an ambulance?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. And I assume that you send the ambulance which is closest to where it is needed?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. All right, now, do you recall having received a call from the police shortly after 11 o’clock on the 24th of November 1963?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir; I was dispatching at the time, and one of the other funeral homes called and told me. I was waiting for the call when they told me that they were going to have to have an ambulance down at the----

Mr. HUBERT. You what? You were waiting for the call?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir; you see. One of the funeral homes had, you know, it was on live TV, and they had seen it, and they picked up their direct line.

Mr. HUBERT. To you?

Mr. PRIDDY. And told me.

Mr. HUBERT. Told you what?

Mr. PRIDDY. That we were probably going to need an ambulance, that there was a disturbance down at city hall, so, I was waiting for the call when it came in.

Mr. HUBERT. I show you a document marked for identification as Hardin Exhibit No. 5125, and ask if your handwriting appears on that document?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir. Right here at the top of it where the----

Mr. HUBERT. Now, in order that the record may show that we are both speaking of the same document, I wonder if you would put your signature along with mine and Mr. Hardin’s at the top of that?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes.

Mr. HUBERT. Now, you say that the handwriting at the top is in your hand?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. I see the word “Lee” and then something scratched out. “Oswald. City jail to Parkland.” Why did you put that information there?

Mr. PRIDDY. Well, on any call we have to have the information, you see. I didn’t get that information until they called in to clear. I didn’t know--well, I did know, but normally I wouldn’t know who the patient is, and where they were taking them to, because he might just taken him to Baylor.

Mr. HUBERT. Would you just put the number of the car that you----

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir. That is the first thing when you stamp it--you stamp it--then you put the number of the car.

Mr. HUBERT. I notice the word “Mike,” on the left-hand top, is that in your handwriting, too?

Mr. PRIDDY. I don’t see it. Wait a minute. No, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. Also notice a name on this document, Hardin Exhibit No. 5125, printed, telephone number, and then written No. 19.

Mr. PRIDDY. You mean this printed?

Mr. HUBERT. Yes; that No. 19 there.

Mr. PRIDDY. I can’t tell.

Mr. HUBERT. All right. Now, then, there is on Hardin Exhibit No. 5125, next to the printed item “time called,” a stamped time--and the time stated there is 11:21, November 24. Can you enlighten us as to the meaning of that entry?

Mr. PRIDDY. Whenever I receive a call from the ambulance--from the police department I stick this card in the machine, and it automatically stamps the date and the time that the----

Mr. HUBERT. What kind of machine is that?

Mr. PRIDDY. Just a time machine like a timeclock, except it is made for these.

Mr. HUBERT. You slip a card in there and it automatically stamps the time. You don’t have to hit it?

Mr. PRIDDY. No; you just shove it in there.

Mr. HUBERT. How accurate is that timeclock?

Mr. PRIDDY. Well, it is as accurate as the police department clock. I mean, they are synchronized.

Mr. HUBERT. How are they synchronized and--how often?

Mr. PRIDDY. Don’t know the mechanism. I know a man comes out and they are serviced regularly.

Mr. HUBERT. By the police department?

Mr. PRIDDY. No, by the manufacturer; and I don’t know who that is.

Mr. HUBERT. Do you know how often they are serviced for correction and accuracy?

Mr. PRIDDY. No, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. But, you all rely upon them?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir; we have never had any occasion to question the----

Mr. HUBERT. Tell us what happened about this particular call?

Mr. PRIDDY. Well, I got the call, and I stamped it, and then I was waiting.

Mr. HUBERT. Got the call from whom?

Mr. PRIDDY. From the police department.

Mr. HUBERT. What did you do when you got it?

Mr. PRIDDY. Well, I checked my receipts, the other receipts to see who was clear, see, we have two ambulances there and it turned out that----

Mr. HUBERT. Go ahead.

Mr. PRIDDY. That the ambulance that I dispatched, I don’t remember the name of it--the number, but the one that I dispatched was coming back from veterans hospital, and the--I knew that they were in--thoroughly close to downtown, because I just had had a call from them. They called when they got to the hospital and they were cleared, so, when the police department called I told them that the--there was an ambulance on the air and they dispatched it by----

Mr. HUBERT. Did you tell them that they could reach that ambulance by putting the call?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir; they just, you know--what number was that?

Mr. HUBERT. Call? You mean the car number?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. 605.

Mr. PRIDDY. 605.

Mr. HUBERT. That appears on 5125, and I should ask you, really, what that means?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir; 605.

Mr. HUBERT. You told them to call car 605 because it was on the air, and that means he could be reached by calling him. Did you tell them that was the closest one you could find?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir. Well----

Mr. HUBERT. That is the one you gave, in any case?

Mr. PRIDDY. No--yes, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. And that was the closest one you could find?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. You knew that the people had previously, that is to say, Mike Hardin in car 605, had previously cleared from the veterans hospital stating that he was coming back to O’Neal, and you figured he was en route, and that it would--be quicker to reach him that way, is that correct?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir; I had figured him about to the freeway.

Mr. HUBERT. Now, I notice there is something here also in the--apparently timecard stamp code 6, 11:30, 11-24.

Mr. PRIDDY. That is when he arrived at the hospital.

Mr. HUBERT. How was that received?

Mr. PRIDDY. I monitor all of the police broadcasts while my ambulance is out.

Mr. HUBERT. So, you heard that?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. And you took the card and put it in the machine?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. I notice some empty spaces in between, could you tell us now how that came about?

Mr. PRIDDY. At the time I was monitoring this the telephone was ringing, and people were running in and out, you know, confusion, and I didn’t hear when they left the police station.

Mr. HUBERT. So, therefore, you didn’t stamp it?

Mr. PRIDDY. I didn’t stamp it, that’s right.

Mr. HUBERT. The next thing you did here was the second code 6?

Mr. PRIDDY. This was the arrival at the hospital.

Mr. HUBERT. Arrival at the hospital?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. And therefore, you put that stamp on it?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir; sometimes due to radio interference you are not able to make out who is calling. The police department may, or if they don’t tell, ask again.

Mr. HUBERT. In any case that second time----

Mr. PRIDDY. But, anytime you hear your ambulance you punch the code that he is on; yes, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. You did hear the ambulance call in that he had arrived at----

Mr. PRIDDY. He called in the police department.

Mr. HUBERT. And you overheard that?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. On your monitor?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. And then took the card out and slipped it into the machine and it recorded 11:30?

Mr. PRIDDY. Yes, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. Do you know whose handwriting is on the lower left-hand of that----

Mr. PRIDDY. No, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. Document, Hardin Exhibit No. 5126, next to “Oxygen,” sir?

Mr. PRIDDY. And I didn’t write the 12:30 here where he was clear at 12:30. But that probably doesn’t have any significance.

Mr. HUBERT. All right, sir. Mr. Priddy, have you been interviewed by any member of the Commission’s staff other than myself?

Mr. PRIDDY. No, sir; no one.

Mr. HUBERT. Insofar as the interview with me is concerned, do you consider that everything discussed in the interview has been brought up in this deposition?

Mr. PRIDDY. That I can think of; yes, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. Do you know of anything that was not brought up in this deposition that is material to the general inquiry we had?

Mr. PRIDDY. No, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. Well, sir; I thank you very much.

TESTIMONY OF HUEY REEVES

The testimony of Huey Reeves was taken at 9:15 a.m., on March 27, 1964, in the office of the U.S. attorney, 301 Post Office Building, Bryan and Ervay Streets, Dallas, Tex., by Mr. Leon J. Hubert, Jr., assistant counsel of the President’s Commission.

Mr. HUBERT. Mr. Reeves, my name is Leon J. Hubert. I am a member of the advisory staff of the General Counsel of the President’s Commission under the provisions of Executive Order 11130, dated November 29, 1963, Joint Resolution of Congress 137, under rules of procedure adopted by the Commission in conformance with the Executive order and joint resolution.

I have been authorized to take the sworn deposition from you, Mr. Reeves. I state to you that the general nature of the Commission’s inquiry is to ascertain, evaluate, and report upon the facts relating to the assassination of President Kennedy and the subsequent violent death of Lee Harvey Oswald.

In particular as to you, Mr. Reeves, the nature of the inquiry today is to determine all the facts you know about the death of Oswald and any other pertinent facts you may have about the general inquiry.

Now, Mr. Reeves, I think you are appearing here today by virtue of a request made for you to appear in a letter sent to you by Mr. J. Lee Rankin, General Counsel of the President’s Commission on the assassination of President Kennedy. Do you have that letter?

Mr. REEVES. Yes.

Mr. HUBERT. Would you please state for the record the date that the letter itself bears and the post date of the envelope, if you still have the envelope? First of all, what is the date of the letter?

Mr. REEVES. November 29--no--that’s not it. I don’t see the date on the letter.

Mr. HUBERT. Do you have the other one?

Mr. REEVES. No; I just brought one. It shows here March 23.

Mr. HUBERT. Apparently the letter itself is undated.

Mr. REEVES. Yes; it is undated, but that is when it was--March 23, I believe, 1964.

Mr. HUBERT. Now, you are referring to the Post Office stamp?

Mr. REEVES. Yes; that’s the post stamp.

Mr. HUBERT. That’s the stamp on the envelope itself and what does it show?

Mr. REEVES. It shows March 21.

Mr. HUBERT. From what place?

Mr. REEVES. Washington, D.C.

Mr. HUBERT. When did you receive the letter?

Mr. REEVES. Let’s see--it’s dated about the 22d or 23d.

Mr. HUBERT. What day of this week was it?

Mr. REEVES. Let’s see--just when I got that--Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday--I must have gotten it Monday, I believe.

Mr. HUBERT. You got it Monday?

Mr. REEVES. Yes; I believe.

Mr. HUBERT. Of this week; is that correct?

Mr. REEVES. I believe that’s correct--Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday--it was either Monday or Tuesday--it could be Tuesday.

Mr. HUBERT. In other words, you got it on March 23 or 24, is that right?

Mr. REEVES. Yes, sir; I believe I got it the 23d because I begun to try to get in contact with you the next day and I thought about calling you just as quick as I could, just as quick as I got it, and I noticed on it that it weren’t until the 24th or 27th, I believe.

Mr. HUBERT. So, you got it, you think, last Monday, the 23d?

Mr. REEVES. Oh, no--the 23d--I don’t know when the 23d is, but I believe--this was the 23d--I believe that was it, yes.

Mr. HUBERT. Now, will you stand up and raise your right hand so that I can administer the oath?

Mr. REEVES. [Complies.]

Mr. HUBERT. Do you solemnly swear that you will testify the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God?

Mr. REEVES. Yes.

Mr. HUBERT. Please state your full name.

Mr. REEVES. Huey Moses Reeves.

Mr. HUBERT. Your age?

Mr. REEVES. Age--I was born April 7, 1912.

Mr. HUBERT. Where do you live?

Mr. REEVES. I live at 2903 Reynolds Avenue, Dallas, Tex.

Mr. HUBERT. What is your present occupation?

Mr. REEVES. Allright Auto Park. I am a night boss, night foreman for Allright Systems.

Mr. HUBERT. Where is that located?

Mr. REEVES. It’s on Commerce.

Mr. HUBERT. What is the number?

Mr. REEVES. 1208, but I was at 1320, but they changed me to 1208.

Mr. HUBERT. Is that the same company?

Mr. REEVES. That’s the same company; yes, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. On November 23d, which was a Saturday, where were you working?

Mr. REEVES. Let me see; November 23d, I was working at 1320 Commerce.

Mr. HUBERT. That’s Nichols Garage?

Mr. REEVES. Yes--Nichols Garage.

Mr. HUBERT. What job did you have over there?

Mr. REEVES. I was same--nightman working all night at Nichols Bros., the same as at the other place.

Mr. HUBERT. What were your hours?

Mr. REEVES. I worked from 7 to 7.

Mr. HUBERT. And on November 23, which was Saturday, you worked from 7 o’clock Saturday night until 7 o’clock Sunday morning?

Mr. REEVES. Yes.

Mr. HUBERT. Do you know a nightclub called the Carousel Club?

Mr. REEVES. Yes; it’s right next to where I work.

Mr. HUBERT. Do you know a man by the name of Jack Ruby?

Mr. REEVES. Yes, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. How did you come to know him?

Mr. REEVES. Well, he parked in my place all the time. He was a regular parker, you see, and Nichols Bros. is right there and his club was next to my parking place. He would just drive in and park and go up in his place.

Mr. HUBERT. How long have you known him?

Mr. REEVES. Ever since I have been working there--I don’t know just how long--probably a year and a half--I wouldn’t say--I don’t know just how long--probably a year and a half--I wouldn’t say for sure--but to the best of my knowledge.

Mr. HUBERT. Did you see him every day?

Mr. REEVES. Every night.

Mr. HUBERT. Every night?

Mr. REEVES. Yes, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. Do you know a lady by the name of Karen Bennett--they call her Little Lynn?

Mr. REEVES. Is she a young girl?

Mr. HUBERT. Well, I don’t know her age--she is--I would suppose a young girl.

Mr. REEVES. There’s so many girls--now, if she works up there for Jack Ruby, I know them when I see them, but their names, it seems to me like that little Bennett girl may have been the one that fainted one night.

Mr. HUBERT. Down in Ruby’s place?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; in our lobby room. She came out of Jack Ruby’s place.

Mr. HUBERT. When was that?

Mr. REEVES. It was before Jack Ruby done that--before.

Mr. HUBERT. Yes; but how long before?

Mr. REEVES. Oh, it was probably a month or two--I wouldn’t know for sure, because I wasn’t keeping up with the dates, you know. I guess they told me her name--she’s from Fort Worth, I believe. There are so many girls work up there for him. A lot of them park down in the place there but I just remember them--the face, but not the name.

Mr. HUBERT. Do you remember getting a phone call from Jack Ruby on the night of Saturday, November 23?

Mr. REEVES. Yes, sir; I guess it’s that same girl--he called me to give $5 to her, I believe.

Mr. HUBERT. About what time was it; do you remember?

Mr. REEVES. Probably 9 o’clock, something like that.

Mr. HUBERT. Now, tell us exactly what happened about that?

Mr. REEVES. Well, she called Jack over the phone and wanted some money and Jack said, “Well, I can’t come down right now.”

Mr. HUBERT. How do you know what he said?

Mr. REEVES. Well, that’s what he told me to do.

Mr. HUBERT. Who told you to do that? He told you to do that?

Mr. REEVES. Yes.

Mr. HUBERT. Just tell us what she said and what you could hear her say over the phone?

Mr. REEVES. Well, I don’t remember her saying anything.

Mr. HUBERT. Did she call from your place?

Mr. REEVES. Yes, well, you see my office phone is in this office and she was in the next phone--the pay phone.

Mr. HUBERT. I see.

Mr. REEVES. And then--let me see, now, I believe she called Jack to borrow some money and then Jack called me.

Mr. HUBERT. Now, how do you know that she called him to borrow some money. Did she tell you so or did you overhear this?

Mr. REEVES. He talked to me.

Mr. HUBERT. When she was making the call on the telephone, you didn’t know who she was calling?

Mr. REEVES. No.

Mr. HUBERT. But you do know she made a phone call?

Mr. REEVES. Yes.

Mr. HUBERT. And after the phone call did she tell you anything?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; she didn’t say anything--Jack told me.

Mr. HUBERT. Wait a minute, she didn’t say anything to you after she made the phone call?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. You didn’t know who she was calling?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. Was she with anybody?

Mr. REEVES. I don’t remember whether her husband was with her or not. Let’s see, I didn’t think about having to go through this--I don’t just remember whether her husband--it seems to me like her husband was with her.

Mr. HUBERT. Was there a man with her?

Mr. REEVES. There was a man with her, and I think it was her husband.

Mr. HUBERT. Were you introduced to her?

Mr. REEVES. No; I wasn’t introduced to her--I seen the boy claiming to be her husband--he’s parked in there when she worked up there--he would get out of the car, you know, never did ask anybody their names. I just run the parking lot. I think her husband’s name is Bruce. I’ve heard some of them call him Bruce.

Mr. HUBERT. Do you know what his last name is?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; I don’t.

Mr. HUBERT. What happened after that?

Mr. REEVES. Jack told me to let her have $5.

Mr. HUBERT. You said Jack told you that?

Mr. REEVES. He said this--correct.

Mr. HUBERT. Did she come over into your office?

Mr. REEVES. She was already on the phone, I believe, or he may have called me--I don’t remember whether I called or she had phoned, and anyway he said to let her have $5, and now, I think, he said he would bring me down the money and make her sign a receipt, which I did.

Mr. HUBERT. You don’t know whether or not you just got on the same phone she was talking on or whether Ruby called you separately; is that right?

Mr. REEVES. I don’t remember--it seems to me like he called me separately on my phone. You see, this is a little distance--he would call me after he would get home and tell me to go see if he locked his door in the club--he thought he might have left it open.

Mr. HUBERT. What did he say when he called again?

Mr. REEVES. To take this $5 and let the girl--I can’t think of her name--but let the girl have the $5 and have the girl sign a receipt and I did, and he came and gave me the $5 and he picked up the receipt.

Mr. HUBERT. How do you know you were talking to Jack Ruby?

Mr. REEVES. Yes--well, I knew his voice.

Mr. HUBERT. You have talked to him on the phone?

Mr. REEVES. Yes; lots of time.

Mr. HUBERT. Well, you thought it was Jack Ruby, now, did he tell you--he said he was Jack Ruby?

Mr. REEVES. Yes.

Mr. HUBERT. You have no doubt you were speaking to Jack Ruby?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; no doubt but what it was him at all--no.

Mr. HUBERT. That was the extent of your conversation?

Mr. REEVES. Yes, just the $5--let her have $5 because he wasn’t ready to come down, and I let her have the $5 and made her sign her name, just like he said, and he got in a little bit later and gave me $5 and took the receipt.

Mr. HUBERT. What kind of a receipt was it?

Mr. REEVES. Just a little piece of paper.

Mr. HUBERT. Did you date it?

Mr. REEVES. Yes; I believe I did.

Mr. HUBERT. Do you remember whether you put a time stamp on it or not?

Mr. REEVES. I don’t believe I did--I don’t think so.

Mr. HUBERT. Do you have a timeclock there?

Mr. REEVES. Yes.

Mr. HUBERT. You just slip in a piece of paper and it automatically notes the time of day?

Mr. REEVES. Yes, just a piece of paper you put in there, and it stamps the time on it, but I don’t remember whether I did it or not on this--it was a piece of paper.

Mr. HUBERT. She signed it?

Mr. REEVES. Yes, she signed her name.

Mr. HUBERT. And, this was the receipt--do you remember what it said?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; I believe I just said “Received $5--by Jack Ruby” or “Received $5” and let her put her name--I don’t remember whether I put Jack Ruby’s name upon that or not.

Mr. HUBERT. And that’s the record of it?

Mr. REEVES. Yes, that’s the record.

Mr. HUBERT. What time was that?

Mr. REEVES. It was probably about 9 or 9:30--I don’t remember exactly.

Mr. HUBERT. I think you said a moment ago that sometime after that Ruby came in?

Mr. REEVES. Yes, he came in--it was probably 30 minutes or an hour or something like that; I don’t remember.

Mr. HUBERT. All right, tell us what happened then?

Mr. REEVES. Well, he just came in and says, “Here’s your $5,” and he never did anything about the receipt and I handed him the receipt, just like I said.

Mr. HUBERT. What did he do with the receipt?

Mr. REEVES. I imagine he put it in his pocket.

Mr. HUBERT. You didn’t see him put it in his pocket?

Mr. REEVES. No, I didn’t see him--I wasn’t paying any attention.

Mr. HUBERT. What was his condition when he came in that night?

Mr. REEVES. Not paying no attention to Jack Ruby--I didn’t pay him attention--no attention to him, walking around in my place or coming into my office then--I was busy and didn’t pay no attention to him. You know, he’s in there all the time parking his car, and when he come out of his club lots of times he would walk around and into the office and talk to them that way, and he would say a few words, and if he went out for sandwiches he would always ask us if we needed any sandwiches or drinks or anything like that. He was an awful nice fellow--awful nice.

Mr. HUBERT. Did you notice whether he seemed to be crying or upset about anything that night?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; I didn’t--I didn’t pay any attention to him, but he seemed like--too, you see, I was in the office now, and the guy’s lounge was back in here.

Mr. HUBERT. Whose lounge--what lounge?

Mr. REEVES. The lounge in the office, and then the Saturday morning, it seemed like, too, he would go back in the waiting room and prance--walk around more than usual, but he always did walk around--he had hard heels on, and you could hear him walking when he would come out of his club. I would be sitting in the office, maybe figuring up my back receipts, and I would hear him tapping those heels and I would say, “It’s Jack Ruby, because he is coming out of his club.”

Mr. HUBERT. You say this night he was walking a little bit more than usual?

Mr. REEVES. Yes; it seemed like he was a little bit more restless.

Mr. HUBERT. Did you talk to him?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; I didn’t pay any attention--I never thought much about it, you know.

Mr. HUBERT. Could you tell whether he was crying?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; I really didn’t pay any attention to him.

Mr. HUBERT. The only thing you noticed about his general conduct that night that was different from other nights was that he seemed to be walking around a little bit more?

Mr. REEVES. It seemed like he was a little bit more restless or something, and I believe that night, too, he had his club closed. I believe that sign--I believe he had a sign, if I remember, I really wasn’t interested in his club. I had a pretty good job working for Allright--it’s a pretty busy place, but it seemed to me like he had it closed. I believe he did.

Mr. HUBERT. Had you talked to Ruby earlier that day or seen him?

Mr. REEVES. Let’s see, I came to work at 7; it seemed to me like that Ruby was there when I got there. It seemed like he drove up and then he left and then came back, it seemed like, and that’s when he must have went home and this girl called him and then he was at home and he wasn’t ready yet. It seemed like he told me he was waiting on a call or something from somebody or something and he told the girl he wasn’t ready to come down, or he told me he wasn’t ready to give her the $5, you see, and he told me to give her the $5 and to make out a receipt.

Mr. HUBERT. And have you to give it to her?

Mr. REEVES. I had given her the $5 for him and I knew it was good because he always paid me back if he owed me any parking--he always paid it.

Mr. HUBERT. Had you ever paid any employees money like that?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; that there was the only one.

Mr. HUBERT. While you were on the phone with him, did he tell you that he was at home?

Mr. REEVES. Let’s see, I don’t believe he said where he was. He just said he had an appointment or had a caller.

Mr. HUBERT. But you didn’t call him?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. Either he called you or you got on the phone?

Mr. REEVES. Yes, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. When the girl had been talking to him?

Mr. REEVES. Or he called me, you know, I don’t remember just exactly.

Mr. HUBERT. But you are certain he didn’t tell you he was at home?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; he didn’t say where he was.

Mr. HUBERT. You did get the impression that he was?

Mr. REEVES. Yes; that’s right, just my impression he was at home.

Mr. HUBERT. Do you know what that impression is based on?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. Is it on anything he said?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; he didn’t say anything about where he was.

Mr. HUBERT. But he did say he couldn’t come because he was waiting for a call?

Mr. REEVES. He was either waiting for a call or wasn’t ready or something to come down, I believe is what he said.

Mr. HUBERT. What time did he leave, you say, just about the time you came on?

Mr. REEVES. I believe he went away about the time I came to work, I believe he did.

Mr. HUBERT. You saw him when he left, then?

Mr. REEVES. Yes; you see his car is parked there all the time, right in front or his side by his club, that was in parking.

Mr. HUBERT. So, about 7 or shortly thereafter he left the garage?

Mr. REEVES. I sort of believe he did.

Mr. HUBERT. And the next time you saw him was when he came back in just about a half hour or so after you gave the $5 to this girl?

Mr. REEVES. Yes; and he brought my $5 back.

Mr. HUBERT. Do you remember when he left after that?

Mr. REEVES. It seems to me he fooled around in the lobby, in the back waiting room there a while and pranced around or walked around and drove off--where he went from there, I don’t know.

Mr. HUBERT. Did you see him any more that day?

Mr. REEVES. Let’s see, it seems to me he came back down there that night and fooled around the lobby.

Mr. HUBERT. Did he park his car?

Mr. REEVES. You see, he always parked his own car--we didn’t park his.

Mr. HUBERT. He had a special spot there?

Mr. REEVES. Yes; he had a special spot there. We could move it up and down, because he would leave his key, and we could move it up and down as we had to move it in parking, but it seemed to me like he left again to go--he was going home, and I told Mack, the colored man that worked for me, I said, “That looked like Jack Ruby’s car that went up the street.” You see, I sit on Commerce Street and I can tell every car that passed if I just wanted to look out, and it seemed to me, I told Mack that that looked like Jack Ruby’s car that went back up the street, up Commerce.

Mr. HUBERT. He didn’t have to check in with you to get his car out?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; he was a monthly parker, he paid by the month. When his car was parked there, nobody fooled with it, because he was a monthly parker. You see, the drive came in this way [indicating] for all the ticket cars, and over here on the side, was his parking place. Of course, we might park two or three in front of his, but sometimes we would move his if a boy had to sweep or something, we would have to move his car up and down and back and forth.

Mr. HUBERT. What time was it, about, that you saw him leave again and made a comment to that effect to the colored boy?

Mr. REEVES. It seems to me like when he left he said, “I’m going home,” and I told Mack, it looked to me Jack Ruby was going back up the street and he said he was going home when he left, and, told me earlier, “Boy, I’m going home.”

Mr. HUBERT. You say usually he went out to his room in Oak Cliff?

Mr. REEVES. And I told the boys, “That looked like Jack Ruby’s car that went back up the street.” That might not have been him--there’s lots of cars that looks like that, but that’s what I told Mack Jones, the colored man there.

Mr. HUBERT. What time was that?

Mr. REEVES. It was probably 9:30 or 10 or maybe 10 or over, I wouldn’t say for sure, but I would just sort of estimate the time.

Mr. HUBERT. That was after he had given you the $5 back?

Mr. REEVES. Yes.

Mr. HUBERT. So, he didn’t stay in the club very long?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; I don’t remember him ever going up in the club that night. I don’t think he even went up in the club.

Mr. HUBERT. In other words, he just came and gave you the $5, picked up the receipt and left pretty quick?

Mr. REEVES. Yes; it seemed to me like he came back again and fooled around in the lobby lots--he would come back and fool around at the garage and my colored man was a good friend of his and he always talked a lot to Jack Ruby--he talked to him and I was a good friend to him, too, on account of that.

Mr. HUBERT. Did you see him any more than that?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; that’s the last time I have seen him.

Mr. HUBERT. The last time you have seen him?

Mr. REEVES. Yes; I believe so.

Mr. HUBERT. You didn’t see him Sunday morning before you went off duty, did you?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; I sure didn’t.

Mr. HUBERT. Did you see him earlier on Saturday, the day after the President was shot?

Mr. REEVES. Saturday after the President was shot?

Mr. HUBERT. Of course, you were off on Saturday morning until 7 that night?

Mr. REEVES. Yes; I am off in the daytime--I’m just there at night--I couldn’t tell you whether I saw him.

Mr. HUBERT. Did you see him on Friday night during your shift, which ran from 7, November 22, Friday night, to 7 o’clock Saturday morning, November 22–23, 1963?

Mr. REEVES. I can’t recall that in there so much. I wouldn’t want to say for sure whether I seen him or not.

Mr. HUBERT. Do you remember his making any comment to you on--about the shooting of the President?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; no, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. Do you know a man by the name of Andy Armstrong?

Mr. REEVES. Yes.

Mr. HUBERT. Who is he?

Mr. REEVES. He is a colored man that worked for Jack Ruby.

Mr. HUBERT. How long had he been there, do you know?

Mr. REEVES. I think he was there--I think when he came there--it was probably a year and a half or something like that.

Mr. HUBERT. Have you talked to him since Ruby was arrested on November 24?

Mr. REEVES. I probably have. He worked, you know, running the club, but I never did have anything to do with him. You see, I was always so busy.

Mr. HUBERT. How did you know he was running the club?

Mr. REEVES. Well, he worked up in the club, I would see him up in the club and the girls all parked right down there with me, and he worked up in the club. They claimed he was sort of the guy that run it.

Mr. HUBERT. You mean after Ruby was arrested or before?

Mr. REEVES. After.

Mr. HUBERT. You never did talk to the man about the shooting on the 22d?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; none.

Mr. HUBERT. Andy Armstrong?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. Do you know a man by the name of Ralph Paul?

Mr. REEVES. Yes.

Mr. HUBERT. How long have you known him?

Mr. REEVES. I have known him when I seen him; he parked in there, too, and would go to Jack Ruby’s place.

Mr. HUBERT. How often would he go, do you know?

Mr. REEVES. Sometimes he would come in there, say two or three times a week.

Mr. HUBERT. Did he park by the month?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; a ticket on the car.

Mr. HUBERT. And how long would he stay?

Mr. REEVES. Sometimes he would come and stay 3 or 4 hours.

Mr. HUBERT. That was two or three times a week?

Mr. REEVES. Something like that.

Mr. HUBERT. Have you ever talked to him since November 24?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; the only thing is, when he pays the ticket, I get his car for him.

Mr. HUBERT. But you have never talked to him about Ruby since November 24?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; I don’t believe he ever mentioned to me about it.

Mr. HUBERT. Do you know a man by the name of George Senator?

Mr. REEVES. Yes; I have seen that man there, too.

Mr. HUBERT. Did he park his car in there?

Mr. REEVES. Yes; he has parked in there, too; he worked for Jack some.

Mr. HUBERT. Was he on a monthly basis?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; a ticket car.

Mr. HUBERT. Would you describe him for us?

Mr. REEVES. George?

Mr. HUBERT. Yes.

Mr. REEVES. Well, he’s sort of a heavy set--a pretty big heavy set man, I guess, about 5 feet 8 inches tall, or something like that, and weighs probably 175 to 180 pounds, a pretty good size man.

Mr. HUBERT. Bald headed, or slightly bald?

Mr. REEVES. I believe he’s got pretty good hair on his head.

Mr. HUBERT. Did you ever notice any limp on him?

Mr. REEVES. Limp?

Mr. HUBERT. Limp--yes.

Mr. REEVES. No, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. Did Ralph Paul have a limp?

Mr. REEVES. I don’t believe he did. I don’t believe he limped--no, sir; not as I know of. Well, Paul broke his foot after all that happened, but you know, he went around in a cast on his foot with crutches for a while.

Mr. HUBERT. Well, when was that?

Mr. REEVES. That’s since, you know, all that happened.

Mr. HUBERT. That was after the 24th?

Mr. REEVES. Yes; he broke his foot; I don’t know how it happened.

Mr. HUBERT. Have you ever talked to George Senator about Ruby since the 24th of November?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; I don’t believe he’s been in my place since then. I don’t believe he has.

Mr. HUBERT. Do you know a man by the name of Larry Crafard?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; I don’t believe I know him--no, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. I will show you some pictures of a man, there are several of them there in different poses, and I would like for you to look at them.

Mr. REEVES. [Examining pictures referred to.] Yes, I have seen this guy there at Jack’s place. He worked for Jack some.

Mr. HUBERT. Let the record show that the witness is examining five photographs of different poses.

Mr. REEVES. Let’s see, I believe this is the same guy that worked--let’s see some of these--I don’t know for sure, but I believe it is the same one, too, I believe. All of these look like the same man to me, do they to you?

Mr. HUBERT. They are all five different poses.

Mr. REEVES. They look like the same man.

Mr. HUBERT. Yes. These are all five different poses of Curtis Laverne Crafard, taken on November 28, 1963, by the FBI and forwarded recently to the Commission.

Mr. REEVES. He stayed up there with Jack Ruby some.

Mr. HUBERT. Now, you identified this man as a man you know?

Mr. REEVES. Well, I don’t exactly know him--he worked for Jack Ruby and he would come down to the window and chat with me--right.

Mr. HUBERT. Did you know his name?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. Did you know his full name?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; I don’t ever remember his name.

Mr. HUBERT. How long did he work for Jack?

Mr. REEVES. Well, I would see him up there and when Jack would leave, he would leave him in his place to guard it, guard his place.

Mr. HUBERT. How do you know that?

Mr. REEVES. Well, I have seen him leave with Jack Ruby and Ralph Paul and go off with them in the car, you know, at night, after they closed the place up. I think they called it going to eat or something. I have seen him leave with them two or three times in the car.

Mr. HUBERT. Did you say he slept there?

Mr. REEVES. Yes; he stayed in the place.

Mr. HUBERT. How do you know that?

Mr. REEVES. Well, I would see him go close the door and go up in there and go over to the Eatwell Cafe and hang around maybe an hour or so and go up there and lock the door.

Mr. HUBERT. Did you figure he was staying there?

Mr. REEVES. Right.

Mr. HUBERT. Did he ever tell you that?

Mr. REEVES. It looked like he was working for Jack Ruby.

Mr. HUBERT. Did he ever tell you that?

Mr. REEVES. Yes, that he was living upstairs--yes, staying there.

Mr. HUBERT. How long did he stay up in there?

Mr. REEVES. It seemed to me he stayed there a couple of weeks or something like that.

Mr. HUBERT. When was the last time you saw him?

Mr. REEVES. It seems to me he disappeared--well, he disappeared. I never did know any more of him--I don’t know whether Jack fired him or he just walked off. You know how it is around one of them garages--I just seen him there and see people.

Mr. HUBERT. Did you see him during your night shift from 7 o’clock on Friday, November 22, that’s the date the President was shot, until the end of your shift at 7 o’clock the next morning?

Mr. REEVES. November 23d? Yes.

Mr. HUBERT. I’m talking about the man whose picture you just looked at.

Mr. REEVES. I don’t believe I did--I don’t believe I seen him around there during that time.

Mr. HUBERT. Did you see him and Ruby in the early hours of the 23d, Saturday, say about 3 or 5 o’clock in the morning?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; I don’t believe I did--no, sir. I don’t think I seen him.

Mr. HUBERT. Did you see Ruby that morning, I’m talking about the shift that runs from 7 o’clock on Friday to 7 o’clock Saturday morning?

Mr. REEVES. Let’s see--what date was that?

Mr. HUBERT. It would have been the 22d and the 23d, that was the night of and the morning after the President was shot.

Mr. REEVES. No, sir. Let’s see, I may have seen Jack--I don’t remember seeing this boy. I may have seen Jack.

Mr. HUBERT. Do you remember Jack parking his car there early Saturday morning the 23d?

Mr. REEVES. Saturday morning the 23d?

Mr. HUBERT. Before you got off, maybe 2 or 3 hours before you got off?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; I don’t think so. He never did come in that early--before I got off--I don’t think so. Most of the time he came in would be, I think, about 8 o’clock at night and maybe when he closed up was 1 or 1:30 and he would maybe go off and eat and he might run back to see if he locked his door. Sometimes he would call me and have me to hold the phone while I ran in there to see if his door was locked, and I would come back and tell him his door was locked.

Mr. HUBERT. You say it just looked like Larry had taken off?

Mr. REEVES. Well, I seen him going in and out of the place there all of the time--I just missed him. I was not trying to keep up with him--I just missed him. I was not trying to keep up with him, but I just missed him.

Mr. HUBERT. Do you remember when you missed him?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir.

Mr. HUBERT. Did anybody tell you he had gone?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; didn’t nobody tell me.

Mr. HUBERT. Do you remember the last time you saw him?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; I couldn’t say for sure the last time I seen him. I think he stayed there a week or 2--I don’t remember--it might be 3 weeks--I don’t remember. Sometimes he would come in, he was a pretty friendly boy, and he would come there and wave at me and I am pretty friendly too and I would see him when he was working up there for Jack Ruby and maybe I would wave to him when he came out and sometimes he would come over there and talk to me at the ticket window while I was cashing tickets and chat with him a few times, but I don’t remember him ever telling me his name or anything, but he was a peculiar acting kind of a boy.

Mr. HUBERT. In what way?

Mr. REEVES. The way he would sort of bat his eyes like that when he would talk and get around real fast when he would take off up the street. He would walk real fast, you know, and all at once he would just take off and go through the Adolphus Hotel lobby, is what I mean. He claimed he had a girl friend over there--I don’t know who it was.

Mr. HUBERT. Where?

Mr. REEVES. Over there at the Eatwell Cafe--some girl was meeting him over there.

Mr. HUBERT. He told you that?

Mr. REEVES. Yes, he said, “I’ve got to go, I’ve got to meet a girl over at the Eatwell.”

Mr. HUBERT. Did you ever see him with a girl?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; I never seen him with a girl.

Mr. HUBERT. Where is the Eatwell place?

Mr. REEVES. It’s on Main Street, right in front of Nichols Brothers. You go through the lobby of the hotel--I call it a lobby, I always say lobby, but it is just a car drive, and you run into Main Street and it is up two or three doors, and it’s the Eatwell Cafe. It stays open all night.

Mr. HUBERT. It’s on Main Street?

Mr. REEVES. Yes.

Mr. HUBERT. Did he tell you that the girl worked there, or that he was just meeting her there?

Mr. REEVES. He said he was going to meet her. I don’t know whether she worked there or was just meeting him there, I just don’t know. He said, “I’ve got to go and meet her.” I would talk to him a few times--he was friendly--he would say, “I’ve got to go and meet a girl.” Whether he has one--he seemed to be sort of a windy guy in talking.

Mr. HUBERT. Did that happen once or more than once?

Mr. REEVES. I believe once or twice--I would say probably a couple of times.

Mr. HUBERT. Did anybody tell you he just took off and left?

Mr. REEVES. No, sir; nobody didn’t say anything. I just seen him working, because Jack had a lot of boys like that working for him. He had one boy that worked before this time for him, a Jewish-looking boy, a stocky-looking boy. The fact of the business is, Jack and him had a little trouble, and when they were having trouble up in the place, they came down to where I could see him out in front.

Mr. HUBERT. Who was having trouble?

Mr. REEVES. This boy--I don’t know his name.

Mr. HUBERT. You mean the Jewish-looking boy?

Mr. REEVES. He was a Jewish looking--little short type guy, and Jack--they was having trouble and Jack went up in the club and he came down and I heard the boy say, “I’m going to go get a gun and kill Jack Ruby,” and when Jack come back down, I told Jack, I said, “Go back there and hide somewhere, he’s got a gun and he’s going to kill you,” and Jack raised the turtle shell of his car there in the parking lot and got his gun out and he went up to that whisky store and hit him across the head with it.

Mr. HUBERT. What whisky store?

Mr. REEVES. Right there up at the corner.