THE WHITE HOUSE SECRET SERVICE DETAIL UNDER PRESIDENT KENNEDY AND SOME IMPORTANT RELATED AGENTS FROM FIELD OFFICES +

THE WHITE HOUSE SECRET SERVICE DETAIL UNDER PRESIDENT KENNEDY AND SOME IMPORTANT RELATED AGENTS FROM FIELD OFFICES +

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTUWgdIaLFQ

Yet another bad review of "The Kennedy Detail"

1.0 out of 5 stars They let the president die, July 29, 2012

By Peter Carlsson (Sweden) - See all my reviews

(REAL NAME) This review is from: The Kennedy Detail: JFK's Secret Service Agents Break Their Silence (Paperback)

The Secret Service let Kennedy be murdered, and now they are trying to blame it on him. Bad book, bad lies. And a bad way to make a buck, or thousands of them.

My review of "Walking With Presidents: Stories From Inside The Perimeter" (2008) by Mike Endicott

4.0 out of 5 stars Between a 3 and a 4----3 and a half?, March 5, 2012
By Vince Palamara "SECRET SERVICE/JFK/STEELERS/M... (South Park/Bethel Park, PA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME) This review is from: Walking With Presidents: Stories From Inside The Perimeter (Paperback)
As the leading literary Secret Service expert (civilian), I modestly recommend this book from esteemed former Secret Service Agent Mike Endicott, a name familiar to readers of former President Richard Nixon's book "In The Arena", as well as former Secret Service Agent (and Endicott colleague) Marty Venker's book "Confessions of an Ex-Secret Service Agent" (written with George Rush), as well as a book I am mentioned in on several occasions, Philip Melanson's book "The Secret Service: The Hidden History of an Enigmatic Agency." While the book contains several typos (a minor point in the big scheme of things, as Endicott's book is self-published) and ends abruptly, albeit after 519 pages, I found the work to be more or less of value and interest for those with an eye towards presidential history (especially with regard to Nixon)and the Secret Service.

To his credit, Endicott names names (of many former colleagues) but does not give the game away (agency protective secrets), while mostly staying away from any tawdry or gossip-oriented anecdoctes. This is refeshing in this day and age of tabloid press and "tell all" books. That said, it is exasperating how Endicott ends the book---no post-1986 stories: the death of Nixon, how his career came to an end, etc. I cannot help but feel this was a "hazard"---a mistake?---from self publishing and many more pages---perhaps whole chapters---were inadvertently excised.

Keeping these factors into sharp focus, Endicott does admirably, albeit dryly, cover the period from 1965 (when he entered the Secret Service) until 1986 (when the book comes to a screeching halt). All told, Endicott visited over 100 countries, as well as all 50 states in America, protecting Spiro Agnew, Nelson Rockefeller, Walter Mondale, Dwight Eisenhower, Lady Bird & Lyndon Johnson, Edmund Muskie, Ronald Reagan, Henry Kissinger, and, of course, Richard Nixon. I found most of the stories and anecdotes fairly fascinating and well told, although some of the Kissiner-related material became a tad long-winded.

Interesting details abound: Endicott was urged to join the Secret Service via his first wife's father Fred Nagle, an agent who we know (from reading Darwin Horn's book "Dar's Story") later left the agency in disgrace; brushing shoulders and working with a number of agents who protected JFK and/ or LBJ: Larry Newman, Paul Rundle, James Rowley, Jim Goodenough, Ernie Olsson, Brooks Keller (an agent made "infamous" via books by the aforementioned Venker and Dennis McCarthy), Ron Pontius, Bill Livingood(later the Sgt at Arms of the House of Representatives, Clinton-Obama), Bob Taylor, Bill Duncan, Dick Keiser, John Simpson, P. Hamilton Brown, Elmer Moore, Jimmy Johnson, Jack Ready, Ned Hall II, Bill Bacherman, James Cantrell, James "Mike" Mastrovito, David Grant, and Chuck Zboril; working with other noteworthy agents such as future Director Ralph Basham, Karen Toll, Marty Venker, Jerry Parr, Dick Lefler, Don Stebbins (later Executive Secretary of the AFAUSSS), Grady Askew, Chuck Rochner, and Larry Sheafe.

Ultimately, I would assess the book somewhere between a 3 (good) to a 4 (very good). That said, do not hesitate to get this if you are a Secret Service "buff" or someone who is interested in the true accounts of several prominent people in U.S. (and world) history. Mike Endicott seems like a good guy, too---thank you, sir, for your service to our country.

Tom Behl, John Lardner, George Chaney, Larry Hess, Talmadge Bailey, Dale Wunderlich, Louis Mayo, Bill Skiles, Sam Sulliman, David Ray, Frank Yeager, Andy Berger, Gerald Bechtle: obits+

Tom Behl, John Lardner, George Chaney, Larry Hess, Talmadge Bailey, Dale Wunderlich, Louis Mayo, Bill Skiles, Sam Sulliman, David Ray, Frank Yeager, Andy Berger, Gerald Bechtle: obits+

Archive for Monday, October 21, 2002
Gila County names Tom Behl Day, Oct. 24
October 21, 2002

For eight-and-a-half years, Tom Behl has dedicated his days to Gila County's children.

And now that he's retiring from that service, the Gila County Board of Supervisors has dedicated a day Oct. 24 to Tom Behl.

In declaring Tom Behl Day in Gila County, the supervisors called upon "all citizens, community agencies, religious organizations, medical facilities, and businesses to recognize outstanding and consistent advocation for the best interest of children, thereby strengthening the communities in which we live."

In other words, appreciate residents like Behl, who's been working as a volunteer within Gila County's Court Appointed Special Advocate program, better known as CASA, since he first discovered it in 1994.

Since that time, Behl has served on 23 cases and advocated for 44 children.

"In each instance, Mr. Behl has made a difference that will be with (the children) always," said Ceceille Masters-Webb, coordinator of Arizona CASA. "One gets the impression that it has been a mutually rewarding relationship for Mr. Behl and the children."

This isn't the first time in his life that Behl has made a difference.

A former Secret Service agent, he once stood guard over vice presidents Spiro Agnew and Hubert Humphrey, and briefly both John Fitzgerald Kennedys, among many others.

"Mr. Behl's experience was an excellent basis for investigating the best interest of the children he served and writing court reports," Masters-Webb said, noting that Behl has also worked as a volunteer in the Payson Area Habitat for Humanity program, and is a member of the board of directors for Payson's Community Action program.

But it's Behl's relentless promotion, support and volunteer work for CASA that's earned this 13-year Payson resident his own day.

"When children become wards of the court, the court can assign a CASA to that child or children," he explained in a January 2000, interview. "Our duties and responsibilities are to be that child's representative in court, and to let the court know what's in the best interest of the child. Not what's in the best interest of anybody else. Just the child's."

Once a court order was issued, Behl spent time with the children and their parents, interviewed their teachers and doctors, and prepared written reports to the judge recommending that the child either be returned to the parents or, at the other extreme, severance and adoption of the child.

"As you can imagine, making decisions like that is quite a responsibility," Behl said almost three years ago. "But ... with my background, it's a natural as far as volunteer work goes."

"It's pretty nice, pretty nice (to have his own day)," Behl said Monday afternoon. "I think I kind of surprised everyone when I announced I was retiring, and now I'm surprised by everything that's happening."

And what will Tom Behl be doing on Tom Behl Day?

"Well, I guess I'll be at Mario's Restaurant at 11:30 a.m. for a little luncheon and a little recognition," he said, laughing.

The luncheon may be little. But the recognition will be huge.
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John Joseph Lardner, former Secret Service agent
John Joseph Lardner guarded President Kennedy on a winter day, with his right hand — and his trigger finger — exposed.

By J.M. Lawrence
Globe Correspondent / December 1, 2010

When John F. Kennedy was inaugurated in 1961, Secret Service agent John Joseph Lardner rode behind him on Pennsylvania Avenue. He was proud to be a kid from Lowell who grew up to guard the president, he told his family.

Tweet Be the first to Tweet this!0diggsdiggYahoo! Buzz ShareThis There was little else he ever shared about those Kennedy years. “There’s a reason we’re called the Secret Service,’’ Mr. Lardner would often tell his nephew, Michael Walsh of Bedford, N.H.

Mr. Lardner, a US Marine Corps captain who was a Secret Service agent from 1959 to his retirement in 1983 as special agent in charge of Rhode Island and Bristol County, died of a heart attack at his home in Easton Nov. 19.

He was 80.

“My dad lived his life by the Marine Corps code,’’ God, corps, and country, said his oldest daughter, Kristin M. Brown of East Sandwich.

“It was just the way his life was.’’

Mr. Lardner would never discuss his assignment on the day Kennedy was shot or say whether he was in Dallas.

“He would never tell,’’ his daughter said.

“He had strong opinions about the assassination, but it was very difficult for him to talk about. He was never a man at a loss for words, but it was the one subject you just couldn’t approach him about.’’

Following the assassination, Mr. Lardner was assigned to the detail guarding Jacqueline Kennedy and her children. His family said they believe Mrs. Kennedy personally requested him.

After his sudden death, his daughter began sorting through his personal papers and found thank you notes from Mrs. Kennedy and jokes in the agent’s old spiral bound notebook jotted by a young Caroline Kennedy.

In one old photo, Mr. Lardner walks behind the president as he leaves a hospital pushing Mrs. Kennedy in a wheelchair. A nurse carries newborn John Jr.

In another photo, Mr. Lardner stands next to President Kennedy on a winter day. The agent wears one glove on his left hand, leaving his right hand — and his trigger finger — exposed.

Born in the Bronx, Mr. Lardner was the only son of a brick mason John and a nurse, Mary (Corcoran), who emigrated from County Kerry, Ireland. His sister Eileen died in 2009.

Mr. Lardner graduated in 1949 from Lowell High, where he played football.

He became an apprentice brick mason under his father and grandfather while going to Northeastern University. He graduated with a degree in business in 1954 and joined the Marines.

He was married more than 35 years to Karen M. (Buchwald). They met at a pub in Boston in the 1970s when she was a nurse. They had three children. His daughter Kristin recalled reveling at the sight of her father’s dress uniform.

“He would have me lead the charge through the house with my brothers and sisters in marching cadence. ‘Over hill over dale, we will hit the dusty trail . . .’ I can sing the entire song to his day,’’ said Kristin, who is a paramedic.

Mr. Lardner started out in the forgery and counterfeit department of the Secret Service before he was assigned to presidential details.

Mr. Lardner, who was known as Jack, showed little interest in his former colleague Gerald Blaine’s just published book, “The Kennedy Detail: JFK’s Secret Service Agents Break Their Silence,’’ according to his family.

“I said, Jack you’re not going to buy the book? He said, ‘Mike, there’s a reason why we were called the Secret Service,’ ’’ his nephew said.

“I said man, oh, man, that’s old school talking.’’

Mr. Lardner also was a life-long Republican and supported Republican candidates in Massachusetts, including Senator Scott Brown.

“The only time I saw him cry in the 33 years I knew him was the day President Reagan died,’’ said his daughter. “He adored him.’’

Mr. Lardner was active in local government in Easton, where he was on the Finance Committee for several years. He was an avid tennis player and an expert skier.

In recent years, he enjoyed investing in the stock market and sharing stock tips with his family. However, he would never talk about substantial topics over cordless phones, his nephew said.

“He would always say, ‘Are you hardwired?’ He was very careful of what he would say on a telephone,’’ Michael said.

In addition to his oldest daughter and wife, Mr. Lardner leaves his son, J. Adam of Easton; another daughter, Kerry A. of Truro; and five grandchildren.

Services have been held.
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George Washington Chaney |

Chaney, George W. George Washington Chaney, left this world August 14, 2011 to be with our Lord. He died peacefully at home with his loving wife of 51 years, Margaret "Toddy", by his side. George was born June 12, 1925 in San Antonio, Texas to Thomas and Lillie Chaney. Following high school George enlisted in the U.S. Navy and served for three years during World War II. He continued to serve our country through a long and productive career in the U.S. Secret Service. His posts included President Eisenhower's Protective Detail in Gettysburg, PA, Assistant Agent in Charge of personnel in Washington, D.C., Special Agent in the Dallas Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge of the El Paso Field Office. He retired from the Secret Service in 1977 and began his second career as a questioned document examiner and owner of Lewis & Associates, formerly owned by retired agent Roy Lewis. After 22 years George retired a second time to spend more time with his family and church at Park Cities Baptist. At church he was active in the adult Sunday School class, serving as Department Superintendent for many years. George never met a stranger, saw good in everyone, and the gentle, principled way he conducted his life was a model for all who had the privilege to know him. His family and friends gratefully send his soul to be with our Lord in the "Great [Secret Service] Command Post" in Heaven. George is survived by: Toddy and their children, Holly, Warren, Devon, Carol, David and their spouses and children; a brother, Neil; and numerous nieces and nephews. He is predeceased by his parents, two brothers and two sisters. A memorial service will be held at Park Cities Baptist Church on Saturday, August 27 at 10:30 a.m. In lieu of flowers please send donations to: Foundation of the Association of Former Agents of the United States Secret Service - AFAUSSS, attn: Kathy Rinkenberger, Executive Director, 525 SW 5th St., Ste. A, Des Moines, IA, 50309, 515-282-8192; OR Dallas Lighthouse for the Blind, 4306 Capitol Ave., Dallas, TX, 75204, 214-420-9420.

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variation

Retired secret service agent George Chaney dies at 86
AText Size By DEBORAH FLECK
DEBORAH FLECK The Dallas Morning News
Staff Writer
dfleck@dallasnews.com
Published: 25 August 2011 10:58 PM
RelatedGeorge Washington Chaney, retired Secret Service agent, died Aug. 14 in Dallas.
Photo: courtesy / courtesy George Washington Chaney’s Secret Service career took him from “diaper duty,” where he watched President Dwight Eisenhower’s children and grandchildren in Gettysburg, Pa., to Dallas, where he was on President Lyndon Johnson’s protective detail. He also had stops in El Paso and Washington, D.C. before retiring in 1977. With Dallas as a home base, he began a second career as a document examiner for Lewis &Associates.

A native of San Antonio, Mr. Chaney died Aug. 14 at age 86.

Services will be at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at Park Cities Baptist Church, 3933 Northwest Parkway in Dallas.

“He enjoyed it and was proud of his work, but it was hard on him not seeing his family,” said daughter Devon Nassif of Dallas. He was the father of five children, who grew up mostly in Dallas.

After high school, Mr. Chaney enlisted in the U.S. Navy and served three years during World War II. A few years later, he began is career with the U.S. Secret Service. He met his wife of 51 years, Margaret “Toddy” Chaney, during his post in Gettysburg.

Mr. Chaney then became an assistant agent in charge of personnel in Washington, D.C.

“He was in D.C. when Kennedy was shot and was good friends with the Dallas agents who worked then,” Mrs. Nassif said. Mr. Chaney returned to Dallas in 1970 for a few years before being sent to El Paso. He served in El Paso from 1974 to his retirement in 1977.

His second career lasted 22 years. He bought Lewis & Associates from Roy Lewis, a retired agent.

Mrs. Nassif said her father had many interesting stories from both careers, especially about President Johnson, but he couldn’t share them with anyone.

Family friends Ann and Roland Kelley of Colleyville said, “His mind was sharp, and he remembered every detail he was on.”

During retirement, Mr. Chaney became active at his church, Park Cities Baptist. He served as department superintendent of the adult Sunday school class.

In addition to his wife and daughter, he is survived by children Holly Barber of Coppell, Warren Hafer of Nashua, N.H., Carol Larson of Pueblo, Colo., and David Chaney of Ashburn, Va.; and brother Neil Chaney of San Antonio. David Chaney followed in his father’s footsteps and is a secret service agent in Washington, D.C.

Memorials may be made to the Foundation of the Association of Former Agents of the U.S. Secret Service, Attention Kathy Rinkenberger, 525 SW Fifth St., Suite A, Des Moines, Iowa 50309; 515-282-8192; or Dallas Lighthouse for the Blind, 4306 Capitol Ave., Dallas, Texas 75204; 214-420-9420.

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Lawrence Hess


This is to inform you that my Uncle, Lawrence Hess, Class of "52", passed away on the 5th of November 2006, in Snellville, Ga. I came across your Lehigh Univ. web site by accident while doing some research about my family, the Hess’, which is where I found a picture of my uncle. I also noticed that no one had posted that he had passed away so I thought I’d inform you and his classmates. His widow aunt Susan, still lives in Snellville Ga. He was a really great uncle, a loyal Lehigh man, and will be sorely missed. There are two sons, Thomas Hess, is an officer in the US Navy stationed presently in San Diego, Calif., and Larry Hess in Duluth, GA.

Thank you, John H. Hess - April 2009


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Obituary:
Larry Hess, 79, worked as Secret Service agent

It wasn't easy for Larry Hess to become a Secret Service agent, but once in. he quickly became a good one. When Larry and I joined, there were only 300 agents, "said Frank Slocum of Waianae, Hawaii. "In order to get into the Secret Service, somebody had to die or resign or be fired to create an opening!” That was 1955, and the service was under the Treasury Department. "We always had to set an example of thrift," said the retired agent. "We had to drive old cars without radios or air conditioning!” Working counterfeit cases, Mr. Hess helped agents get nicer cars to drive. "We always met with the suspect in his own car, "Mr. Slocum said, became those had more luxuries than Secret Service cars, "That way, after we got the counterfeit money, we could sell the car. That's how we got our cars!”

Mr. Hess, who was an expert marksman, was assigned to field offices from Los Angeles to Atlanta. He helped protect presidents from Dwight D. Eisenhower onward through his retirement in 1981, said his son. Tom Hess of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The funeral for Lawrence Thomas Hess. 79, of Snellville is at 11 a.m. today at Henry Funeral Home. The graveside service is at 2:30 p.m. today at Georgia Veterans Cemetery in Milledgeville. He died of cancer Sunday at Embracing Hospice.

When a president was traveling new the field office where he was assigned, Mr. Hess was called upon to provide additional Secret Service protection, Mr. Slocum said. For three years he protected Eisenhower's grandson, David Eisenhower, with whom he maintained a relationship, his son said. When President Eisenhower was playing golf at Augusta National or in Palm Springs, Calif., Mr. Hess was on the course with him, but not on the fairway. "We had to walk in the rough toting radios and machine guns," Mr. Slocum said. "That's why I don't like golf!” Mr. Hess was attached to President Richard Nixon's historic trip to China and to the investigation of President John F. Kennedy's assassination, his son said.

Because he was a bachelor in the Secret Service, he got moved around frequently and called upon for a variety of assignments, Mr. Slocum said. I would consider Larry a good agent became he was very conscientious," he said. "He was a go‑getter, plus, he was a very smart guy."

Once he left the Secret Service, Mr. Hess continued to protect presidents in his fashion. Through letters to the editor of The Atlanta Journal Constitution, he castigated the press, opponents of the president and the nation's allies. "He was a Ronald Reagan Republican," his son said.

At home, he entertained himself playing the piano and collecting beer steins. In the community, the World War II U.S. Navy veteran had been see an officer of VFW 4180 and of the American Legion in Snellville, his son said.

Survivors include his wife, Susan Hess; another son, Larry Hess of Snellville; and two grandchildren.

Secret Service agent Larry Hess works security for
President Lyndon B. Johnson as he addresses troops in the 1960s

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Talmadge W. Bailey, 87, of Palm City, died March 11, 2011 at his residence. He was born in Apex, NC and had been a resident of Palm City for 30 years, having moved from Charlotte, NC. He was a veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps having served during WWII. He had been a Secret Service Agent for the U.S. Government before retirement. He was a member of the Evergreen Country Club and the Association of Former Agents of the United States Secret Service.
He is survived by his son, Dr. Clifton Bailey of Tallahassee; daughter, Dr. Rebecca Ann Bailey of Oveido, FL; sisters, Ann Williams of Emerald Isles and Ellen Bassett of Myrtle Beach, SC and brother, Hubert Bailey of Wilson, NC. He was preceded in death by his wife, Frances C. Bailey.
No services are scheduled.
Arrangements are entrusted to Forest Hills Funeral Homes, Palm City Chapel.
Condolences may be written on: foresthillspalmcityflorida.com


The Evergreen Club sends its deepest condolences to the Bailey family. He will be missed.
Posted by: The Evergreen Club - Palm City, FL May 16, 2011 I met Talmadge 42 years ago (1969) when I was a new agent in the Secret Service. He was then and continued to be a great mentor, a fantastic agent and a good and decent man. I am saddened by his passing and know that he will be missed. My condolences to his family.
Posted by: J. Benny Crosby - Panama City Beach, FL - Friend and former colleague Mar 28, 2011 Talmage was one of the really good guys. A true southern gentleman. After 25 years of meetings, volunteer work and golf together, I can't remember a single time he wasn't a great guy. I wish him, Bud and Becky all the best as he is reunited with Francis.
Posted by: Charles Dyer - Palm City, FL Mar 17, 2011 Twenty-three years ago Mr. Bailey opened his home up to a bunch of us who were going on a seven day barefoot cruise the next day to the Bahamas. I recall the e numerous plaques, letters, pictures, etc. from friends and family of various presidents that covered the walls in his office, people he had impacted in his role with the Secret Service over the years. He clearly had a long and full life and had a positive impact on the world and those who knew him.
Posted by: Scottie Whiddon - Tallahassee, FL - Friend/colleague Mar 17, 2011 Our thoughts and prayers are with Bud and Becky and the other family members. I served with Talmadge in various assignments beginning at the Miami FO during the early '60s and our families were close for many years. Bud and Becky baby sat for our children in MIA and we also shared assignments in the Office of Inspection, USSS HQ. Talmadge and Francis were good friends and we miss them. Our hearts go out to Bud and Becky. Tom and Shirley Wells
Posted by: Thomas Wells - St Augustine, FL - Friend/professional associate Mar 17, 2011
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A Dale Wunderlich - NCISS 2011 Conference Speaker
U. S. Secret Service-Executive Protection Problems


A. Dale Wunderlich, CPP, CFE
A. Dale Wunderlich & Associates, Inc.
6484 Lemon Gulch Drive, Castle Rock, CO 80108
(720) 851-8771
Fax (720) 851-8763
Email address: adwunderlichinc@aol.com

Mr. Wunderlich received his Bachelor of Science degree from Washington State University in Police Science and Administration (Criminology). He is presently earning his Master of Science degree at the University of Denver with a major in Security Management. While attending Washington State University Mr. Wunderlich was a police officer on the Pullman, Washington Police Department. Upon graduation, he became a police officer on the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD). He then became a Special Agent with the United States Secret Service.

While with the Los Angeles Police Department, Mr. Wunderlich served as a uniformed patrol officer as well as a plain clothes officer assigned to the Scientific Investigation Division, Comparative Analysis Section and was qualified as an expert in firearms identification (ballistics), number restoration, bomb disposal and crime scene reconstruction. While in the U.S. Secret Service, Mr. Wunderlich was assigned at the White House in Washington D.C. and at several field offices. During his career in the Secret Service, he served on protective assignments with five Presidents, several Vice Presidents and numerous visiting foreign dignitaries. During one protective assignment in Washington D. C. he was assigned to the Protective Intelligence/Technical Security Division. In his capacity as a Special Agent for Protective Divisions, he conducted physical security surveys for Presidents, Vice Presidents, other U.S. government officials and specified foreign dignitaries in numerous foreign countries and forty-nine states. He also conducted physical security surveys for visiting heads of state at many locations throughout the United States.

While assigned at the Technical Security Division and in the Denver Field Office of the U.S. Secret Service, Mr. Wunderlich was involved in the design and implementation of security systems for the White House, the U.S. Treasury Building, the U.S. Mint (Denver), various Presidential residences and the State of Colorado Governor’s mansion. These activities included recommendations for security hardware such as alarms, CCTV and access control systems.

In private industry, Mr. Wunderlich was employed as Manager of Corporate Security for Continental Airlines, Vice President of Security and North American Operations for British West Indian Airways and Special Assistant to the Chairman of the Board for Security for a large oil exploration and production company. While serving as an airline security manager, Mr. Wunderlich conducted security surveys at airline facilities throughout the United States and the Caribbean. During that period of time he also negotiated security contracts, supervised and trained contract security officers and provided training for company security personnel. For the past thirty years, he has owned and operated his own security consulting company.

Since opening his own business in 1979, Mr. Wunderlich has conducted physical security surveys, trained security officers, evaluated and established security programs or conducted internal theft investigations throughout the world. Some of the countries he has worked in are Saudi Arabia, South Africa, West Africa, East Africa, South America, Central America, Mexico, Mongolia, China, Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Russia, The Commonwealth of Independent States (Kyrgyzstan & Uzbekistan), Europe, Indonesia, Thailand and throughout North America. These activities involved measures providing protection for company assets as well as company employees, setting up security departments and training security personnel. Mr. Wunderlich has also taught courses on procedures for conducting physical security surveys to national security forces from ten Middle Eastern countries, for the American Society for Industrial Security, the Professional Private Investigators of Colorado and other professional groups. In his career in the security business, Mr. Wunderlich has conducted in excess of twelve hundred security audit/surveys and has prepared the design specifications for hundreds of alarm, CCTV and access control systems. He has written numerous articles on the need for physical security, which have been printed in nationally and internationally circulated publications.

During his career in the security/law enforcement field, Mr. Wunderlich has testified as an expert witness in excess of three-hundred and fifty times, in municipal, state and federal courts. He is a member of the National Council of Investigation and Security Services (NCISS), the World Association of Detectives (WAD), Association of Former Agents of the U. S. Secret Service and is the Past President of the Professional Private Investigators of Colorado. The World Association of Detectives awarded Mr. Wunderlich with the “Investigator of the Year” award in 1991 in recognition of the many complex investigations he has conducted and his contribution to the field of private investigations and security consulting. At the World Association of Detectives annual Conference in Zurich, Switzerland in 2007, Mr. Wunderlich was honored as the "Security Professional of the Year." At the 85th annual meeting of the World Association of Detectives in the Republic of Malta, Mr. Wunderlich was presented with a lifetime achievement award for "Long and Meritorious Service to the Investigations and Security Profession." Further, Mr. Wunderlich serves on the Board of Directors and is chairman of the Ethics Committee for the World Associations of Detectives.

Mr. Wunderlich is also the past President and past Chairman of the Board of the National Council of Investigation and Security Services (NCISS). He also is Chairman of the Ethics, Grievance and Disciplinary Committee for NCISS and presently serves on the Board of Directors.

Mr. Wunderlich holds the designation of Certified Protection Professional (CPP) from the Professional Certification Board of the ASIS International (Formerly American Society for Industrial Security) and the designation of Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) from the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners.
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Dr. Louis Mayo has over 50 years in policing with the last 35 years working at the national level to improve local policing, including; operations, management, research, education,training and consultations. He directed a nationwide program of police executive training in a variety of topics which trained over 20,000 police officials.

Federal and State Courts across the nation have qualified Dr. Mayo as an expert witness in a variety of police malpractice subjects, including; excessive force, false arrest, illegal search, policies, training, supervision, discipline, and automobile pursuits.

BackgroundQ: Please list your professional accreditations, degrees, licenses, and certificates granted:
A: BA, MS, Ph.D. all in police operations and management.

Q: Please list your affiliations or memberships in any professional and/or industry organizations:
A: International Association of Chiefs of Police, Police Execcutive Research Forum, Police Association for College Education (founder), Society of Police Futurests International, International Association for Law Enforcent Training, Academy of Criminal Justrice Sciences-Police Section, American Society for Public Administration, California Peace Officers Association and Association of Fromer Agents of the United States Secret sErvice.

Q: Please list any teaching or speaking experience you have had, including subject matter:
A: Adjunct professor - graduate and undergraduate courses in police management, invited speaker at regional, state national and international police conferences on police management subjects, directed nagtionwide executive training program for improving policing - trained over 20,000 police officials.

Q: Have any of your accreditations ever been investigated, suspended or removed? (if yes, explain)
A: NO

Q: On how many occasions have you been retained as an expert?
A: over 50

Q: For what area(s) of expertise have you been retained as an expert?
A: Variety of area of police malpractice, including;

Q: In what percentage of your cases were you retained by the plaintiff?
A: 99%

Q: In what percentage of your cases were you retained by the defendant?
A: 1%

Q: On how many occasions have you had your deposition taken?
A: 35

Q: When was the last time you had your deposition taken?
A: September 2003

Q: On how many occasions have you been qualified by a court to give expert testimony?
A: 14

Q: On how many occasions have you testified as an expert in court or before an arbitrator?
A: 15

Q: For how many years have you worked with the legal industry as an expert?
A: 10

Q: What services do you offer? (E.g.: consulting, testing, reports, site inspections etc.)
A: Conslting, aqnalysis/reporting, site inspections, depositon, testimony

Q: What is your hourly rate to consult with an attorney?
A: 150.00

Q: What is your hourly rate to review documents?
A: 150.00

Q: What is your hourly rate to provide deposition testimony?
A: 200.00

Q: What is your hourly rate to provide testimony at trial?
A: 200.00

Q: Please list any fees other than those stated above (E.g.: travel expenses, copy fees, etc.)
A: Travel expenses


ReferencesReferences available upon request.
Publications
CVCV
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Friday, April 13, 2007
Bill Skiles
Every year my dad does taxes for a friend of his named Bill Skiles, and every year my family goes with him to eat dinner and visit with him. This guy is the coolest man I know. He is 75 and a retired secret service agent. He has the coolest stories and he loves to tell them. He guarded 7 presidents, including JFK and Nixon. He always makes us the same meal, but it is always very good and he always makes way too much! Well tonight, my family went, and I brought Justin along. He told all of his cool stories that I have heard before, and even some new ones. He is the funnest guy and all of his stories almost make me want to join the secret service. He is in incredible shape, and his mind is as sharp as ever. I went to be that way when I am 75, still full of life and active. So after getting to spend time with him, and hearing his stories, I had a great evening!
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Sam Sulliman '56

Alumni Q&A with Sam Sulliman '56

As President John F. Kennedy made his historic 1963 visit to Berlin, Germany, secret service agents, including Brother Sam Sulliman '56 (far left in dark glasses), help to restrain the welcoming and enthusiastic crowd.





















From Sigma Chi to the Grassy Knoll

He was there - that fateful day of November 22, 1963. Assigned to Kennedy's detail as a U.S. Secret Service agent, Brother Sam Sulliman '56 saw the rise and fall of one of our nation's most high-profile presidents.

"Although I was with Kennedy's detail in Dallas, a most sad time in all our lives," said Sulliman, "no doubt my most memorable experience was in 1963 while accompanying President Kennedy to Berlin, Germany. During this trip, the president visited the Berlin Wall from which he made his famous 'Ist Ein Berliner' speech. The motorcade trek through the bombed-out streets of that once regal city as well as the feeling of being a part of world history at that very moment will stay with me forever."

We caught up with Brother Sulliman to find out more about his Secret Service experiences and what Sigma Chi has meant to his life. We hope you enjoy this alumni profile. E-mail us at content@affinity.connection.com with your comments.

Tell us more about your career.
I entered the United States Secret Service in Washington, D.C., in July 1959 following a year of law school at the University of Connecticut. After initial training, I was transferred to the Chicago field office where I spent two years covering counterfeit and forgery cases. I was then assigned to the Kennedy-elect detail, during which time I participated in the inauguration. Returning to the Chicago office, I was notified that I was to report to the White House detail within the next 30 days.

Thus began my White House "career," a major life-learning experience, carrying over into the business world as I entered into retirement from the federal government arena. From special agent in charge of the Kennedy summer White House to shift supervisor with other presidents to deputy and then special agent in charge of the vice presidential division, the years took me from the space program to Vietnam and Cambodia to Saudi Arabia and Africa to Greenland. One of the major trips spanned the globe covering some 13,000 miles in its entirety.

My last years with the Secret Service were spent as a field office agent-in-charge of the New England region. It was from that post that I retired and entered corporate and executive security. My Secret Service background was a major door opener within the corporate world, not only in regard to career expertise but within the international networking scenario, as well. The 20 years following my Secret Service career were involved in the field of corporate security with the Fluor Corporation in Irvine, Calif., and with Aetna-US Healthcare in Blue Bell, Pa. Currently I work as a consultant in the area of school safety and security.

Why did you join Sigma Chi at Bucknell?
When I completed my military service (U.S. Army in Korea), two of my close friends were Sigs (Bill Gray '54 and Mitch Gardner '53). They helped me get into Bucknell and Sigma Chi.

What kind of influence has the fraternity had on your life since graduation?
Living with fraternity brothers and running the house as its president independent of outside supervision helped me to adapt to the business world.

With whom do you stay in contact?
Marion Minker ’55, Ken Langone ’57 and Art Kinney ’56.

Tell us about your family.
I have been married to my wife, Lillian, for 42 years. I met her during my days in Washington with the Secret Service. We have three adult children: David, Victoria and Elizabeth.

What other activities or organizations were you involved with at Bucknell?
Varsity baseball and the Interfraternity Council.

Did you live in the house? If so, who were your roommates?
I lived in the house my last three years. Marion Minker was my roommate for two years, Bill Palmer ’56 for the last year.

What affiliations do you currently have?
I am a lifetime member of the Association of Former U.S. Secret Service Agents and of the International Association of Corporate Security; I am an honorary member of the Montgomery County (Pa.) Chiefs of Police.

What hobbies do you enjoy?
I am a Major League Baseball aficionado and longtime Boston Red Sox fan. I also enjoy varied and sundry outdoor activities.

What are your goals for the next few years?
I want to sell the big house and move to Palm Desert, Calif., where the winter months are snowless and sunny!
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David F. Ray 1959
Simpsonville, Kentucky

David Ray spent thirty-one years in the United States Secret Service, but there has been nothing secret about his service to his country and to his alma mater.


A native of Louisville, David graduated from Centre in 1959 with a degree in business administration. He immediately began a promising career with the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, but by 1964 a desire for a little more adventure became irresistible. He contacted a friend and fellow alumnus, J. Frank Yeager, who had joined the U.S. Secret Service, and soon he had embarked on a whole new life.


David quickly established himself as a rising star in the Service. He was assigned to protect Richard Nixon during the 1968 campaign. He followed President Nixon to the White House, serving there until the end of the Nixon presidency, including accompanying the Nixon family home to California on Air Force One following Mr. Nixon’s resignation. He continued to serve on Presidential and Vice-Presidential details, work that took him to more than fifty countries. But he also took on other duties, including the Dignitary Protection Division. In this role, he coordinated security for the 1978 Camp David Summit between Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin, and President Jimmy Carter. He later became head of the Technical Security Division of the Secret Service, managed the security for four Presidential inaugurations, supervised the upgrade of security around the White House against the threat of terrorist attacks in the 1980s, and led security arrangements for the first summit between President Reagan and Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev. In 1986, he took the opportunity to return home as director of the Service’s Kentucky Field Office, a position he held until his retirement from the Service in 1996. At that time, David established his own successful security consulting business.


When Centre was selected to host the vice-presidential debate, Richard Trollinger and Clarence Wyatt decided to call David to see what advice he could give us about security. We invited him to come down to lunch in March – and he stayed until October 6th. He generously put the expertise developed over 31 years at Centre’s disposal and we shamelessly took advantage of him. He saw the importance in details that we would have neglected. He enabled us to anticipate problems and possibilities that would have risen up to bite us or that would have passed us by. His confidence in Centre’s ability to pull off this event was infectious and his level-headedness at tense moments reassuring. His presence gave us instant credibility with the Commission on Presidential Debates, with the campaigns, and with the many law enforcement agencies that came together in this effort.

As President Roush has said, there were many heroes in the debate story. But there is no doubt that the debate would not have been the success that it was without David. But his work over the last few years is just the latest chapter in a life of consummate professionalism, love of country, and devotion to his alma mater.
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Andrew E. Berger, 69 of 4230 Woodglen Lane in Charlotte died Thursday, June 22, 2006 at Lawyers' Glen Assisted Living Center after a long and courageous battle with Alzheimer's disease. A native of New York City, he was born December 31, 1936 and was the son of the late Andrew and Helen Berger of New York.
Mr. Berger was a graduate of Fordham University and attended New York Law School. He enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserves in 1959. He was also an active member of the International Association of Chiefs of Police. Until his death, he was a member of St. Gabriel Catholic Church.
Mr. Berger's career began when he entered the United States Secret Service in 1961 in New York City. He served under President John Kennedy and was in Dallas, Texas when President Kennedy was assassinated and later accompanied the body on Air Force One. He also drove the hearse with the President's body and Mrs. Kennedy to Love Field in Dallas. He attended the ceremony when President Johnson was sworn in after Kennedy's death. He served under President Lyndon Johnson before becoming Agent-in-Charge of Buffalo, New York. He then joined the vice presidential detail serving under Vice President Spiro Agnew. In 1972, he became Agent-in-Charge of Syracuse, New York. In 1975, he was named Agent-in-Charge of Baltimore, Maryland. He also served under President Gerald Ford, President Jimmy Carter and President Ronald Reagan. Mr. Berger was present in Washington when Ronald Reagan was shot. He retired from the United States Secret Service in 1981.
After retiring from the Secret Service in 1981, Mr. Berger moved his family to Charlotte where he worked as Director of Security for NCNB, then later started his own courier business. After his final retirement in 2001, he enjoyed his family and grandchildren and even helped his son, Chris coach basketball at Charlotte Latin. Mr. Berger loved fishing at the Outer Banks and Kiawah Island, golf, traveling, sports and his favorite team, the Washington Redskins.
Survivors: Beloved wife of 46 years, Dolly Berger, daughter and son-in-law, Kathleen and Boyd Higgins of Charlotte, sons and daughters-in-law, Andrew and Julie Berger of Gastonia, John and Maria Berger of Charlotte, Chris and Heidi Berger of Charlotte, seven grandchildren, Kelsey and Connor Higgins, Jordan Berger, Brady, Riley and Delaney Berger and Molly Berger.
The family would like to extend special gratitude to the staff at Hospice, especially Dr. William Porter, Janice Stovall and Jean Yakley and the compassionate staff at Lawyers Glen Assisted Living Center for the wonderful care Andy received.
A Memorial Mass celebrating Andy's life will be held on Tuesday, June 27, 2006 at 11:00 AM at St. Gabriel Catholic Church, 3016 Providence Road, Charlotte with the Reverend Edward J. Sheridan, Celebrant.
The family will receive friends on Monday, June 26, 2006 from 2 to 4 PM and 6 to 8 PM at Harry and Bryant Company, 500 Providence Road, Charlotte.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be sent to Hospice at Charlotte, 1420 E. 7th St., Charlotte, NC 28204.
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Gerald W. Bechtle

Jerry Bechtle, born December 1, 1936, and raised in Elizabeth, is considered to be the best basketball player ever to play at St. Mary’s. He was the school’s first 1000 point scorer, (1059 total), a 2-year 1st team All State Player, named the number one Catholic School player in the country and one of the top ten players throughout the Nation (1955).

Jerry was named to the 1950’s All Decade Team by The Star Ledger and received every 1st place vote on the St. Mary’s All Time Team voted on by former players and Alumni at the school. Jerry’s legendary coach at St. Mary’s, Al Lobalbo, was once asked to describe Jerry and his response was one word, “Special”!

From over 100 major scholarship offers he and Cousin Jim Halleck chose to attend Maryland University. His team won the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) in 1958 and perhaps his signature game came against mighty North Carolina coached by Frank McGuire when he scored 28 points to beat the number one team in the country.

Jerry was drafted by the Knicks but chose to enter the Secret Service. He retired in 1986 after 24 years of service, traveling to 26 countries and participating in the protection of Presidents Eisenhower, Truman, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter, and Reagan. Jerry resides in Vienna, VA with his wife Barbara, married 46 years, with 3 sons and 4 grandchildren.

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Former JFK Secret Service agents dine at D.C. restaurant

Former JFK Secret Service agents dine at D.C. restaurant February 9, 2012, 3:26 pm by Megan McCourt

SPOTTED: Former Secret Service agents Clinton Hill and Gerald Blaine, who were guarding President John F. Kennedy the day of his assassination.

The pair was seen lunching at LINCOLN, a downtown D.C. restaurant devoted to another famous former president, on Wednesday. The group dined on a braised pork belly Cuban sandwich, salmon, a LINCOLN burger, and lemonades as they sat in the restaurant’s “Lincoln Chair.”

Earlier in the day, Hill and Blaine had some high-flying fun, as the U.S. Park Police took them to the Arlington National Cemetery, the Holocaust Memorial Museum, and on a helicopter ride.

The men have remained mum for nearly 50 years since JFK’s death [false: many spoke to me, while several spoke to others, years before Blaine's book came out], but spoke at park police trainings on Wednesday and Thursday.

Blaine wrote a book called The Kennedy Detail released in 2010 that reveals the details of JFK’s assassination from the Secret Service agents’ point of view.



Reactions
ThomasTincher 1 week ago

From twitter

"@thehill: Former JFK Secret Service agents back in DC to lecture US Park Police http://t.co/Gd2DGr18" like these r the guys u want advising

LBJ re: Bobby Baker AND Secret Service Agent Emory Roberts-thick as thieves!

LBJ re: Bobby Baker AND Secret Service Agent Emory Roberts-thick as thieves!

LBJ re: Bobby Baker, a man he referred to as his son (Baker was his longtime aide who was later embroiled in scandal, serving time in jail, as well): "Bobby is my strong right arm. He is the last person I see at night and the first person I see in the morning." [ "LBJ: The Mastermind of the JFK Assassination" by Phillip Nelson (2011), page xii].


LBJ re: Secret Service Agent Emory Roberts, a man who miserably failed to protect JFK on 11/22/63---immediately switching allegiance to LBJ when JFK was first shot, recalling Agent Ready and, before that, Agent Lawton--- and who later become Appointment Secretary for LBJ while STILL a member of his Secret Service Detail (!): "He greets me every morning and tells me goodbye every night."

Publishers Weekly review of Mark Lane's "Last Word"

Publishers Weekly

In his third book on the Kennedy assassination (Plausible Denial), attorney Lane builds a circumstantial case for CIA involvement—though in an appendix he says he does not identify “those who assassinated” Kennedy because he has been “unable to secure sufficient factual information.” Lane breaks down the assassination into all of its moving parts and examines the actions of Secret Service agents who many agree botched protocol. Lane says the Warren Commission report on the assassination was awash with faulty logic, twisting forensic evidence to fit its preconception that Lee Harvey Oswald was the lone shooter. Lane’s contention about the CIA’s role rests on reports that the agency feared Kennedy might disband it after the Bay of Pigs; there was also anger at the president’s attempts to interact peacefully with Castro. The CIA, Lane says, made Oswald the fall guy and provided men found on the “grassy knoll”—where many believe the deadly shots were fired—with Secret Service credentials.

ANOTHER great review of "Last Word"!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Mystery Secret Service Man on the Knoll. Fascinating!, November 6, 2011
By Debra J. Conway "JFK Lancer" (Southlake, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME) This review is from: Last Word: My Indictment of the CIA in the Murder of JFK (Hardcover)
This book gives the reader insight into a mysterious little known incident on the day President Kennedy was shot. Someone showing Secret Service credentials was behind the fence on the knoll at Dealey Plaza immediately after the shooting. Curiously, there were actually no Secret Service agents assigned to Dealey Plaza at all. Who was this man? How many people saw him? Why was he there? I've done quite a bit of study on this aspect of the JFK assassination case and personally interviewed witnesses who saw and spoke to this mystery man -- Malcolm Summers and Dallas Police Officer Bobby Hargis included. You can see their statements on our website jfklancer.com. Buy this book to read the whole story of how witnesses and police were fooled. Was this a member of the assassination team? Where did he get his credentials? Who was he really?

FANTASTIC! GET THIS A.S.A.P.! THE KENNEDY DETAIL DEBUNKED!

30 of 36 people found the following review helpful:
FANTASTIC! GET THIS A.S.A.P.! THE KENNEDY DETAIL DEBUNKED!, October 26, 2011
This review is from: Last Word: My Indictment of the CIA in the Murder of JFK (Hardcover)
Attorney Mark Lane thoroughly destroys Gerald Blaine & Lisa McCubbin's book "The Kennedy Detail": on the merit of this alone, every person who purcashed and/ or read that book needs to read this as the antidote. Lane saves his best JFK work for last with his appropriately titled tome "The Last Word", a book that joins Jim Douglass "JFK & The Unspeakable" and Douglas Horne's 5-volume series "Inside The Assassination Records Review Board" in the "holy troika" of essential, must-read (and own) Kennedy assassination books. Lane skillfully takes apart Vincent Bugliosi's magnum opus on the Oswald-did-it side entitled "Reclaiming History" and, most of all, Gerald Blaine's fraudulent "JFK-told-us-not-to" book "The Kennedy Detail"---for the latter, Lane used my research materials, for which I am most grateful. In addition, Lane adds further credibility to the tale of former Secret Service Agent Abraham Bolden and his book "The Echo From Dealey Plaza." It never ceases to amaze me how much great literature and research has come forth in the last 5-10 years. Mark Lane's book "The Last Word" adds to his legacy greatly. Get this one asap---Bugliosi, Blaine, and the CIA have a lot to answer for! Highly recommended; fantastic!

For David Von Pein (and others) re: my brief, 2007-only change of heart on the case

For DVP:

LOL----yes, I had a well-documented, brief change of heart in 2007
that lasted about a year. The perfect analogy I can give: you bringing
up my 2007 endorsement of Bugliosi is tantamount to someone, married a
SECOND time, showing old love letters sent to the FIRST wife as
"proof" that the love for the SECOND wife is "not credible"
hahahahahahaha. It's a free country---last time I checked, everyone is
allowed to change their mind. Again, there is a 50 percent divorce
rate (90 percent in Hollywood), not including millions of regular
relationships that end. Would showing old love letters and feelings,
MEANT AT THAT TIME, denounce the CURRENT love in a person's life?
'Nuff said.

MY AMAZON REVIEWS FOR DOUGLAS HORNE'S 5-VOLUME SET (SAME REVIEW AT EACH VOLUME)+NUMEROUS POSTS in 2008-2010 REITERATED THE ABOVE IN DETAIL (I ALWAYS did say that, Oswald or no Oswald, conspiracy or no conspiracy, my work still held up AND that, even at my lowest point in 2007, I STILL believed there WERE multiple conspiracies to kill JFK...just that, begrudgingly, Oswald beat them all to the punch.):

of 10 people found the following review helpful:
Pulitzer Prize, anyone? :), December 16, 2009
This review is from: Inside the Assassination Records Review Board: The U.S. Government's Final Attempt to Reconcile the Conflicting Medical Evidence in the Assassination of JFK (Volume 3) (Paperback)
There's an old saying: never say never. Well, this has been a strange and heady couple years with regard to literature in the JFK assassination case. After being a fervent believer in a conspiracy in President John F. Kennedy's death (from about the age of 12 to 41!), the Spring of 2007 yielded the Oswald-did-it-alone masterpiece "Reclaiming History" by the highly respected author and former prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi that, quite literally, made my world upside down and had me reassess everything I knew (or thought I knew) about JFK's murder. Result? While I still believed there were multiple conspiracies (plural) to kill Kennedy, and that (speaking as the leading civilian Secret Service authority) the Secret Service was grossly negligent on 11/22/63 in Dallas, at the end of the day, Oswald beat everyone to the punch, so to speak; for all intents and purposes, that solved it for me, albeit with a great deal of discomfort.

Then came ANOTHER masterpiece of even greater length (spread over 5 volumes) that, once again, turned my world upside down (some would say, right side up)!


Douglas P. Horne, the author of this latest masterpiece, "Inside The Assassination Records Review Board," has achieved a literary feat worthy of a Pulitzer Prize. His 5 volume study (5 books in one, so to speak) reads almost like the Defense's side of the case; the perfect answer to the Prosecution's ("Reclaiming History") masterful plea to the bench. I am amazed and highly impressed with the book as both a very inspired, well put together piece of art (it's a great read!) AND for the substance--and length---of the (counter) argument. While Vince Bugliosi did the seeming impossible back in 2007 (convincing me, however begrudgingly, that Oswald acted alone, despite others who wished JFK ill), Douglas P. Horne has turned around and performed HIS own version of the impossible: convincing me I was WRONG in 2007---a delightful, soul searching, slightly embarassing, and honest appraisal. After all, it is somewhat painful, as a seasoned researcher with a "stake" in the case, to admit he was in error...twice!

Bugliosi's book cleans up the "junk" in the case and presents the best case for Oswald acting alone; STILL a terrific book (THE best Oswald-did-it book that will ever be written---infinitely better than Gerald Posner's "Case Closed" or the insufficient Warren Report). That said, Douglas P. Horne's masterwork trumps "Reclaiming History" and presents the best nuts-and-bolts-and-more case for conspiracy I ever thought possible, circa 2009 and post-Bugliosi. While I have sung the praises for many books over the years, no other book (other than David McCullough's triumphant "Truman") has moved me to the point where I would recommend the volume achieving the vaunted Pulitzer Prize...yes, I am THAT impressed with Horne's years of research and insider work on the case. Jim Douglass excellent volume "JFK and the Unspeakable" serves almost as a companion volume---the "warm-up act"---to Horne's masterwork.

The MEDICAL evidence is the keystone to the case, bar none. With this firmly in mind, Horne, as a respected insider into the U.S. Government's final investigation into JFK's assassination in the mid to late 1990's, has laid out the best case for conspiracy I have ever read, especially at this late juncture (and where my thinking on the case was at not long before his 5 volume study appeared). I won't spoil things by revealing anything specific in this review (sorry!). I will just say this: get these books asap---you will find yourself (like myself) reading them and refering to them many times over.

I recently admonished people in the research community (of which I am one) to, quote, "get a life" (shades of William Shatner, huh?). Well, disregard that bit of advice: instead, GET DOUGLAS P. HORNE'S BOOKS...NOW! 5 PLUS STARS; THE HIGHEST RATING HUMANLY POSSIBLE.

Memories of JFK assassination haunt former Secret Service agent and North Dakota native

Memories of JFK assassination haunt former Secret Service agent and North Dakota native

MOORHEAD - Nov. 22, 1963, is on Clint Hill’s mind every day. The former Secret Service agent assigned to protect Jackie Kennedy the day President John F. Kennedy was assassinated is still haunted with guilt nearly 50 years later.

By: Amy Dalrymple, INFORUM

Former Secret Service agent Clint Hill talks about the day JFK was assassinated

MOORHEAD - Nov. 22, 1963, is on Clint Hill’s mind every day.

The former Secret Service agent assigned to protect Jackie Kennedy the day President John F. Kennedy was assassinated is still haunted with guilt nearly 50 years later.

The Washburn, N.D., native and Concordia College graduate was on the running board of the car behind the presidential limousine in Dallas. He heard the first shot and jumped onto the presidential vehicle in an attempt to shield the Kennedys from gunshots. Hill made it just as the first lady was reaching for the top of Kennedy’s scalp.

He received recognition for “extraordinary courage and heroic effort in the face of maximum danger.”

But Hill, who battled depression and alcoholism for years as a result of that day, still wonders if he could have done more.

“I still have a sense of responsibility and a guilt feeling I should have been able to do more, because I was the only one who had that chance,” Hill said in an interview last week with The Forum.

Hill, who served five presidents during his time with the Secret Service, will return to Concordia this week to accept an Alumni Achievement Award.

“I tried to tell them that I didn’t think I was worthy of the honor, but they insisted,” said the 79-year-old, who now lives in the Washington, D.C., area.

Hill also will give a public talk on Wednesday night, along with Lisa McCubbin, co-author of “The Kennedy Detail,” which gives the Secret Service agents’ account of the assassination.

North Dakota native

Hill was born in 1932 in Larimore, N.D., and was adopted as a baby by Chris and Jennie Hill of Washburn.

Hill graduated from high school in Washburn and attended Concordia, where he majored in history and physical education and excelled at football and baseball.

After Hill graduated from Concordia in 1954, he served in the U.S. Army as an intelligence agent.

Hill’s Secret Service career began in 1958.

When Kennedy was elected, Hill anticipated he would be assigned to protect the president because he had been assigned to President Dwight Eisenhower.

He was shocked to learn that he’d instead be protecting the first lady.

“I was very upset about it,” Hill said. “I didn’t really want that assignment.”

But it turned out to be the best job in the Secret Service at the time, Hill said.

Jackie Kennedy and Hill built up a trust and became friends, though she always called him Mr. Hill, and he always called her Mrs. Kennedy.

“We shared secrets, and we got to know each other very well,” Hill said.

That historic day in Dallas was unusual because the first lady was campaigning with Kennedy, something she often shied away from doing.

During the motorcade, Hill was positioned behind Jackie Kennedy on the follow-up car and was scanning people taking photos from a grassy area off to the left.

Then he heard an explosive noise over his right shoulder, and his eyes scanned past the presidential vehicle.

“I saw the president grab at his throat and kind of move to his left. I knew something had happened,” Hill said.

“I jumped from the follow-up car and ran toward the presidential vehicle,” he said. “My attempt was to get on the back of the presidential car and place my body above the president and Mrs. Kennedy so that I would shield them from anything that was a possibility of happening.

“There was a second shot, apparently, but I didn’t hear it because I was running.

“Then the third shot happened just as I was approaching the presidential vehicle. I slipped, had to regain my steps, got up on the car. The president had been hit in the upper right rear of his head with that third shot.

“There were blood and brain matter and bone fragments throughout the entire area, including myself. He slumped to his left. Mrs. Kennedy came up from her seat onto the trunk of the car trying to grab some of the material that came off his head. … I grabbed her and put her back into her seat. When I did that, the president’s body fell into her lap.

“The right side of his face was up, and I could see his eyes were fixed. There was a hole in the upper right rear of his head. It appeared to me that he was dead.”

Hill gave a thumbs-down to the follow-up car, and agents yelled to the lead driver to go to Parkland Hospital. Hill continued lying on the back of the car to shield the Kennedys as the car sped 80 mph to the hospital.

‘Downward spiral’

After the assassination, Hill continued to be assigned to the first lady and the children until the election.

He was then assigned to President Lyndon Johnson and served him during the tumultuous time that included the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy.

Hill also protected Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford.

In 1970, a promotion had Hill working an administrative desk job, and for the first time since the assassination, he had time to think. That day in Dallas was never far from his mind.

“I gradually deteriorated emotionally, and that affected my physical well-being,” Hill said.

In 1975, doctors said he wasn’t fit for the Secret Service, and he retired at age 43.

Hill returned to North Dakota and worked on his sister’s farm for about six weeks, “trying to get everything out.”

That year, he also spoke about the assassination for the first time in a famous interview with Mike Wallace of “60 Minutes.” Prior to that, Hill hadn’t talked about that day with anyone, not even his family.

Hill’s emotional state only worsened in his retirement.

“By 1976, I was once again in a downward spiral, and that lasted until 1982,” Hill said. “I had a great big bottle of scotch and a carton of cigarettes, and I laid on a couch in my very dark basement.”

Then in 1982, a doctor told Hill he either had to change or die.

“I decided I wanted to live,” Hill said.

Without any help, Hill quit drinking and did some security work for Chrysler, Mesa Petroleum and Billy Graham during the 1980s.

Decades after the assassination, Hill was still not talking about that day. He declined to be interviewed in 2003 for the 40th anniversary of the event.

“I didn’t want to talk about any of this type of thing and never did,” Hill said. “We as agents never talked about the assassination among ourselves. I never discussed it with any member of my family.”

Then fellow Secret Service agent Gerald Blaine and journalist Lisa McCubbin began working on the book “The Kennedy Detail.”

Hill said McCubbin convinced him that it would benefit history if he revealed details of that day from his perspective.

Contributing to the book proved to be beneficial for Hill, and he’s now talking more openly about that day for the first time, nearly 50 years later.

Hill and McCubbin also are collaborating on a book, “Mrs. Kennedy and Me,” that will be published in the spring of 2012.

In 1990, Hill did something he wishes he would have done earlier: He returned to Dallas and walked Dealey Plaza and looked out the window of the sixth floor.

“I came to the conclusion that on that particular day, because of everything involved, the weather, the angle of the building, the way the street was configured and the way the motorcade was running at the time that I did everything I could, and I really couldn’t have done any more than that,” Hill said.

"Banal, like a PR piece for Secret Service"-The Kennedy Detail

2.0 out of 5 stars Banal, like a PR piece for Secret Service, October 5, 2011
By David A. Woerner (Houston, Texas area) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME) Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: The Kennedy Detail: JFK's Secret Service Agents Break Their Silence (Hardcover)
This book is very boring and banal, and reads like a public relations piece for the Secret Service. Everyone is competent and a complete professional. Not a word about Kennedy's private activities. Not worth your time to read, nothing to learn here

Notes (related to "The Kennedy Detail") in the outstanding book "Rawhide Down" by Del Quentin Wilber

Page 29: "...it was important that the president...trust the members of his Secret Service detail and even take their orders when necessary."


Page 42: "Better training might have prevented some of the terrible tragedies that haunted the agency. For instance, the driver of President Kennedy's limousine [Secret Service Agent William R. Greer] didn't recognize the sound of gunfire after [the] first shot. When Kennedy was hit by the second bullet, the driver slowed down as he glanced over his shoulder to see what was happening behind him. A few seconds later, with the agent having taken no evasive action and the limousine still lumbering straight down the street, the third, fatal bullet struck Kennedy in the head." On page 243 (Notes section), Wilber writes: "Many Secret Service agents expressed this sentiment in interviews [Wilber interviewed 25 former agents, including Jerry Parr, Robert Powis, Robert DeProspero, and John Simpson]." Wilber quotes from William Manchester's book "The Death of a President" [pages 155-156], "Even more tragic was the perplexity of Roy Kellerman, the ranking agent in Dallas, and Bill Greer, who was under Kellerman's supervision. Kellerman and Greer were in a position to take swift evasive action, and for five terrible seconds they were immobilized."

Page 130: "As a young military aide, [Secretary of State Alexander] Haig had helped plan Kennedy's funeral, and he'd long suspected the Soviet Union or Cuba of playing a role in the killing."

Secret Service Agent Dan Emmett

Gainesville native helped protect 3 presidents while in Secret Service
Emmett was on duty during 9/11 attacks



By Brandee A. Thomas



POSTED: September 11, 2011 1:30 a.m.


There are people who are overwhelmed by tragedies. No matter how hard they try, they can’t seem to rise above the misery of it all.
Dan Emmett isn’t one of those people. From the assassination of President John F. Kennedy to the 9/11 terrorist attacks, those tragic situations are the ones that brought his purpose into focus.
And each of those key dates ultimately led him to his career in the Secret Service.
Nov. 22, 1963
"I was 8 years old when President Kennedy was assassinated. I recall it very well," said Emmett, a Gainesville native.
"I was coming out of school, walking down the sidewalk and someone said the president had been shot and was dead. I didn’t believe them at first. I thought it was something a kid made up."
After watching news coverage with his family, Emmett realized it wasn’t a playground rumor. The president was dead.
While television reports broke the news to Emmett, it was a newspaper article showing Secret Service Agent Clint Hill sprawled on the back of the Kennedy limousine that really got Emmett’s attention. In the photo, Hill is seen attempting to shield the president and first lady with his body.
"When I saw the photograph, I asked my father why (the agent) was doing that. Dad explained to me that it was the Secret Service agent’s job to get between an assassin and the president and to take a bullet, if necessary," Emmett said.
"When I saw that photograph, it made quite an impression. I thought, ‘Gosh, that sounds like a really
important and really dangerous job. That’s exactly what I want to do some day.’"
His sentiments back then as an Enota Elementary School student weren’t a fleeting childhood fantasy.
"Throughout my young life different ambitions came and went as they do with young people, but that ambition always came back," Emmett said.
March 30, 1981
After graduating from what is now North Georgia College & State University, Emmett joined the U.S. Marine Corps. He served from 1977 to 1981 and reached the rank of captain.
With less than a year left to fulfill his military commitments, it was another president’s encounter with a shooter that reminded Emmett of his childhood goal.
"When (former President Ronald Reagan) was shot in March of 1981, that’s when I made the firm decision to become a Secret Service agent," Emmett said.
"That shooting brought that goal back to the front of my mind. I was always a very adventurous child and young person, that’s why I joined the Marine Corps. Being an infantry officer, which I was, was a very hazardous profession."
Aside from feeding his adventurous spirit, Emmett says he saw becoming a Secret Service agent as a continuation of his service to his country.
"My father was a World War II veteran. Providing service to country was instilled in me almost from birth," Emmett said.
"It was a natural progression from Marine Corps to Secret Service. It was the patriotic thing to do."
After being accepted into the Secret Service training program, Emmett worked up the ranks of service to presidential detail.
"I remember my first day (on presidential detail in 1989) very well. I reported to the west wing of the White House, which is where the Secret Service command post was located," Emmett said.
"My first day, I worked the 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. shift. I remember it was a very hectic day. Very little of the procedure is written down. Almost everything someone shows you how to do it and then you have to remember it.
"It was a hectic day, but I was very happy that I was there. I was happy that I finally made it to what I wanted to do with my career: provide direct, arms-length protection to the president."
In his 21-year career as a Secret Service agent, Emmett provided direct protection to three sitting presidents: George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush.
"Secret Service agents are totally apolitical. We don’t care who is in the White House. We provide everyone with the exact same level of protection," Emmett said.
"In terms of the ones I enjoyed working with the most, it was probably (Clinton). He was the most personable of the three that I worked directly for.
"He was very outgoing and a people person. Whereas (both presidents Bush) kept things more on a business level, (Clinton) enjoyed engaging in conversations with the agents when the situation allowed."
Of all his duties over the years, the now retired agent says one of his most enjoyable was Clinton’s morning jogs.
"That’s what I would call real protection. We would run through downtown Washington in the middle of morning rush hour. No one had been swept for explosives or weapons, it was just the man on the street. Anyone could’ve been there," Emmett said.
"He did not like to run at secure facilities like the military bases around Washington. He wanted to go out and run with the public. You would have morning joggers who would see him, come over and ask if they could run with him for a while.
"He usually would agree. It made us cringe because we had no idea who this person was, but we were running within two steps of him, keeping a very close eye on that person."
Sept. 11, 2001
In 1994, Emmett settled into his role as instructor at the U.S. Secret Service Academy.
Initially, he was only planning to stay for a few years before retiring. He ultimately enjoyed teaching so much he decided to stay on and scrapped plans for retirement.
If it wasn’t for the events that occurred on 9/11, he could possibly still be teaching.
"I was busy teaching a class when someone said an airplane had flown into one of the World Trade Center towers. I’m a private pilot, so I know things about flying and I knew that the East Coast was experiencing good weather that day, so that just didn’t sound right," Emmett said.
"It didn’t sound like an accident to me. About a half hour later, another instructor came by and said another plane had flown into the other World Trade tower. At that point, I knew we were definitely under attack."
Immediately following the terrorist attacks, Emmett says things changed quickly at the academy.
"We changed from a five-day training week to six days. The instructors never got to go home," Emmett said.
"We were constantly shoveling new agents through the pipeline."
The attacks also changed something inside of Emmett.
"At that point, I decided I needed to go back to the presidential detail as soon as I could," Emmett said.
"Had it not been for 9/11, I probably would’ve retired from service directly from the training academy."
After completing his final year on presidential detail in 2004, Emmett joined the Central Intelligence Agency, a move he also says was inspired by 9/11.
"The CIA offered me a really good job in the counterterrorism center. That allowed me to be right where I wanted to be," Emmett said.
"In the Secret Service, you’re always on the defense, trying to stop an attack. But at the (CIA), you’re on the offense. Had it not been for 9/11, I never would’ve gone into the (CIA). Sept. 11 changed everything."
Emmett now resides in Alabama, but visits his Gainesville family monthly. He recently finished a book about his career in the Secret Service. It is tentatively titled "Worthy of Trust and Confidence" and should be released by the beginning of next year.
"‘Worthy of trust and confidence’ is the Secret Service motto. People always ask me if we agents take an oath promising to take a bullet (for the people under our protection)," Emmett said.
"There’s no such oath. Secret Service agents do not want to take a bullet for anyone. We’re not martyrs looking to die. It’s just understood that you may be called upon to place your life in jeopardy, so that the office of the presidency can survive.
"Taking a bullet is not something you want to do, but something you would do if the situation presented itself."

Notes on/ review of "Get Carter" by former Secret Service Agent William Carter

Notes on/ review of "Get Carter" by former Secret Service Agent William Carter

"Get Carter" copyright 2006 Bill Carter

[NOTE: ITEMS IN BOLD DEBUNK BLAINE'S "THE KENNEDY DETAIL", four years before publication, by a fellow JFK/ LBJ agent!]

(includes an excerpt from correspondence I had WITH Bill Carter)


Bill Carter was a Secret Service Agent who, like Blaine, protected JFK & LBJ. Unlike Blaine, Carter also was sent to Dallas shortly after the assassination via Inspector Thomas Kelley re: the investigation. Unlike Blaine, Carter interviewed important TSBD witnesses and guarded the Oswald family, as well as accompanying Marina Oswald to her WC testimony. Finally, unlike Blaine, Carter interviewed both Jack Ruby & Earline Roberts...so, needless to say, he was infinitely more important to the Service---and the study of the JFK assassination---than Blaine ever was


(pages 9, 10, 20, 21, 32, 33, etc: Agent Roy Leteer)

Pages 21-23 CONFIRMS JFK'S SORDID PRIVATE LIFE


(page 24: SAIC Gerald Behn)

page 25 Agent Dick Keiser "one of my best friends in the Secret Service" (see also page 52)

(page 25: Agent Clint Hill)

also page 25: first mentions the "friendship" issue (between the agents and the president) as an alleged matter of importance regarding JFK's security

(page 27: Agent Jim Plichta)

(page 28: Agents Jim Plichta, John Gorman, and Carroll Hamilton)

(page 32: Agent Win Lawson)

(page 33: Agents Lawson, Olsson, Grant, Ed Morey re: Little Rock trip with JFK October 1963)

page 34: "..THE SECRET SERVICE STILL HAD ABSOLUTE AUTHORITY"

PAGE 35: "THE SECRET SERVICE HAD COMPLETE AUTHORITY WHEN IT CAME TO A PRESIDENTIAL VISIT"


page 36: Win Lawson became a good friend

page 40: the bubbletop "would have shattered or disrupted the trajectory of the bullet"---"I assume your theory on the bubbletop was that had it been on the car it was not bullet proof. True, however, I contend at the angle of the shot it would have altered the course of the bullet... I did the advance with Win Lawson in Little Rock 6 weeks prior to Dallas and I had complete confidence in him and considered him one of our best agents."---4/6/07 e-mail from Carter to Palamara [also: page 74- the bubbletop " would have been sufficient to alter the course of the bullets"]


page 41: "recommended Secret Service procedure, which stated that two agents from the follow-up car would ride on running boards on each side and to the rear of the presidential limo."




page 43: interviewed several important TSBD witnesses

[pages 273-274: memo from Behn to Rowley dated 12/9/63---after-the-fact, not signed or on Treasury Department stationary, but appears to be an extended (the ending) version of Behn's April 1964 report]


page 45: (from Clint Hill's report) "If the crowd is very heavy, but the automobile is running at a rather rapid speed, the agent rides on the left rear of the presidential automobile on a step specifically designed for that purpose" [see also page 281]

page 46: "I believe it was [JFK's] destiny to die that day in Dallas"---gee, that's good to hear from an agent-NOT!

page 47: believes no agents on/ near the rear of the limo played a major role in JFK's death!

page 53: "worked for the Warren Commission" in Dallas (!)

pages 53-54: accompanied Marina Oswald to her WC testimony+security of Oswald family [see also picture on page 104]


page 54: "...not only did I know about the supposed brainwashing [of Oswald's family], but I was one of the people responsible for it. You hear about alleged conspiracy theories, and it's odd to realize you were a part of the conspiracy."--!!!!




page 54: "the raw footage of the film shot by Abraham Zapruder"; when film show years later, "the portion that was so graphic had been cut out"--!!


(page 54: agents Charlie Kunkel and Mike Howard)

(page 55: agents Kunkel, Howard+ Art Blake, Gary Seale, and Leon Gopadze re: Oswalds)

(page 56: agents James Leckey, Anthony Sherman, Lawrence Hess, and Talmadge Bailey re: investigation)

(page 61: agents Maurice Miller, Jerry Parr, Robert Jamison, and Ed Moore- also re: investigation)


page 61: interviewed Jack Ruby

page 70: interviewed Earline Roberts, Oswald's landlady- mentions the police car horn incident but doesn't note it's tremendous significance!




page 74: Carter does erroneously state, with no direct evidence (examples: claiming he heard it directly or in writing before the fact), the JFK-ordered-the-agents-off-the-limo-crap...Carter wasn't on the Dallas trip or, for that matter, the Tampa trip four days before and, if that wasn't enough, on the very same page, he erroneously states that BILL GREER drove President Nixon later--uhhh, Bill: Mr. Greer retired in 1966!

page 84: Win Lawson held in high esteem; both Hill & Lawson suffered enormously due to the assassination

page 85: "Senior agents were frequently in a position to know what was being discussed [re: JFK & White House policy]"



pages 87-88+94: Agent Bob Taylor, SAIC of Memphis office; later, SAIC of LBJ and Nixon

page 103: captions the Altgen's photo on Elm Street as allegedly depicting the agents in the follow-up car looking upward towards the TSBD as the source of the shots, but Paul Landis stated that at least one shot came from the front (and both himself and Ready appear to be looking sideways, perhaps to the rear, but NOT up, while agent Bennett stated he saw a bullet strike the president several inches down on the BACK. In addition, Agent Sam Kinney told me he believed there was a conspiracy, all three shots made their mark on JFK, and the right rear of JFK's head was blasted, thus ALSO confirming Agent Hill's WC testimong and report on the head shot matter [Hill also corroborates Bennett re: the placement of the BACK wound]. Finally, aides Dave Powers and Ken O'Donnell believed at least one shot came from the front, while ATSAIC Emory Roberts stated in his report that "no one seemed to know" WHERE the shots came from!!!)

[many chapters of NON-JFK material]

page 240: former agents Win Lawson and Toby Chandler were both on Dr. Billy Graham's security detail for many years (approx 1980's-early 2000's, perhaps longer]!

Sweet message from Abe Bolden to myself and a fellow researcher :O)

Quintin:

I have been trying to contact former agent Paolella concerning this question. So far, he hasn't answered my inquiry. I'll keep working on it. Some of the agents who would have been there are still alive.

You might try to direct your inquiry to Vince Palamara, the foremost authority on the secret service in the 60's. If he can be of help, he will be glad to assist you. He is a personal friend of mine and a very good researcher. He can be reached at the above email address.

Abraham W. Bolden, Sr.

Fabulous, intimate portrait of a First Lady through her own words: a treasure!

71 of 73 people [so far!]found the following review helpful on Amazon:

Fabulous, intimate portrait of a First Lady through her own words: a treasure!, September 14, 2011
This review is from: Jacqueline Kennedy: Historic Conversations on Life with John F. Kennedy (Hardcover)
A preliminary review: this book is an outstanding contribution to our understanding of one of the greatest First Ladies in our nation's history (in my opinion, only Eleanor Roosevelt and Betty Ford are her rivals). Jacqueline Kennedy comes to life in these pages, brilliantly edited and commented by renowned presidential historian Michael Beschloss. After reading so many "tell all" Jackie books that claim to have the "inside word", it is refreshing to have Jackie herself provide the first person account, not some journalist with 'sources'. There are many treasures and insights to be found in these pages, told in an intimate, straightforward fashion. As someone who has read countless books pertaining to President and Mrs. Kennedy, I thought nothing could surprise me at this late juncture. I was wrong. Caroline Kennedy has done us all a great service in providing the actual audio recordings from her mother's conversations with JFK aide Arthur Schlesinger, nobly transcribed and commentated by Beschloss.

"Jacqueline Kennedy: Historic Conversations on Life with John F. Kennedy" is required reading for all Kennedy fanatics and students of the First Lady. Again, this is merely a humble preliminary review, but, from what I have read and seen so far, I am greatly impressed. Highly recommended.

Vince Palamara

Verbatim? People are wondering about "The Kennedy Detail"

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars Kennedy Detail, June 15, 2011
By
VMI man (Richmond, Virginia) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Kennedy Detail: JFK's Secret Service Agents Break Their Silence (Hardcover)
Did the author have a tape recorder to record verbatim all conversations? Not historical fiction, but not entirely historical either. Interesting, but could have been shorter. He says that they preserved the car as evidence, but isn't there a photo showing the agents washing the interior of the car in front of the Parkland ER?






Initial post: Aug 2, 2011 12:13:04 PM PDT
Chris P. says:


You forgot about James Tague. Of course, so did Blaine who can remember all those conversations verbatim after all these years!

James P. Hosty, Investigated Oswald, Dies at 86

James P. Hosty, Investigated Oswald, Dies at 86


By PAUL VITELLO
Published: June 19, 2011

Special Agent James P. Hosty had a few dozen cases in his portfolio in October 1963 when his supervisor in the Dallas office of the F.B.I. handed him another. It was the well-thumbed file on a suspected communist agitator and possible spy named Lee Harvey Oswald.

James P. Hosty testifying before Congress in 1975.

Mr. Hosty tried to find Oswald during two trips into the field in early November, without any luck.

The two men met for the first time on Nov. 22, 1963.

Oswald was being held at Dallas police headquarters, charged with the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and the killing of a Dallas police officer. Mr. Hosty, taking notes as the police interrogated Oswald, was beginning the half of his life that would remain painfully entangled in the mystery and national trauma of the Kennedy assassination.

Mr. Hosty, who died of prostate cancer on June 10 in Kansas City, Mo., at 86, always said he regretted not having found Oswald in those weeks before the assassination. But he insisted it would not have made a difference.

Oswald had been on the F.B.I.’s radar since returning to the United States in 1962, with his Russian wife, after an unsuccessful effort to settle in the Soviet Union. He had been interviewed by other F.B.I. agents and described in their reports as an avowed communist, a potential spy and a heavy drinker, but never as a potential assassin.

When asked by a Congressional committee years later why he did not alert the Secret Service to Oswald before the president’s visit, Mr. Hosty replied: “The only thing that we could tell the Secret Service was a direct threat to the president. He made no direct threat to the president. Therefore we could not tell them.”

In fact, it was Mr. Hosty’s contacts with Oswald, rather than the lack of them, that came to haunt him. In 1975, testifying before Congress, Mr. Hosty admitted having received a letter from Oswald in the weeks before the assassination and destroying it on the day Oswald was killed by Jack Ruby, Nov. 24.

He said the letter included Oswald’s sharp protest over Mr. Hosty’s having questioned Oswald’s wife, Marina, when the agent made two visits to their home while Oswald was out. Mr. Hosty testified that he destroyed the letter on orders from his supervisor, J. Gordon Shanklin. (Mr. Shanklin denied giving such an order.)

Mr. Hosty also figured in a deception involving Oswald’s address book. Mr. Hosty’s name and phone number appeared in the book, but F.B.I. agents in Washington, taking inventory of the contents of it for the Warren Commission, left his name out. (Commission lawyers later obtained the address book and discovered the omission.)

Both incidents made Mr. Hosty a lightning rod for suspicion about the credibility of the F.B.I. in the aftermath of the assassination, raising questions for some about what the agency knew and would not tell. For others, the incidents suggested darker possibilities.

Mr. Hosty’s name is ubiquitous in the conspiracy literature. Oliver Stone’s 1991 movie “JFK” has a fictionalized version of him at the center of a conspiracy of government operatives who kill the president and set up Oswald — an F.B.I. informant in the film — to take the fall.

“The irony was, my dad was a devout Irish-Catholic Democrat Kennedy supporter,” said Thomas Hosty, one of Mr. Hosty’s nine children, a lawyer, who helped his father write his 1995 memoir, “Assignment: Oswald.” They conceived the project after “JFK,” he said, to set the record straight. “Being portrayed as part of a plot to kill the president, it was just so hurtful to him.”

In his memoir, Mr. Hosty acknowledges some mistakes but contends that F.B.I. officials made bigger errors — first by trying to eliminate evidence that might make it seem as though the agency had any hint of Oswald’s plans, and then by letting commission investigators portray Mr. Hosty as a bumbler when the evidence emerged about his contact with Oswald in the weeks before the assassination.

“I came to understand that one of our jobs was to protect the bureau’s image at all costs,” he wrote.

Mr. Hosty was among 12 agents reprimanded for various investigative improprieties after the release of the Warren Commission’s report. In 1965, he was transferred to the F.B.I.’s Kansas City office, where he served until his mandatory retirement at age 55, in 1979.

After retiring, he granted interviews to every writer and documentary filmmaker who asked him about Dallas, Thomas Hosty said. “Even the ones who had some conspiracy agenda,” he added. “He figured if these people met him, they would see who he was — a straight arrow.”

James Patrick Hosty was born on Aug. 28, 1924, in Chicago, one of seven children of Charlotte Irene and James Hosty Sr., an executive in a sugar company. He served in World War II and later graduated from the University of Notre Dame. He joined the F.B.I. in 1952.

He and his wife, Janet, who died in 1999, had 9 children, 7 of whom survive, along with 22 grandchildren and 9 great-grandchildren.

In his testimony before the Warren Commission in 1964, Mr. Hosty said he spent the morning of Nov. 22, 1963, in meetings, none of them related to Oswald. On his lunch hour, he went outside to watch the president’s motorcade go by and then crossed the street to get lunch. While he was eating, a waitress told him what she had just heard on the radio.

“I immediately stopped my lunch,” he said, “and got back to the office.”

He found out two hours later that the Dallas police had arrested a suspect and identified him as Lee Harvey Oswald.

“What was your reaction?” the commission investigator asked.

“Shock,” Mr. Hosty said.

This article has been revised to reflect the following correction:

Correction: June 22, 2011

An obituary on Monday about James P. Hosty, an F.B.I. agent who investigated Lee Harvey Oswald in 1963, misstated at one point Mr. Hosty’s testimony before the Warren Commission. He did not tell the commission that he had received a letter from Oswald in the weeks before President John F. Kennedy’s assassination and later destroyed it; Mr. Hosty did not publicly acknowledge receiving that letter until he testified before Congress in 1975.

Secret Service MANUAL

You won't find any Secret Service manual anywhere from any era: they are classified. And, yes: I am 1000000000000% sure there was and is and always has been a manual. Periodically, I get people randomly questioning the late Col Fletcher Prouty's "contention" that there was a manual...on THAT score, he was correct.

Beyond my absolute certainty, think about it this way: every major employer has an employee handbook---why wouldn't the Secret Service ("no,that's fine, boys; just go out there and fly blind: no written procedures or precedent needed" LOL)

Vince
For the proof there is/was a pre-assassination manual, see the only two over-the counter sources:

http://www.aarclibrary.org/publib/jfk/wc/wcvols/wh18/html/WH_Vol18_0340a.htm

and

Bowen and Neal, "The United States Secret Service" , 1960, p. 209


Vince Palamara