The Journey Podcast 30. William Matson Law: JFK’s Autopsy

William Matson Law — the only private researcher to interview Sibert and O’Neill, FBI agents at the autopsy.  Dennis David supervised the arrival of a metal casket behind Bethesda Hospital that contained JFK’s body 20 minutes before the official casket arrived in front.  With Bruce Pitzer, head of audio/visual department at Bethesda Naval Hospital, Dennis reviewed a film of the autopsy.  On JFK’s head, there was an apparent bullet hole on the right side, above the eyebrow.  We’re still living with the effects of JFK’s assassination. [Books: In The Eye of History, and At The Cold Shoulder of History.]

W: James Jenkins told me, when he was at the autopsy, Dr. James Humes said about the brain, “The damned thing fell out in my hand.”  Jenkins said that means it had been removed, and then replaced [BEFORE the body came in for its autopsy].  The media in this country do not want to look at the dark side of this event.  There’s always people in power that feel that the people can’t take the truth.  They don’t want to know the truth anyway.  It makes me sick to say that but it’s truly how it is in this country.

K: You were the first person to talk to Sibert and O’Neill (sent to the autopsy by Hoover to bring all evidence from the body to the FBI laboratory for processing).  What did you learn from those guys?

W: It confirmed what Paul O’Connor, one of the autopsy technicians, said.  JFK’s brain had been mostly removed before the autopsy (presumably to hide bullet trails that would have indicated multiple directions, multiple shooters, destroying the government’s lie that Oswald was the lone gunman).  I couldn’t believe I was actually sitting with Jim Sibert, this guy nobody had been able to get through to.  Being at the right place at the right time, and being obsessed with something can take you places.  Sibert and O’Neill thought that Arlen Specter, who had interviewed them, was a liar.  They knew they had been duped.

Dennis David supervised the arrival of a cheap metal shipping casket at the back of the Bethesda morgue 20 minutes before the hearse showed up with the official casket supposedly containing President Kennedy’s body.  Two or three days later Commander Boswell, I believe, who was at the autopsy, confirmed to Dennis that JFK’s body had arrived in that metal casket.  And Dennis reviewed a film of the autopsy with Bruce Pitzer, head of the audio/visual department at Bethesda Naval Hospital.  On JFK’s head, there was an apparent bullet hole on the right side, above his eyebrow.

K: America should be applauding you.  For getting on planes to talk to all these people, for bringing forward all you found, for letting these guys tell their stories their ways.

W: I did it for me.  I just had to know what happened.  Sometimes with obsession, all you can do is give into it.  I learned that the suspicions about John Kennedy’s murder were absolutely true and absolutely valid.

K: We’re still living with the effects of that act.