In the Eye of History: Disclosures in the JFK Assassination Medical Evidence [Paperback]

William Matson Law (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 22, 2004

Several years ago, William Matson Law set out on a personal quest to reach an understanding of the circumstances underpinning the assassination of John F. Kennedy. His investigation began with a key component of the events of November 22, 1963, and the days that followed: the autopsy on the president's body at the National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, Maryland. He contacted those who were involved at Bethesda in various aspects of the aftermath of the assassination; In the Eye of History: Disclosures in the JFK Assassination Medical Evidence comprises "conversations" with eight individuals who agreed to talk:

Dennis David
Paul O'Connor
James Jenkins
Jerrol Custer
Saundra Spencer
Ex-FBI Special Agents James Sibert and Frances O'Neill

For the first time, these eyewitnesses relate their stories comprehensively in their own words. Law allows them to tell it as they remember it without attempting to fit any pro- or anti-conspiracy agenda. The reader is the judge of these eyewitness accounts and their implications.

Dennis David describes observing the arrival at Bethesda Naval Hospital of the navy ambulance carrying Jackie Kennedy with the official casket purportedly carrying the president's body -- some time after he had supervised the unloading of a shipping casket that he'd been told contained the body of the president. Autopsy technician Paul O'Connor helped remove the president's body -- he recalls that it was in a body bag -- from a shipping casket; this contrasts with the placement of the president's body in an ornate casket in Dallas, after wrapping only in sheets and towels. O'Connor's associate, James Jenkins, emerged from the autopsy convinced that the president had been shot from two directions. X-ray technician Jerrol Custer recalls seeing Mrs. Kennedy enter the Naval Hospital, having just arrived with her husband's body -- yet Custer was on his way to the darkroom to develop X-ray plates already taken of the president's corpse. Ex-FBI Special Agents James Sibert and Frances O'Neill pour scorn on the single-bullet theory -- the sine qua non of the Warren Report -- yet are reluctant to conclude that more than one sniper was involved. Harold Rydberg describes how he illustrated the president's wounds solely from verbal descriptions and provides first-hand impressions of the personalities of the autopsy doctors. Saundra Spencer compares and contrasts the extant photographs from the Kennedy autopsy with those that she developed; the differences are startling. And there is discussion of the 1966 death of William Pitzer in whose possession Dennis David claims to have seen a secret movie of the Kennedy autopsy.

Editorial Reviews

Review

A must have for researchers. It will become the standard volume on what really took place at the autopsy. -- Matthew Smith, author of JFK: The Second Plot

Anyone who wants a firsthand look at that long ago night, this is as close as we can now get. -- In his foreword, Dr. David W. Mantik

About the Author

William Law's interest in the Kennedy assassination began in 1975 with the showing of Abraham Zapruder's 26-second home movie of the event on Geraldo Rivera's Goodnight America program. Several years later, after reading David Lifton's book "Best Evidence", Law began researching Kennedy's murder. Results of that research have appeared in the books "November Patriots" by Constance Kritzberg and Larry Hancock, "JFK: The Medical Evidence Reference" by Vincent Palamara, "Murder In Dealey Plaza" edited by James Fetzer, and Paris Flammonde's forthcoming opus "An Encyclopedic Narrative and Historical and Personal Perspective on The Kennedy Coup d'Etat". Law has written for the research periodicals the "Kennedy Assassination Chronicles" and the "Dealey Plaza Echo", is producer of the forthcoming DVD "The Gathering", and currently serves as a consultant to film director Brian McKenna for his upcoming documentary "Killing Kennedy". He lives with his family in central Oregon.

Product Details

• Paperback: 369 pages
• Publisher: JFK Lancer Productions & Publications, Inc. (November 22, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0965658287
• ISBN-13: 978-0965658287
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,251,732 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

46 of 50 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bill Law has written a masterpiece; a great cornucopia, January 31, 2005

By 

Vince Palamara "SECRET SERVICE/JFK/STEELERS/M... (South Park/Bethel Park, PA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: In the Eye of History: Disclosures in the JFK Assassination Medical Evidence (Paperback)

First of all, I may be a little biased: I had Bill over my home back in 1998 during the two days it took to interview one of the x-ray technicians to JFK's autopsy, Jerrol Custer; a very memorable experience (as it was when I was present for the 11/22/91 interview of Custer done by Harry Livingstone for "High Treason 2"). That said, Bill has written a masterpiece: the best single volume of the medical evidence and related matters (a close second would be the medical chapters in "Murder In Dealey Plaza"). Very well written and put together, the book is a bona fide cornucopia of great nuggets of information from FIRST HAND WITNESSES to the autopsy, NOT JUST ANOTHER THEORY; very valuable. While this book would appeal to anyone with an interest in the Kennedy assassination, for those with a particular bent for all things medical, this work is essential reading. I have no complaints. Buy it asap.

30 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Cover-up of the highest level, December 13, 2005

By 

G. E. Mantel "RCM-Maki" (Mesabi Iron Range) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: In the Eye of History: Disclosures in the JFK Assassination Medical Evidence (Paperback)

Highly recommended book! Read this and then spend some time on the "History Matters" website to get an idea of the enormity of the JFK assassination cover-up.

We're not only talking about subversion of the medical evidence but also the backgrounds of Oswald & Ruby, Dealey eyewitness testimony, the failures of not only the Warren Commission but the HSCA and the ARRB ... and the list goes on ... for nearly a HALF CENTURY now.

Which is too-often overlooked by folks who want to direct the discussion towards the Mob, supposed JFK Cuban plots, Secret Service agents firing from the front seat, and whatnot.

Oliver Stone wondered who had the power to orchestrate such a massive cover-up ... who had to most to gain by it?

Makes sense.

43 of 51 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A very important book, May 12, 2005

By 

Doug Weldon (USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: In the Eye of History: Disclosures in the JFK Assassination Medical Evidence (Paperback)

History is not always what one reads in encyclopedias or text books. To understand what actually happened it is important to hear the accounts of those who were actually there, almost all of them merely by circumstance. What is interesting is that frequently when one hears the accounts of others who were present at the same event their perspective of everything changes. It is clear in this instance that each of the people interviewed subsequently realized that they were victims of deception. Some readers may be confused that people may give different descriptions of the same event. However, for anyone that has ever observed witnesses in the court process, different perspectives may often be given within hours of an event. It is similar to the three blind men describing an elephant. For me, some of the differences in the observations give the accounts more credibility. Some differences can never be resolved but the picture is clear that the truth about the death of JFK is far different than what one may read in official government reports. William Law has written an important book. For anyone who cares about the truth of what happened on November 22, 1963, this is a must for their library.