Let Justice Be Done [Paperback]

William Davy (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 12, 1999

An historical "post-mortem" on the investigation into the assassination of President Kennedy that was conducted by New Orleans District Attorney, Jim Garrison in the 1960's.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

A freelance author who has written over a dozen magazine articles on the Jim Garrison investigation. This is the author's first book.

Product Details

• Paperback: 341 pages
• Publisher: Jordan Pub (May 12, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0966971604
• ISBN-13: 978-0966971606
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,388,699 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Jim Garrison's Pursuit of Truth, September 7, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Let Justice Be Done (Paperback)

The 1967-69 investigation of the Kennedy assassination by the late New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison remains one of the most controversial moments of modern American history. William Davy's new book Let Justice Be Done provides important insights into the significance not only of the investigation and subsequent trial for conspiracy of local businessman Clay Shaw, but the world of clandestinism at an important phase of the Cold War.

Oliver Stone's film JFK offered a Garrison (played by Kevin Costner) very dependant on Hollywood superhero conventions. The real Garrison was a flawed man who was nevertheless folkloric in his commitment to the truth of the Kennedy murder. In contrast to the work of his detractors, Davy's book avoids long-distance psychoanalysis of Garrison and sticks with hard, documentary evidence.

We now know that the FBI, CIA, and, much later, the House Select Committee of the US Congress took Garrison very seriously, believing he indeed "had something." Davy shows incontrovertibly that sectors of government authority worked hard not just to discredit Garrison's evidence, but to destroy him utterly.

We also know several key points, thanks to Davy. Among them is that Clay Shaw was a liar and a perjurer. He lied to his own attorney in open court when he was asked whether he ever worked for the CIA. He lied repeatedly and with great facility to journalists on the same question. Between 1948 and 1956, Shaw filed over 30 reports to the CIA, some of them containing what amounts to psychological profiles of foreign leaders.

Many argue that Shaw was an "unwitting" CIA agent. The published record simply doesn't support this. Shaw certainly knew he wasn't filing reports to the Rotary Club. And Shaw's many rightist political associations show a ideologue who was hardly the "Wilson/FDR liberal" he represented to the press.

There is much more. Davy shows how the House Committee of the 70s found many of Garrison's key assertions about the Kennedy assassination to be correct. Some Garrison attackers argue that the Committee was somehow "taken in" by Garrison, this despite the fact that the Committee's chief counsel, G. Robert Blakey, despised Garrison. The phrasing of the documents cited by Davy shows that to a some degree the House Committee on Assassinations vindicated Garrison.

In the wake of the ongoing backlash against the Oliver Stone film and "conspiracy theory", Davy's book is an important interrogation of history. As so many conservative voices take over the discourse on the Kennedy assassination, Davy's book asks us to question further what constitutes "official" history.

43 of 48 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Almost Definitive Book on the Garrison Probe, April 22, 2000

By 

Joe Biles (Mineral Wells, Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Let Justice Be Done (Paperback)

In the fine legal tradition of jurisprudence, the line for determining innocence or guilt, acquital or conviction in a criminal trial has always been "reasonable doubt." Thusly, shortly after midnight on 1 March 1969, Clay L. Shaw, the only man ever indicted for conspiracy to kill President Kennedy, was acquited after deliberations of less than an hour.

Though I have always believed in Shaw's participation in the alleged conspiracy and supported the allegations of the late New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison, I too would have to have voted to acquit based on the evidence presented at trial (which thanks to fellow reviewer Dave Reitzes, is available to anyone at www4.50megs.com/reitzes/shawtest.html). However, after reading Mr. Davy's book, I no longer have any doubt whatsoever in my mind that Clay Shaw was guilty as charged.

This book is by no means the definitive book on the Garrison probe. That book has yet to be written. What I would recommend is to first read James DiEugenio's "Destiny Betrayed," which is a far better summary of the actual investigative process, the assassination in general, Jim Garrison himself and the later aspects of the investigation (i.e. the HSCA) up until 1992. Then read this book. "Let Justice Be Done" doesn't bother to summarize all the information detailed in "Destiny Betrayed" and avoids dealing with Jim Garrison the person, but rather moves in for the kill by analyzing all the new evidence brought to light by the plodding work of the Assassination Record Review Board, which came into existence thanks to the uproar over Oliver Stone's film "JFK," which was based on the 1988 book "On the Trail of the Assassins," which--you guessed it--was Jim Garrison's personal retelling of the 1967-1970 investigation by his office into the assassination. As Davy notes, the case has come full circle. We are lucky that there was someone like William Davy who was willing to go through the reams of information released by the ARRB before it's demise in the fall of 1998 so soon after it's end, and also personally interview many of the crucial New Orleans witnesses.

There may be no smoking gun in what the ARRB released, but there's a hell of a lot of smoke--and most of it points straight at Clay Shaw. As Davy reveals, this humble businessman and civic leader was anything but. We now know that Shaw--along with E. Howard Hunt (found by the jury of the 1985 civil trial Hunt v. Liberty Lobby to have been an assassination conspirator) and Richard Nixon--was one of only three people who couldn't remember where they were when John Kennedy was gunned down in Dallas. This book is an absolute must read for any student of the assassination or Jim Garrison.

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Read, September 2, 1999

By 

Steven G. Jones (Landisville, PA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Let Justice Be Done (Paperback)

This is one of the 2 or 3 best books ever written on the JFK assassination for several reasons. First of all, it is based on the newest available evidence from declassified documents plus the author's own interviews of numerous eyewitnessess who were involved in the events surrounding the Garrrsion probe. Secondly, the book is very well written and easily accessible to anyone. A person who knows little about the assassination, but wants to know more, can pick this book up and become extremely informed in a short period of time.

There is no theorizing in this book. The author simply presents the facts as they are and lets the reader see for himself that the evidence is overwhelming and persuasive. Jim Garrison was indeed on the right track in prosecuting Clay Shaw for conspiracy to murder President Kennedy. The author discusses Shaw's extensive CIA background as well as how the Justice Department, in an unprecedented move in American history, clandestinely aided Shaw's defense and infiltrated Garrison's staff.

Author Davy exposes much of the lies and disinformation that have been spread about Garrison. The chapter titled, "Fourth Estate or Fourth Reich" is by far the most important in the book and should be required reading for any American citizen who cares about what it means to live in a democracy. In this chapter Davy takes the reader on a journey through the national news media that very few Americans are aware of. He details how well know journalists and major TV networks conspired with U.S. intelligence agencies to destroy Garrison's investigation before it ever got off the ground. I have done research on the assassination at the National Archives and have seen some of the documents Davy discusses. They are quite revealing and very frightening.

Jim Garrison never had a chance and now the average American who reads this book can understand why. There will be people who will attack this book because they don't want you to know the truth about our secret history. Don't take their word for it. Read the book and decide for yourself.