Mr. MARTELLO. Because he did not give me the impression of being a
violent individual. He was a very passive type of an individual.
Mr. LIEBELER. You have had experience with other pickets here in
New Orleans on several questions, and have you run into people who
demonstrated a passivity in the face of provocation before?
Mr. MARTELLO. Yes, sir.
Mr. LIEBELER. Did Oswald appear to be this kind of person?
Mr. MARTELLO. Yes, sir; he did, with one extension of the incident with
the Cubans. Although he was passive in his demonstration, he seemed
to have set them up, so to speak, to create an incident, but when the
incident occurred he remained absolutely peaceful and gentle.
Mr. LIEBELER. You just didn't think at the time you heard that Oswald
had been arrested in connection with the assassination that he would
have been capable of performing that act? Or did you have an opinion on
that question?
Mr. MARTELLO. Well, as far as being capable of an act, I guess
everybody is capable of an act, but as far as ever dreaming or thinking
that Oswald would do what it is alleged that he has done, I would bet
my head on a chopping block that he wouldn't do it.
Mr. LIEBELER. You just wouldn't have been able to predict that this guy
would have done something like that?
Mr. MARTELLO. That is right.
Mr. LIEBELER. And such an act would appear to you to be entirely
inconsistent with the attitude demonstrated to you while you knew him
here in New Orleans? Is that correct?
Mr. MARTELLO. Absolutely correct, sir.
Mr. LIEBELER. You indicate in your memorandum that you went through
your notes and the other materials that were collected at the time
Oswald was arrested, and you found a photograph of Oswald and a small
piece of white paper containing certain handwritten notes, which is
attached to the report that we have. There is a photostatic copy of
a sheet of paper with handwritten notes, and I ask you whether or not
that is a photostatic copy of the paper that you found in the material
you have just described?
Mr. MARTELLO. Yes; it is.
Mr. LIEBELER. And the original of this was taken from Oswald at the
time of his arrest? Is that correct?
Mr. MARTELLO. It wasn't actually taken from him. Due to the amount
of material he had in his possession, and upon Oswald taking various
credentials and identification cards out, it was left--it was
inadvertently picked up with the literature, and I put it in a file
folder and it remained there. I thought no more of it. He had already
been interviewed by the intelligence division of our department. It
was just by coincidence that I kept the notes. Normally I would have
discarded them.
Mr. LIEBELER. You turned the original of the paper that was kept over
to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, did you not?
Mr. MARTELLO. No, sir; I turned the original paper over to the United
States Secret Service along with the pamphlets, all of the pamphlets.
Mr. LIEBELER. As far as you know, the Secret Service still has that
material?
Mr. MARTELLO. That is correct, sir.
Mr. LIEBELER. Now did you become involved in any other questioning
of Oswald or investigation of Oswald, or did you become involved in
anything else having anything to do with Oswald back in August of 1963
other than what we have already talked about?
Mr. MARTELLO. No, sir; I did not see him but one more time, and that
was when he went to court, and that was the last time I saw him. The
only times I spoke to him was the times that we had mentioned during
the interview.
Mr. LIEBELER. Were you present at any time when Oswald may have been
interviewed by other officers or personnel of the police department?
Mr. MARTELLO. No, sir; I was not. I understand that he was interviewed
at the time of his arrest by members of the intelligence division of
the New Orleans Police Department.
Mr. LIEBELER. Did you interview any of the Cubans that were arrested at
the same time Oswald was arrested?
Mr. MARTELLO. No, sir; I did not. I believe the Cubans were paroled.
That is it, they were paroled.
Mr. LIEBELER. After the assassination, did the New Orleans Police
Department, to your knowledge, engage in any investigation concerning
Oswald or his prior activities in New Orleans?
Mr. MARTELLO. Not to my knowledge, sir. They may have, but at that time
I was in the First District, assigned to the First District, and I
wouldn't know if they had conducted any further investigations.
Mr. LIEBELER. Can you think of anything that you think the Commission
ought to know about that is within your knowledge, that I haven't asked
you about or we haven't covered so far? If you can I would like to have
you indicate it so that we could have the benefit of it.
Mr. MARTELLO. I think you did a very good job on me. I don't think
there are any questions that haven't been answered.
Mr. LIEBELER. In view of that, I have no other questions at this point.
I do want to thank you, Lieutenant Martello, for the cooperation you
have shown to us, and on behalf of the Commission I want to thank you
very sincerely for your coming here and giving the testimony that you
have given. Thank you very much.
Mr. MARTELLO. Thank you, sir.