Mr. CUNNINGHAM. Demonstrative, yes. I don't know if you saw the
photographs of the cartridge cases in the rifle, the assassination
rifle. Those marks are just as distinctive as the more demonstrative
marks in this particular breech face. But to a trained examiner, they
stand out. They are harder to see than those on these particular
photographs. And even in these photographs, the photograph you were
asking me, they were not quite as vivid as they are on this photograph.
But there, again, it goes back to what I told you--each cartridge case
will strike the breech face in a slightly different way, and you don't
get complete similarity.
Mr. EISENBERG. To illustrate your point, Mr. Cunningham, I hand you
Commission Exhibit 565, which is a photograph, which was explained
yesterday, of the cartridge case fired in the rifle, and a test
cartridge.
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. Yes, this demonstrates it very well.
This is the very rough surface on the bolt of the assassination rifle.
Mr. EISENBERG. The bolt face?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. Yes; the bolt face, and it is just as distinctive as
these striae on my photographs of the breech-face marks of the revolver.
Mr. EISENBERG. By "striae" you mean lines?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. Yes; just lines. But it is more difficult to see, due
to the character of these marks--even though one type of mark is just
as characteristic as the other type.
Mr. EISENBERG. As I understand your testimony, to the trained observer
the photograph shown--the cartridges shown in the photographs on 565
can be as easily identified with each other as the cartridges shown on,
let's say, 598?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. That is correct.
Mr. EISENBERG. But to the layman it is easier to see the similarities
on 598, with its striae, than 565 with its grosser imperfections?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. Yes, sir; due to the type of marks on each of the
cartridge cases, one is easier for the layman to see.
The next photograph is Commission document No. 599. On the left of the
hairline is our number C-48, the cartridge case. On the right is the
test cartridge case from Oswald's revolver.
Now, here you asked about what happens--somebody asked what happens
on the other side. Here you have the other side. In this particular
cartridge case----
Mr. EISENBERG. That is the other half of the cartridge case?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. Yes, sir. In other words, you are seeing the primer,
the space between the primer and the brass on the cartridge case
itself--on the questioned cartridge case this time--and the base of
the cartridge case of the test is on the right. It looks like it is
one. It is just the opposite side of the cartridge case from the other
photographs.
In other words, you take the photograph of the most demonstrative
marks--which look real good, naturally. The examination is of all the
marks. That is the big difference. And this time you will see--it is
very demonstrative--on each side of the hairline, a great deal of
similarity between these marks.
Mr. EISENBERG. And the magnification here?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. It is approximately 96 times.
Mr. RHYNE. Why do you vary the magnification?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. The magnification of every photograph you take, sir,
depends on the length of the bellows of the camera. The microscope
will have a set magnification. But each time that you focus the
length of the bellows can change, which will increase or decrease the
magnification. Also with some photographs you mask off areas which are
out of focus. You certainly would not want to print a whole negative
where you have distortion. You bring into focus one small portion of
the surface of that bullet.
If, say, one surface of the bullet is slightly flattened and the other
surface is rounded--the rounded surface will be going out of focus much
faster than the flattened side, and it would be very confusing. That is
the type of thing. You mask differently.
Then when you have the negatives enlarged, you can enlarge one negative
more than you do the other. So it can be based either on the length of
the bellows, or on the amount you have enlarged it.
Mr. EISENBERG. Is that all the photographs?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. No, there is one more.
This photograph is a photograph of the firing-pin impression of the
C-49 cartridge case, and the firing-pin impression on the test from
Oswald's revolver, and this is Commission document 600.
Mr. EISENBERG. And the magnification?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. 120 times, approximately.
Now, here you have very distinctive marks, but it is much more
difficult for a layman to pick them out. That is the reason I have
circled these marks and numbered them, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, on each side
of the hairline. On the left is C-49, and on the right is the cartridge
case obtained from C-143.
You have this very large, very distinctive imperfection.
Mr. EISENBERG. You are pointing to circle number 1?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. In number 1. Also, in number 2, it looks like a little
set of railroad tracks, and this one with the same shape coming down
through. You can see this little piece and this little piece. Over here
you have a real small "railroad track."
Mr. EISENBERG. That is number 3?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. That is number 3. And it looks like a little hump or
bump, and that is very distinctive.
There is a slight overlapping here, but you can see it is sort of a =V=
shape--in number 4, very distinctive. Down here you have a =Z= line
with a line through it, number 6. I only brought those out to show six
of the similarities. If you go through you can pick out places in the
firing-pin impressions, that are similar, by yourself.
Mr. EISENBERG. On the top of each of these photos, C-49 and C-15, there
is a large comma-shaped indentation, or comma-shaped mark. What is that
caused by, Mr. Cunningham?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. That is caused by a very large imperfection--a very
distinctive imperfection in the firing pin itself. And here it is.
Here I am looking at Commission document 601, the breech face and
firing pin. If you will look at the firing pin in this photograph, you
will see over on this side, this very large imperfection. It is like
a facet--it is a flattened side. It shows up in the photograph of the
firing pin.
It is indented--since it is missing from the firing pin, it will show
as a flattened area in the firing-pin impression. In other words, what
is concave on the firing pin itself, will be convex in the firing-pin
impression.
Mr. EISENBERG. If there are no further questions on the cartridge
cases, I will move on to the bullets.
Representative FORD. Mr. Boggs?
Representative BOGGS. Just one question. What you are saying is that
there is no doubt about the fact that the cartridges that you examined
came from this revolver?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. That is correct.
Representative BOGGS. And, of course, there is no question about the
fact that this was Mr. Oswald's revolver. Is that so?
Mr. EISENBERG. That will be proved, I hope, before the end of the
hearings. This witness cannot himself testify.
Representative BOGGS. I understand that. I am asking you.
Mr. EISENBERG. There is no question, I don't think, about that. That
will be the subject of testimony.
Representative BOGGS. I know--we are not following the exact rules of
evidence around here.
Mr. EISENBERG. We will connect it up.
Representative BOGGS. In that connection--how many bullets were
recovered?
Mr. EISENBERG. Four were recovered from the body of the officer. But as
you will see from the testimony which we will get into right now, that
doesn't mean four shots were fired, because there is a slight problem
here. I would rather have the witness develop it.
Representative BOGGS. You are being very mysterious now, but it is all
right.
Mr. EISENBERG. Mr. Cunningham, I hand you four bullets in plastic cases
marked C-251, C-252, Q-13, and C-253, which have also certain other
markings on them, and I ask you if you are familiar with these bullets.
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. I am.
Mr. EISENBERG. Are your marks on these bullets?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. Yes, they are.
Mr. EISENBERG. For the record, I would like to state these four bullets
were recovered from the body of Officer Tippit.
When did you receive these bullets, Mr. Cunningham?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. The Q-13 bullet was delivered to the Laboratory the
first time on the morning of November 23d, and it was delivered to the
Laboratory by Special Agent Vincent Drain of the Dallas office of the
FBI.
Mr. EISENBERG. And the remaining bullets?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. By the way, it was returned to Dallas, and then it was
returned to the Laboratory, delivered again by Special Agent Vincent
Drain, of the Dallas office, also, Special Agent Warren De Brueys. They
delivered our Q-13 a second time on November 27th.
Representative FORD. When you say "our," what do you mean by "our"?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. In other words, to facilitate reporting in the
Laboratory, we usually give these items a Q or a K number. A Q number
is a questioned item, like a bullet from a body, and a known is a gun,
the K is a known, like a weapon.
That is for reporting purposes. But since this case began, we have so
much evidence, and we have received so much evidence, it was considered
practical to reassign a C number by us--like Mr. Eisenberg said, they
are C-253, C-262, and C-251. They also have a Q number. Q-13 is C-13.
That is the reason why I said "our" Q-13.
Mr. EISENBERG. When did you examine Q-13, Mr. Cunningham?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. November 23d, the first time. That was when I made my
examination. It was returned on the other date. But it was examined on
11-23.
Mr. EISENBERG. Now, Q-13 has in it a brass colored object, as well as a
bullet--that is, the box containing Q-13, your Q-13.
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. Yes. That was identified as the button--the
button--from the coat of Officer Tippit. The bullet struck that button
and when the bullet was removed from the body, the button was also
removed.
Representative BOGGS. Went right in?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. Yes, sir. I have no first-hand knowledge. But that is
what it was identified as.
Mr. EISENBERG. Mr. Chairman, I would like these four bullets admitted
as 602, 603, 604, and 605.
Representative FORD. They will be admitted.
(The articles referred to were marked Commission Exhibits Nos. 602
through 605, and received in evidence.)
Mr. EISENBERG. When did you receive what are now marked 603, 604, and
605, Mr. Cunningham?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. They were received in the FBI Laboratory on March 16th
of this year, and they were submitted to the Laboratory by the Dallas
office of the FBI.
Mr. EISENBERG. When were they examined?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. They were examined on March 17, 1964.
Mr. EISENBERG. Can you explain the great time difference between
the receipt and examination of the first bullet and the receipt and
examination of the last three bullets?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. At your request, you asked us to postpone the
examination of these three bullets in order to facilitate other
examinations you wished more expedited than the examinations of these
bullets.
Mr. EISENBERG. Now you are explaining the time between the receipt and
the examination?
Mr. CUNNINGHAM. Yes.