The testimony of James L. Ritchie was taken at 12:20 p.m., on June
17, 1964, at 200 Maryland Avenue NE., Washington, D.C., by Messrs.
William T. Coleman, Jr., and W. David Slawson, assistant counsel of the
President's Commission, Thomas Ehrlich, Special Assistant to the Legal
Adviser, Department of State, and Carroll H. Seeley, Jr., were present.
Mr. COLEMAN. Mr. Ritchie, will you state your full name?
Mr. RITCHIE. James L. Ritchie.
Mr. COLEMAN. Will you raise your right hand? Do you solemnly swear the
testimony you are about to give is the whole truth, and nothing but the
truth, so help you God?
Mr. RITCHIE. I do.
Mr. COLEMAN. Please state your name and address.
Mr. RITCHIE. James L. Ritchie, 5010 North 13th Street, Arlington, Va.
Mr. COLEMAN. Our information is, sir, that some time around October 22,
1963, you had occasion to look at the Oswald file----
Mr. RITCHIE. I did.
Mr. COLEMAN. After the Department received a telegram from the CIA
indicating that Oswald had made an inquiry at the Russian Embassy in
Mexico City, and that you took certain action as a result of looking at
the file?
Mr. RITCHIE. I did.
Mr. COLEMAN. And that is what we want to ask you about, sir. But before
I do that, let me ask you a few preliminary questions.
Mr. RITCHIE. Certainly.
Mr. COLEMAN. You have given your address, is that correct?
Mr. RITCHIE. Yes, sir.
Mr. COLEMAN. Where are you presently working?
Mr. RITCHIE. State Department Passport Office, Legal Division.
Mr. COLEMAN. And what is your position?
Mr. RITCHIE. Attorney advisor.
Mr. COLEMAN. And how long have you been in that capacity?
Mr. RITCHIE. Nine or ten years.
Mr. COLEMAN. Are you a member of the Bar?
Mr. RITCHIE. Yes; District of Columbia.
Mr. COLEMAN. When was the first time you ever heard the name Lee Harvey
Oswald?
Mr. RITCHIE. October 22, 1963.
Mr. COLEMAN. And would you indicate what occasioned your hearing the
name?
Mr. RITCHIE. The Security Division transmitted a telegram from the
CIA marked Secret, to the Passport Office. It was received in the
Legal Division October 16, and it had been marked "Mr. Anderson, pull
previous" which means get the file, and it was then handed to me
October 21, approximately.
Mr. COLEMAN. Who handed it to you?
Mr. RITCHIE. I don't know. It was placed on my desk. I imagine the
file----
Mr. COLEMAN. Prior to that time, you hadn't called for the file? You
knew nothing about the case?
Mr. RITCHIE. No; I knew nothing about it. It had been placed on my desk
for review. I read the telegram, noted that copies had been sent to
SCA, that is the Bureau of Security and Consular Affairs, CMA, Mexico,
the Soviet desk, and the press section of RAR.
Mr. SEELEY. American Republics Political Division.
Mr. COLEMAN. Then what did you do after you got the telegram?
Mr. RITCHIE. I reviewed the entire file.
Mr. COLEMAN. That means you read every document in the file?
Mr. RITCHIE. Yes.
Mr. COLEMAN. And do you have any idea how long it took you?
Mr. RITCHIE. Not more than a half hour.
Mr. COLEMAN. And then what did you do after you read or reviewed the
file?
Mr. RITCHIE. I don't want to say I read every item. I read the majority.
Mr. COLEMAN. As a lawyer?
Mr. RITCHIE. Yes; I glanced over it.
Mr. COLEMAN. You read what you felt was relevant?
Mr. RITCHIE. Relevant.
Mr. COLEMAN. But you did thumb through every document?
Mr. RITCHIE. Yes.
Mr. COLEMAN. What did you then do?
Mr. RITCHIE. I made a judgment there was no passport action to be
taken, and marked the file to be filed.
Mr. COLEMAN. Did you make a written memorandum?
Mr. RITCHIE. No, sir; just put "file" on it.
Mr. COLEMAN. Did you discuss it with Mr. Seeley or anyone else?
Mr. RITCHIE. I took the file to Mr. Seeley.
Mr. COLEMAN. Did you summarize for him what was in the file?
Mr. RITCHIE. No; I did not. I don't know what my exact words were to
him. I must have said, "Look at this."
Mr. COLEMAN. Didn't you say to him, "This guy was a defector"?
Mr. RITCHIE. I don't recall what I said to him, back in October. I know
I said something to him. I directed his attention to it.
Mr. COLEMAN. Then did he discuss it with you?
Mr. RITCHIE. No.
Mr. COLEMAN. You put the file on his desk and you didn't have anything
to do with it?
Mr. RITCHIE. That is right.
Mr. COLEMAN. Why did you put it on his desk?
Mr. RITCHIE. He was in charge of the section, and I just brought it to
him for his attention.
Mr. COLEMAN. Would you do that with every file that you are asked to
review?
Mr. RITCHIE. Those files that I thought should be brought to his
attention; yes.
Mr. COLEMAN. So, therefore, you felt that this file was other than just
the routine file that you would look at and put back?
Mr. RITCHIE. Yes, sir.
Mr. COLEMAN. Wouldn't you tell Mr. Seeley something as to why you
thought it was other than routine?
Mr. RITCHIE. No, sir; I just said "Look at it." I presume I just
directed his attention to the file, and that he should look at it.
Mr. COLEMAN. And then you had no more discussion with him?
Mr. RITCHIE. None that I can recall.
Mr. COLEMAN. Did you say anything to him, like for example, "This guy
the last time he was abroad tried to, or at least threatened that he
would give to the Soviets whatever he had learned in the Marine Corps
with reference to our radar information"?
Mr. RITCHIE. I have no recollection of my conversation with Mr. Seeley.
All I know is my usual procedure is I review a case. If there is no
passport action to be taken, I place it, mark it "file" and place it in
the box to go to file.
Mr. COLEMAN. Without Mr. Seeley taking a look at it?
Mr. RITCHIE. Without Mr. Seeley ever seeing it.