Mr. McCLOY. Is this anticipating something you have got?
Mr. STERN. No.
Mr. HOSTY. This interview took place quite a bit after the
assassination. I did talk to Mr. Truly about I believe it was in
January or February of 1964, and it concerned the time that he, Mr.
Truly, was aware of the fact that there would be a parade through
downtown Dallas. And his recollection was that he was not aware of
the fact that the motorcade would pass in front of his building until
shortly before noon on the 21st when an article appeared in the Dallas
Times Herald.
Now the Dallas Times Herald appears on the street at approximately
10:30 a.m., and Mr. Truly said shortly before noon someone from his
office saw this article and mentioned it to the office employees and
said they all became excited, and this was apparently the first time
anyone at the Texas School Book Depository realized the motorcade was
going to pass directly in front of their building.
Representative FORD. This was Thursday?
Mr. HOSTY. Thursday before, yes. It was shortly before noon.
Representative FORD. The 21st?
Mr. HOSTY. On the 21st of November, yes.
Mr. McCLOY. But according to your recollection of what he said, all
the employees were excited and became aware of the fact that the
motorcade----
Mr. HOSTY. At that time.
Mr. McCLOY. At that time was going to pass the School Book Depository.
Mr. HOSTY. Right.
Mr. McCLOY. Did you notice that Oswald said in the course of his
interview by Captain Fritz that he had not had a rifle but he had seen
a rifle in the possession of Mr. Truly?
Mr. HOSTY. Right.
Mr. McCLOY. Did you interrogate Mr. Truly about that?
Mr. HOSTY. No, I didn't.
Mr. McCLOY. Do you know whether anyone else did?
Mr. HOSTY. I can't say for certain, no.
(Discussion off the record.)
Mr. McCLOY. Back on the record.
Do you know, Mr. Rankin, whether or not Mr. Truly has been interviewed
on this subject?
Mr. RANKIN. It has been reported to me by the staff that he has.
Mr. McCLOY. Does he deny it, do you know?
Mr. RANKIN. He denies it.
Mr. McCLOY. He denies it?
Mr. RANKIN. Yes.
Mr. McCLOY. But we have no deposition from him in that regard as yet.
Mr. BELIN. No; we do not.
Senator COOPER. May I ask first as to Exhibit No. 830, you have it?
Mr. HOSTY. Yes, sir.
Senator COOPER. Does that represent statements made to you?
Mr. HOSTY. Yes, sir.
Senator COOPER. On November 5, did Mrs. Ruth Paine tell you that she
thought Lee Oswald was an illogical person?
Mr. HOSTY. Yes, sir.
Senator COOPER. And that he admitted to her being a Trotskyite
Communist?
Mr. HOSTY. Yes, sir.
Senator COOPER. Did you know that he had engaged in this Fair Play for
Cuba demonstration in New Orleans and had been arrested?
Mr. HOSTY. Yes, sir.
Senator COOPER. You were told on November 1 that he was employed at the
Texas School Book Depository?
Mr. HOSTY. Yes, sir.
Senator COOPER. Had you checked there to see if he was employed?
Mr. HOSTY. I made a pretext interview on the 4th.
Senator COOPER. On what day?
Mr. HOSTY. The 4th of November.
Senator COOPER. Considering that he was a defector, you knew he was a
defector?
Mr. HOSTY. Yes, sir.
Senator COOPER. And considering that he had been engaged in this
demonstration in New Orleans, and the statement that Mrs. Paine had
made to you, did it occur to you at all that he was a potentially
dangerous person?
Mr. HOSTY. No, sir.
Senator COOPER. Why?
Mr. HOSTY. There is no indication from something of that type that he
would commit a violent act. This is not the form that a person of that
type would necessarily take. This would not in any way indicate to me
that he was capable of violence.
Senator COOPER. I believe you testified that you didn't know the route
of the----
Mr. HOSTY. That is correct, sir.
Senator COOPER. Of the procession which passed the Texas School Book
Depository?
Mr. HOSTY. That is correct, sir.
Senator COOPER. Did it occur to you to communicate this information to
the Secret Service or the Dallas police about Oswald?
Mr. HOSTY. No, sir; there would be no reason for me to give it to them.
Mr. McCLOY. You did know he was lying though, didn't you?
Mr. HOSTY. Yes, sir.
Mr. McCLOY. Don't you think the combination of the fact that you knew
that he was lying and that he was a defector and that he had this
record with the Fair Play for Cuba, that he might be involved in some
intrigue that would be if not necessarily violent, he was a dangerous
security risk?
Mr. HOSTY. He was a security risk of a sort, but not the type of person
who would engage in violence. That would be the indication.
Representative FORD. What are the criteria for a man being a potential
violent man? Is this a subjective test?
Mr. HOSTY. You mean to the point where we would report him to the
Secret Service?
Representative FORD. Yes.
Mr. HOSTY. It is instructions we had as of the 22d of November, we had
to have some indication that the person planned to take some action
against the safety of the President of the United States or the Vice
President.
Representative FORD. How do you evaluate that? Do you have any criteria?
Mr. HOSTY. No; at that time it was that there had to be some actual
indication of plan or a plot.
Representative FORD. There had to be a conspiracy of some sort?
Mr. HOSTY. Well, or a single person doing something if anyone was
going to take any action against the safety of the President or Vice
President.
Representative FORD. I think you testified earlier that at the time of
the motorcade you were at your lunch hour.
Mr. HOSTY. Right.
Representative FORD. And were actually eating lunch? When a
President visits a community, is the FBI or its people assigned any
responsibilities as far as the security of the President is concerned?
Mr. HOSTY. Prior to November 22, I know of no incidents where the FBI
was called in to help the Secret Service, to my knowledge.