Mr. DEAN. To the southern portion of the basement?
Mr. GRIFFIN. Yes, sir.
Mr. DEAN. Yes, sir.
Mr. GRIFFIN. Why did you put a guard on that door, or in that area?
Mr. DEAN. For security reasons.
Mr. GRIFFIN. Did you have any reason to think that it would be possible
to get through from the subbasement?
Mr. DEAN. Well, I knew that there were doors going into the subbasement
from--however, I checked them and they were locked, but still there
was a possibility, since you did have doors there, or ingress from the
street.
Mr. GRIFFIN. Do you know where the ingress from the street to the
subbasement is?
Mr. DEAN. Yes, sir; as you enter on Commerce Street, going down into
the basement, there is a door on the southern side of the--just before
you go into the main part of the basement, that leads down. It's the
porters' quarters, that leads down to the porters' quarters.
Mr. GRIFFIN. Is there any other entrance into that subbasement?
Mr. DEAN. The elevators in the new city hall is the only ones that you
can get in, is the only place, other than the ramp--we had all places
covered. In fact, I assigned----
Mr. GRIFFIN. No. I am talking about the subbasement now.
Mr. DEAN. The garage portion?
Mr. GRIFFIN. That's right.
Mr. DEAN. No, sir; there is no other place.
Mr. GRIFFIN. Other than that door that comes into Commerce Street?
Mr. DEAN. Yes, sir; well, there is a door that was locked, another door
that's used as a--oh, I think they sometimes throw materials--it's not
even an elevator. It appears to be an elevator door, if you open it up,
it's a straight drop into the subbasement.
Mr. GRIFFIN. Where is that?
Mr. DEAN. I had the maintenance man open this door for me. He did and
I could see that you couldn't--or it would be hard for a man to climb
up a straight wall to open these doors. You couldn't open them from the
inside or the subbasement side of the door.
Mr. GRIFFIN. Now, do you have a clear recollection as to whether or not
any TV or radio or other wires came through the subbasement door up to
the basement area in the garage?
Mr. DEAN. There were none coming out. From the subbasement into the
garage area?
Mr. GRIFFIN. Yes.
Mr. DEAN. There were not.
Mr. GRIFFIN. Were there any TV or radio or other wires coming into the
garage area other than through the ramps?
Mr. DEAN. No, sir.
Mr. GRIFFIN. Now, did you give these people you stationed in the
garage area, Nelson and the reserve officer and--who was it that you
stationed--did you station somebody by the elevators at that time?
Mr. DEAN. Yes, sir; Brock.
Mr. GRIFFIN. Those three men, did you give them any specific
instructions?
Mr. DEAN. Yes, sir.
Mr. GRIFFIN. What were those instructions?
Mr. DEAN. That they were to let no one in other than--well, first
that they were to let no one in until we had completely searched the
basement, and then that we would notify them after we had completed the
search, and then they were to let no one in except authorized pressmen,
properly identified pressmen, newsmen, or policemen.
Mr. GRIFFIN. Did you have some reason to think that those people might
be coming through the entranceways that they were guarding?
Mr. DEAN. Did I have some reason to think this?
Mr. GRIFFIN. Yes.
Mr. DEAN. It was strictly security. I was doing exactly what my orders
were, to keep all people out. As far as any reason other than strictly
security; no.
Mr. GRIFFIN. What I am suggesting, really, is that you could have given
them a blanket order, "Don't let anybody in there"?
Mr. DEAN. That's right.
Mr. GRIFFIN. Any reason why you didn't give them that blanket order?
Off the record.
(Discussion off the record.)
Mr. GRIFFIN. Where were we?
(The record was here read by the reporter.)
Mr. DEAN. To just let no one in?
Mr. GRIFFIN. Yes.
Mr. DEAN. Well, just a moment. Let me--I knew that the pressmen--I
am wondering where I--it was just generally assumed to me that the
pressmen would be allowed to witness the movement of Oswald.
Mr. GRIFFIN. But from these doors, now, the men that were on the ramps,
of course, you would expect an influxion of people down those ramps,
but from those interior doors in the garage, I am wondering what
expectation you could have that anybody would be coming through there?
I am not asking this question to try to trip you up or anything like
that, but I am just wondering if you thought about this? You might
think of something that you had in mind that might shed some light on
this.
Mr. DEAN. No, sir; the only thing, I was searching the basement and to
do this I had to clear the basement to satisfy myself that there was
no one in the basement, and after I was satisfied with this, then the
press and the police officers could come back in the basement, if they
were properly identified.
Mr. GRIFFIN. Now, when you instructed Nelson and Brock and the reserve
officer, were Vaughn and Patterson also present?
Mr. DEAN. Yes, sir.
Mr. GRIFFIN. Of course, they were guarding the ramps?
Mr. DEAN. Right. Patterson, Vaughn were guarding the ramps, and
that was my instructions to them, to keep everyone out until we had
completed the search. Then after we had completed the search, to let
no one in other than properly identified pressmen or policemen, and to
not to leave those assignments unless they were relieved by myself or
Sergeant Putnam.
Mr. GRIFFIN. Now, can you give us some idea of how many cars there were
in the garage at that time?
Mr. DEAN. Some, I would say 25 or 30.
Mr. GRIFFIN. Were these cars eventually moved out at any time?
Mr. DEAN. No, sir; some few of them were district squad cars that had
come in with prisoners, and then, of course, they left, but as a mass
movement to move the cars out, we didn't.
Mr. GRIFFIN. Who checked the stairway door in the garage that leads up
into the municipal building?
Mr. DEAN. The stairway door?
Mr. GRIFFIN. Yes.
Mr. DEAN. I don't know of any door that leads up into the--the stairway?