Mr. RANKIN. Can you tell us whether it was from your office or from a
Federal office that such an idea was developing as far as you know?
Mr. WADE. Well, on that score it doesn't make any sense at all to me
because there is no such crime in Texas, being part of an international
conspiracy, it is just murder with malice in Texas, and if you allege
anything else in an indictment you have to prove it and it is all
surplusage in an indictment to allege anything, whether a man is a John
Bircher or a Communist or anything, if you allege it you have to prove
it.
So, when I heard it I went down to the police station and took the
charge on him, just a case of simple murder.
Mr. DULLES. Is that of Tippit or of the President?
Mr. WADE. No; of the President, and the radio announced Johnston was
down there, and Alexander, and of course other things, and so I saw
immediately that if somebody was going to take a complaint that he
is part of an international conspiracy it had to be a publicity deal
rather--somebody was interested in something other than the law because
there is no such charge in Texas as part of--I don't care what you
belong to, you don't have to allege that in an indictment.
Mr. RANKIN. What do you mean by the radio saying that Johnson was
there? Do you mean President Johnson?
Mr. WADE. No; that is the justice of the peace whose name is Johnston.
Mr. RANKIN. I see.
Mr. WADE. Yes; Justice of the Peace David L. Johnston was the justice
of the peace there.
So, I went down there not knowing--also at that time I had a lengthy
conversation with Captain Fritz and with Jim Alexander who was in the
office, Bill Alexander, Bookhout because another reason I thought maybe
they were going to want to file without the evidence, and then that put
everything on me, you know.
If they didn't have the evidence and they said, "We file on him, we
have got the assassin" I was afraid somebody might take the complaint
and I went down to be sure they had some evidence on him.
Mr. RANKIN. Have you told us all that you said to the U.S. attorney
when you talked to him at that time?
Mr. WADE. So far as I know. I know that concerned that point, you know.
Mr. RANKIN. Well, did he say anything to you about that point?
Mr. WADE. Well, I think he asked me was that--I don't think Barefoot
was real conversant, I guess is the word with what the law is in a
murder charge.
I told him that it had no place in it and he said he had heard it on
the radio and didn't know whether it would be--thought it might because
some--if it was not necessary, he did not think it ought to be done,
something to that effect so I went down there to be sure they didn't.
I went over the evidence which they--when I saw the evidence, it was
the evidence as told to me by Captain Fritz.
Mr. RANKIN. This conversation you have described you had when Jim
Alexander was there and the others?
Mr. WADE. Yes; I first asked Jim Allen, a man whom I have a lot of
confidence in, do they have a case and he said it looks like a case,
you can try.
Mr. RANKIN. Is that the case about the assassination?
Mr. WADE. Yes; we are talking entirely about the assassination.
On the Tippit thing, I didn't take the charge on that and I think they
had some witnesses who had identified him there at the scene, but I was
more worried about the assassination of them filing on somebody that we
couldn't prove was guilty.
Mr. RANKIN. Did you discuss the evidence that they did have at that
time with Captain Fritz?
Mr. WADE. Yes, sir.
Mr. RANKIN. Will you tell us what evidence you recall?
Mr. WADE. I have made no notes but roughly he gave the story about him
bringing the gun to work, saying it was window rods from the neighbor,
someone who had brought him to work. He also said there were three
employees of the company that left him on the sixth floor. He told
about, the part about, the young officer running in there right after
the assassination and Oswald leaving after the manager said that he was
employed there. Told about his arrest and said that there was a scuffle
there, and that he tried to shoot the officer.
I don't know--I think I am giving you all this because I think a little
of it may vary from the facts but all I know is what Fritz told me.
He said the Dallas police had found a palmprint on the underside of the
gun of Oswald. At that time, the FBI was standing by to fly the gun to
the laboratory here in Washington which incidentally, they didn't find,
but I assume the Commission has interviewed Senator--not Senator--Day,
the fingerprint man of the Dallas police but I have learned since that
he probably can't identify the palmprint under there but at that time
they told me they had one on it.
They said they had a palmprint on the wrapping paper, and on the box, I
believe there by the scene. They did at least put Oswald there at the
scene.
Mr. RANKIN. Will you clarify the palmprint that you are referring to on
the rifle?
Was it on the underside of the rifle, was it between the rifle and the
stock or where was it as you recall?
Mr. WADE. Specifically, I couldn't say because--but he said they had a
palmprint or a fingerprint of Oswald on the underside of the rifle and
I don't know whether it was on the trigger guard or where it was but I
knew that was important, I mean, to put the gun in his possession.
I thought we had that all the time when I took the complaint on the
thing.
Let me see what else they had that night. Well, they had a lot of the
things they found in his possession. They had the map, you know, that
marked the route of the parade. They had statements from the bus driver
and the taxicab driver that hauled him somewhere.
I think they varied a little as to where they picked him up but
generally they had some type of statement from them.
That is generally what they gave me now.
Mr. RANKIN. That is all you recall as of that time?
Mr. WADE. Yes, sir.