JFK Motorcade GettyImages-517330536 — Credit: Walt Cisco, Dallas Morning News · Public domain
On Friday, November 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was riding in a presidential motorcade through Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas, alongside his wife Jacqueline Kennedy, Texas Governor John Connally, and Connally's wife Nellie. As the motorcade passed the Texas School Book Depository, multiple shots were fired. Kennedy was struck in the upper back, with the bullet exiting his throat, and shortly afterward was struck fatally in the head. Governor Connally was also wounded but survived. The motorcade rushed to Parkland Memorial Hospital, where Kennedy was pronounced dead at 1:00 p.m., roughly 30 minutes after the shooting.
Lee Harvey Oswald, a former U.S. Marine working at the Texas School Book Depository, was identified by investigators as the shooter. After the assassination, Oswald left the building, returned to his rooming house for a pistol, and shortly afterward, according to the Warren Commission, shot and killed Dallas police officer J. D. Tippit in the Oak Cliff neighborhood. Oswald was apprehended by Dallas police approximately 70 minutes after the shooting of Kennedy and was charged under Texas state law with the murders of both Kennedy and Tippit. Two days later, on November 24, while being transferred through the basement of Dallas Police Headquarters on live television, Oswald was fatally shot by Dallas nightclub operator Jack Ruby. Oswald died at Parkland Memorial Hospital, the same facility where Kennedy had been treated.
Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson was sworn in as president aboard Air Force One at Dallas Love Field about two hours after the shooting. Jack Ruby was subsequently convicted of murdering Oswald, but the conviction was overturned on appeal; Ruby died in prison in 1967 while awaiting a new trial, of a pulmonary embolism secondary to cancer.
A 10-month investigation by the Warren Commission concluded that Oswald acted alone in assassinating Kennedy and that there was no evidence either Oswald or Ruby participated in a conspiracy. In 1967, New Orleans district attorney Jim Garrison brought the only criminal trial connected to Kennedy's murder, charging businessman Clay Shaw with conspiracy; a jury acquitted Shaw in 1969. Later federal reviews, including the Rockefeller Commission and the Church Committee, largely affirmed the Warren Commission's core findings. In 1979, the U.S. House Select Committee on Assassinations (HSCA) concluded there was a "high probability" that two gunmen had fired at the president and that Kennedy was "probably assassinated as a result of a conspiracy," though it did not identify any alleged co-conspirators. The HSCA's acoustic-based conclusion was later found to rest on a police Dictabelt recording that has since been discredited by the U.S. Justice Department.
The assassination remains one of the most extensively investigated crimes in American history, having generated an extensive public record, numerous government inquiries, and widespread ongoing public debate about whether Oswald acted alone.
President John F. Kennedy is shot while riding in a motorcade through Dealey Plaza, Dallas, Texas; Governor John Connally is also wounded.
1963-11-22
Kennedy is pronounced dead at Parkland Memorial Hospital at 1:00 p.m. CST, about 30 minutes after the shooting.
1963-11-22
Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson is sworn in as president aboard Air Force One at Dallas Love Field.
1963-11-22
Dallas police officer J. D. Tippit is shot and killed, allegedly by Lee Harvey Oswald, in the Oak Cliff neighborhood.
1963-11-22
Lee Harvey Oswald is apprehended by Dallas police and later charged under Texas law with the murders of Kennedy and Tippit.
1963-11-24
Oswald is fatally shot by Dallas nightclub operator Jack Ruby in the basement of Dallas Police Headquarters, on live television; Oswald dies at Parkland Memorial Hospital.
1963-11-25
Kennedy's funeral is held at St. Matthew's Cathedral; he is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
1963-11-29
President Johnson establishes the Warren Commission to investigate the assassination.
1964-09-24
The Warren Commission presents its final report to President Johnson, concluding Oswald acted alone.
1967
New Orleans district attorney Jim Garrison charges businessman Clay Shaw with conspiring to assassinate Kennedy.
1967
Jack Ruby dies in prison of a pulmonary embolism secondary to cancer while awaiting retrial.
1969
A jury acquits Clay Shaw following a 34-day trial in New Orleans.
1975
The Rockefeller Commission and the Church Committee each review aspects of the assassination investigation.
1979
The U.S. House Select Committee on Assassinations issues its final report, concluding Kennedy was likely assassinated as a result of a conspiracy.
Best coverage
Titles and descriptions are the creators’ own and may not reflect current legal status; see the dossier above for sourced case facts.
VIDEO
Bailey Sarian / 59 min
America's Cursed Royal Family | The Dark History of The Kennedys
People
Lee Harvey Oswald
CHARGED
Former U.S. Marine charged under Texas state law with the murders of Kennedy and Tippit; killed before trial.
Clay Shaw
ACQUITTED
New Orleans businessman charged by DA Jim Garrison with conspiring to assassinate Kennedy; acquitted by a jury in 1969.
J. D. Tippit
VICTIM
Dallas police officer shot and killed by Lee Harvey Oswald shortly after the Kennedy assassination.
Jack Ruby
CONVICTED
Dallas nightclub operator convicted of murdering Lee Harvey Oswald; conviction overturned on appeal; died in 1967 awaiting retrial.
John Connally
VICTIM
Texas governor wounded in the same attack that killed Kennedy; he recovered.
John F. Kennedy
VICTIM
35th President of the United States; fatally shot in Dealey Plaza, Dallas, on November 22, 1963.
Roles reflect public records and court outcomes at the time of writing — supporting citations are on file under Sources.
Archival records
portrait victim
John F. Kennedy
Credit: White House / Cecil Stoughton (US federal government) · Public domain (PD-US-Government) · Source
archival location
Lyndon B. Johnson taking the oath of office, November 1963
Credit: Cecil W. Stoughton · Public domain · Source
portrait public figure
JFK Motorcade GettyImages-517330536
Credit: Walt Cisco, Dallas Morning News · Public domain · Source
other document
Cartão de imigração de Clay LaVergne Shaw (frente) (cropped)
Credit: Unknown authorUnknown author · Public domain · Source
archival location
Church Committee report (Book II) (page 1 crop)
Credit: U.S. Senate ("Church Committee") · Public domain · Source
archival location
Dallas Elm Street
Credit: Original picture taken by Nathan Stringer · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
archival location
Dealey-plaza-annotated
Credit: Warren Commission archive photograph, annotated by User:Skybunny and uploaded to Wikipedia 23:06, 24 Sep 2003 · Public domain · Source
President John F. Kennedy was fatally shot while riding in a motorcade through Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas, on November 22, 1963. Lee Harvey Oswald was charged with the killing but was himself murdered by Jack Ruby two days later, before facing trial.
Where did the crime happen?
Dealey Plaza, Dallas, Texas.
Who was convicted?
Jack Ruby (Dallas nightclub operator convicted of murdering Lee Harvey Oswald; conviction overturned on appeal; died in 1967 awaiting retrial.).
