Warren Commission (05 of 26): Hearings Vol. V (of 15)United States. Warren Commission
History
Warren Commission (05 of 26): Hearings Vol. V (of 15)
United States. Warren Commission
Kennedy, John F. (John Fitzgerald), 1917-1963 -- Assassination; Oswald, Lee Harvey
Dr. OLIVIER. I came to Edgewood Arsenal, then the Army Chemical Center,
in 1957, and originally to work, take charge of the animal colonies but
immediately I got interested in the research and started working in
the field of wound ballistics and have been in it ever since, and am
presently Chief of the Wound Ballistics Branch.
Mr. SPECTER. Have you been in charge of a series of tests performed
to determine certain wound ballistics on circumstances analogous to
the underlying facts on wounds inflicted upon President Kennedy and
Governor Connally on November 22, 1963?
Dr. OLIVIER. Yes; I have.
Mr. SPECTER. And in the course of those tests what weapon was used?
Dr. OLIVIER. It was identified as Commission Exhibit 139. It was a 6.5
mm. Mannlicher-Carcano rifle.
Mr. SPECTER. Did the designation, Commission Exhibit No. 139, appear on
the body of that rifle?
Dr. OLIVIER. Yes; it did.
Mr. SPECTER. What type of bullets were used in the tests which you
performed?
Dr. OLIVIER. We used the Western ammunition, Western being a division
of Olin Industries, Winchester Western, it was lot 6,000 to 6.5 mm.
round. Has a muzzle velocity of approximately 2,160 feet per second.
Mr. SPECTER. And were those bullets obtained by you upon information
provided to you by the Commission's staff as to the identity of the
bullets which were believed to have been used during the assassination?
Dr. OLIVIER. Yes; I first got the identity from the people at Aberdeen
Proving Grounds and then I further checked with the Commission to see
if that was right before ordering this type of ammunition.
Mr. SPECTER. And where were those bullets obtained from?
Dr. OLIVIER. I obtained 100 rounds from Remington at Bridgeport.
Conn., and Dr. Dziemian obtained another 160 rounds, I believe, from
Winchester in New Haven.
Mr. SPECTER. Did you perform certain tests to determine the wound
ballistics and include in that the penetration power of the
Mannlicher-Carcano rifle, which you referred to, firing the Western
Cartridge Co. bullet by comparison with other types of bullets?
Dr. OLIVIER. We didn't fire any of the others at the same time. These
had been fired previously. We have all these records for comparison.
Mr. SPECTER. Was the Mannlicher-Carcano rifle then fired for comparison
purposes with the other bullets where you already had your experience?
Dr. OLIVIER. No; it was fired for the purposes for which--to try to
shed some light on say the factors leading to the assassination and
all, not for comparison with the other bullets.
Mr. SPECTER. I now show you a photograph which is marked as Commission
Exhibit No. 844, may it please the Commission, and ask you if this
photograph was prepared by you in conjunction with the study on the
Mannlicher-Carcano and the Western Cartridge Co. bullet?
Dr. OLIVIER. Yes; it was.
Mr. SPECTER. Would you explain to the Commission what that photograph
depicts?
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