Assassination Records Review Board
Encyclopedia
The Assassination Records Review Board was created as a result of an act passed by the US Congress in 1992, entitled the "President John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act." The Act mandated the gathering and release of all US Government records related to the Assassination of John F. Kennedy
. The Act was passed following the public outcry about the assassination after the 1991 premiere
of Oliver Stone
's film JFK
, which proposed Kennedy assassination theories
involving plots to kill the President. The ARRB collected evidence starting in 1992, then produced a final report in 1998.
During the 1990s it collected the assassination documents which have been slowly released for public scrutiny.
Some of the information was gathered by way of testimony from witnesses that had eyewitness knowledge of the events. For example, the Board interviewed the physicians who treated the president's massive head wound at Parkland Hospital
in Dallas. This was a highly trained team of emergency care physicians, some of whom testified in secret before the Warren Commission
. These transcripts have now also been made public. Other information consists of a large number of documents from the FBI and CIA that were required to cooperate with the turnover of relevant records held secret by these agencies.
Assassination of John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the thirty-fifth President of the United States, was assassinated at 12:30 p.m. Central Standard Time on Friday, November 22, 1963, in Dealey Plaza, Dallas, Texas...
. The Act was passed following the public outcry about the assassination after the 1991 premiere
Premiere
A premiere is generally "a first performance". This can refer to plays, films, television programs, operas, symphonies, ballets and so on. Premieres for theatrical, musical and other cultural presentations can become extravagant affairs, attracting large numbers of socialites and much media...
of Oliver Stone
Oliver Stone
William Oliver Stone is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Stone became well known in the late 1980s and the early 1990s for directing a series of films about the Vietnam War, for which he had previously participated as an infantry soldier. His work frequently focuses on...
's film JFK
JFK (film)
JFK is a 1991 American film directed by Oliver Stone. It examines the events leading to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and alleged subsequent cover-up, through the eyes of former New Orleans district attorney Jim Garrison .Garrison filed charges against New Orleans businessman Clay...
, which proposed Kennedy assassination theories
John F. Kennedy assassination conspiracy theories
There has long been suspicion of a government cover-up of information about the assassination of John F. Kennedy on November 22, 1963. There are also numerous conspiracy theories regarding the assassination that arose soon after his death and continue to be promoted today...
involving plots to kill the President. The ARRB collected evidence starting in 1992, then produced a final report in 1998.
The Board's work
The ARRB was not enacted to determine why or by whom the murder was committed but to collect and preserve the evidence for public scrutiny. After the enactment of the federal law that created the ARRB, the Board collected a large amount of documents and took testimony of those who had relevant information of the events. The Committee finished its work in 1998 and in its final report, the ARRB outlined the problems that government secrecy created regarding the murder of President Kennedy.During the 1990s it collected the assassination documents which have been slowly released for public scrutiny.
Some of the information was gathered by way of testimony from witnesses that had eyewitness knowledge of the events. For example, the Board interviewed the physicians who treated the president's massive head wound at Parkland Hospital
Parkland Memorial Hospital
Parkland Memorial Hospital is a hospital located at 5201 Harry Hines Boulevard, just west of Oak Lawn in Dallas, Texas . It is the main hospital of the Dallas County Hospital District and serves as Dallas County's public hospital.- History :The original hospital opened in 1894 in a wooden...
in Dallas. This was a highly trained team of emergency care physicians, some of whom testified in secret before the Warren Commission
Warren Commission
The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy, known unofficially as the Warren Commission, was established on November 27, 1963, by Lyndon B. Johnson to investigate the assassination of United States President John F. Kennedy on November 22, 1963...
. These transcripts have now also been made public. Other information consists of a large number of documents from the FBI and CIA that were required to cooperate with the turnover of relevant records held secret by these agencies.
External links
- Final Report of the Assassination Records Review Board, September 1998
- Medical Testimony Before the Assassination Records Review Board
- Additional Medical Interviews Before the Assassination Records Review Board
- Master Set of Medical Exhibits Before the Assassination Records Review Board
- CIA Personnel Testimony Before the Assassination Records Review Board
- Washington D. C. 10-11-94 Persons Testimony Before the Assassination Records Review Board
- Dallas, Texas 11-18-94 Persons Testimony Before the Assassination Records Review Board
- Boston, Massachusetts 3-24-95 Persons Testimony Before the Assassination Records Review Board
- New Orleans, Louisiana 6-28-95 Persons Testimony Before the Assassination Records Review Board
- Los Angeles, California 9-17-96 Persons Testimony Before the Assassination Records Review Board
- Washington D. C. 4-2-97 Persons Testimony Before the Assassination Records Review Board
- Staff Memos of the Assassination Records Review Board
- Minnesota judge: CIA ‘probably misled’ panel he led on JFK assassination