FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION

Date 11/24/63

WILLIAM EUGENE NEWMAN, Jr., 718 W. Clarendon Street, Who is an unemployed electrician advised that at the time of the assassination of President KENNEDY he and his wife, GAYLE, and their two children were standing on the north side of Elm Street about mid-way between Houston Street and the Triple overpass. There were very few people on that side of the street. One man was standing on a pedestal near an arcade to the rear of them taking movies and he believed that two women were a few steps up the street from him. He believes that when the President's car was approximately 50 feet from him proceeding in a westerly direction on Elm Street he heard the first shot fired. It was his belief that two shots were fired in rapid succession which he thought at the time was a firecracker.

The car was proceeding toward him and it seemed that the President's arms went up and that he raised up in his seat and started to look around. The car proceeded to a point about even with him and he could see Governor JOHN CONNALLY was holding his stomach. About that time another shot was fired which he estimated was ten seconds after the first shot was fired. At that time he heard the bullet strike the President and saw flesh fly from the President's head. He noticed that Governor CONNALLY was laying back in the seat of the car and that his eyes "were real big." NEWMAN first thought the President and Governor were playing some kind of a game and suddenly realized they had been shot and that he was perhaps in the line of fire because officers started running toward the arcade diectly back of him and his wife. He grabbed one child and his wife the other. They both lay down on the grass until after the procession passed. He stated he did not see any blood on Governor CONNALLY or President KENNEDY and that the limousine in which they were riding was a three seated limousine with Governor CONNALLY and President KENNEDY sitting in the side nearest him and the side nearest the Texas School Book Depository building from where he learned later the shots had been fired. President KENNEDY was seated in the back seat with his Wife and Governor CONNALLY and his wife were in the middle seat of the limousine. He could not recall any of the bullets hitting the car but he said the report of the rifle was very load and clear. He was later taken to the offices of WFAA Studio in Dallas and they interviewed him concerning his eye-witness account of the assassination of the President and the shooting of Governor CONNALLY.

He was also interviewed by Deputy Sheriffs and gave a statement as to what happened. He recalled that when the President was shot Mrs. KENNEDY seemed to grab him and pull him toward her. He was positive this occurred because when all shots were fired at the President he had his eyes directly on him. He could not state whether Mrs. CONNALLY was helping her husband or not but he seemed to be lying down when he passed them.

He said the president was hit on the right side of the head with the third shot and he heard the thud when the bullet struck the President. He did not see any rifle in the possession of anyone whom he thought might be responsible for the shooting. He has seen pictures of LEE HARVEY OSWALD on television and stated he had never seen him insofar as he knows.

The assassination of the President occurred about 12:30 p.m. on November 22, 1963.

on 11/23/63 at Dallas, Texas File # DL 89-43

By Special Agent HARLAN BROWN and ALVIN J. ZIMMERMAN Date Dictated 11/24/63