Lyndon Johnson's Driver In Dealey Plaza

[Duncan MacRae]

[Steve M. Galbraith]

The driver was Hurchel Jacks. He said that when he arrived at Parkland he saw Connally and JFK removed from the limo.

"I could see that Governor Connally had been hit just below the right shoulder blade in the back. They removed Governor Connally, then picked Mrs. Kennedy from over the President's body. At that time one of the Secret Service Agents said he has been hit, put your coat over him. One of the Agents removed his suit coat and spread it over the President's body from his chest up.

Before the President's body was covered it appeared that the bullet had struck him above the right ear or near the temple. They removed his body at that time. Reporters began to arrive. We were assigned by the Secret Service to prevent any pictures of any nature to be taken of the President's car or the inside."

A wound above JFK's "right ear or near the temple."

Link: https://www.jfk-assassination.net/russ/testimony/jacks.htm

[Dan O'meara]

Hurschel Jacks was the driver of the VP's car that day. His account of what happened provides an opportunity to establish when the first shot occurred.
In the video he notes that the car had just completed the turn on to Elm when he heard the first shot. This tallies with his initial statement regarding the assassination:

"My car had just straightened up from making the left turn.


In fact, all the occupants of the VP's car agree that the car was travelling down Elm Street when the first shot occurred:

VICE PRESIDENTIAL CAR

Hurchel Jacks [Driver] -
"My car had just straightened up from making the left turn. I was looking directly at the President’s car at that time. At that time I heard a shot ring out..."

Rufus Youngblood [Passenger Seat] -
"The motorcade then made a left turn, and the sidewalk crowds
were beginning to diminish in size. I observed a grassy plot to my right in back of a small crowd...I heard an explosion…"
"As we were beginning to go down this incline, all of a sudden there was an explosive noise."
"We had straightened on Elm now and were beginning to move easily down the incline in the wake of the cars ahead. Suddenly there was an explosive noise..."

Senator Yarborough [back left] -
“as the motorcade went down the slope of Elm Street toward the railroad underpass, a rifle shot was heard by me; a loud blast..."

Lady Bird Johnson [back centre] -
“we were rounding a curve, going down a hill and suddenly there was a sharp loud report..."
"...suddenly in that brilliant sunshine there was a sharp rifle shot. It  came, I thought, from over my right shoulder."

Lyndon Johnson [back right] -
"After we had proceeded a short way down Elm Street, I heard a sharp report."

All five occupants of the VP's car are in agreement - the car was travelling down Elm Street at the time of the first shot.
Similarly, everyone in the VP follow-up car are in agreement that their car had turned off Houston and was on Elm at the time of the first shot:

VICE-PRESIDENTIAL FOLLOW-UP CAR

Joe Henry Rich [Driver] -
“We turned off of Houston Street onto Elm Street and that was when I heard the first shot."


Cliff Carter [passenger seat]  -
"...our car had just made the left hand turn onto Elm and was right along side of the Texas School Book Depository Building when I heard a noise which sounded like a firecracker."

Jerry Kivett [back right] -
"The motorcade had just made a right turn from Main Street and then made an immediate left turn on to Elm Street. The motorcade was heading slightly downhill toward an underpass."

Warren Taylor [back centre] -
“Our automobile had just turned a corner (the names of the streets are unknown to me) when I heard a bang which sounded to me like a possible firecracker —the sound coming from my right rear."

Thomas (Lem) Johns [back right] -
"We turned onto Elm Street...We were going downhill...which put the Texas Book Depository on our right, more or less...But we were going down this Elm Street, with my door open. I heard at least two shots.."

All 10 occupants are in agreement that their vehicles had turned the corner from Houston to Elm Street when the first shot occurred.
If we look at Mark Tyler's Mapping program we see that both cars can only be considered to have completed the turn onto Elm Street from z223 onwards [the VP car and the follow up car are marked 7 and 8 respectively]:



This is strong evidence supporting the theory that the first of the audible shots fired hit JFK causing his hands to fly towards his throat. This is corroborated by over 40 witnesses who reported JFK reacting to the first shot as we see in the Z-film.

[Dan O'meara]

Jacks provides another detail in his initial report that tells us something important about the first shot:

At that time I heard a shot ring out which appeared to come from the right rear of the Vice President's car. Mr. Rufus Youngblood, the Secret Service Agent riding in my car asked me what that was and at the name time he advised the Vice President and Mrs. Johnson to get down. He climbed to the rear of the seat with the Vice President and appeared to be shielding the Vice President with his own body. At that time I heard two more shots ring out.

There are multiple reports of this particular incident:
The first shot rings out.
Youngblood turns to his right to determine where the shot has come from.
He shouts for everyone in the back to "Get down".
He jumps in the back and lays over Johnson.
Two more shots ring out.

Below is a crop from Altgens 6 originally posted by Jerry Organ on "The First Shot" thread.
It captures a moment that equates to z255 in the Z-film.
In it we see the driver, Jacks, circled in yellow.
Seated in the left rear of the vehicle [far right as we look at it] is Senator Yarborough. His faced is partially obscured but he appears to be smiling.
In the centre rear seat we can see Ladybird Johnson smiling away without a care in the world.
Johnson and Youngblood are more difficult to make out. In the circle marked "LBJ" we can see the back of Youngblood's head, in silhouette, turned to his right. Johnson appears to be leaning forward as if to listen to Youngblood, we can just about make out the side of his head, his facial features are obscured behind Youngblood's head:



The fatal head shot is about 3 seconds away.
The first shot has sounded, causing Youngblood to look to his right. He is still sat in the front seat and is yet to order everyone to get down, meaning the first shot has literally just rang out.
So, what does this tell us about the first shot?
In Altgens 6 we see that JFK is clearly hit meaning the single shot that has so far been fired has hit it's mark.
It is telling us that there was no first shot miss!

In "The First Shot" thread I have posted an overwhelming amount of evidence demonstrating that the first shot hit JFK [and JBC] and that it was fired around z222.
The Altgens pic posted here was taken just under two seconds after the first shot was fired. Before the next shot is fired, Youngblood shouts at everyone in the back to get down, jumps in the back and covers Johnson's body with his own.
This is how all of the Secret Service agents should have reacted.

[Jarrett Smith]

There was a missed shot at Z160 no doubt about it. JFK and Connally both quickly turn in response. This shot was mistaken as a motorcycle backfire or firecracker.

On a side note, had Governor Connally not been hit at Z225 he could have acted and pushed JFK down saving his life.

[Dan O'meara]

There was a missed shot at Z160 no doubt about it. JFK and Connally both quickly turn in response. This shot was mistaken as a motorcycle backfire or firecracker.

On a side note, had Governor Connally not been hit at Z225 he could have acted and pushed JFK down saving his life.

Both of these statements show how little you know about this case.
The notion that there was a shot as early as z160 has been utterly refuted in "The First Shot" thread. Rather than challenge the evidence presented in this thread that refutes such an early first shot you simply make your bogus statement that you can tell the first shot happened this early because JFK and JBC both turn their heads.
THEY'RE IN A MOTORCADE - OF COURSE THEY TURN THEIR HEADS!
The "head-turning argument" is by far the weakest argument there is to support a shot being fired [maybe the "Rosemary Willis Factor" is weaker, it's hard to say]. Being in a motorcade, the occupants of the Presidential limo are constantly turning their heads, acknowledging the crowds who are lined up on both sides of the limo, many of who are calling out to grab the attention of JFK or Jackie.
The Secret Service men in the follow-up car are also constantly turning their heads as they scan the crowds.

Connally is most definitely hit by z225 but even if he wasn't, the idea he could've jumped in the back and saved JFK is nonsense.
It was the job of the Secret Service to protect the President, something they were specifically trained for. Youngblood had Johnson covered by the time the second shot rang out. Hill was on his way to cover Jackie seconds after the first shot rang out. But no-one made any attempt to cover JFK. instead, they slowed the limo down to almost walking pace making the kill-shot a cinch.

[Marjan Rynkiewicz]

Jacks provides another detail in his initial report that tells us something important about the first shot:

At that time I heard a shot ring out which appeared to come from the right rear of the Vice President's car. Mr. Rufus Youngblood, the Secret Service Agent riding in my car asked me what that was and at the name time he advised the Vice President and Mrs. Johnson to get down. He climbed to the rear of the seat with the Vice President and appeared to be shielding the Vice President with his own body. At that time I heard two more shots ring out.

There are multiple reports of this particular incident:
The first shot rings out.
Youngblood turns to his right to determine where the shot has come from.
He shouts for everyone in the back to "Get down".
He jumps in the back and lays over Johnson.
Two more shots ring out.

Below is a crop from Altgens 6 originally posted by Jerry Organ on "The First Shot" thread.
It captures a moment that equates to z255 in the Z-film.
In it we see the driver, Jacks, circled in yellow.
Seated in the left rear of the vehicle [far right as we look at it] is Senator Yarborough. His faced is partially obscured but he appears to be smiling.
In the centre rear seat we can see Ladybird Johnson smiling away without a care in the world.
Johnson and Youngblood are more difficult to make out. In the circle marked "LBJ" we can see the back of Youngblood's head, in silhouette, turned to his right. Johnson appears to be leaning forward as if to listen to Youngblood, we can just about make out the side of his head, his facial features are obscured behind Youngblood's head:



The fatal head shot is about 3 seconds away.
The first shot has sounded, causing Youngblood to look to his right. He is still sat in the front seat and is yet to order everyone to get down, meaning the first shot has literally just rang out.
So, what does this tell us about the first shot?
In Altgens 6 we see that JFK is clearly hit meaning the single shot that has so far been fired has hit it's mark.
It is telling us that there was no first shot miss!

In "The First Shot" thread I have posted an overwhelming amount of evidence demonstrating that the first shot hit JFK [and JBC] and that it was fired around z222.
The Altgens pic posted here was taken just under two seconds after the first shot was fired. Before the next shot is fired, Youngblood shouts at everyone in the back to get down, jumps in the back and covers Johnson's body with his own.
This is how all of the Secret Service agents should have reacted.

Nope. Oswald's shot-1 was at Z105, ie back at the signals.
Altgens-6 (that pix) was at Z255 they say, ie 37 frames after Oswald's shot-2 at Z218.
And Altgens-6 shows that Youngblood has not yet jumped into the back.
And Hickey's headshot at Z312 is 57 frames after Altgens-6, ie 3.1 sec after. So, Youngblood is unlikely to be covering LBJ at the time of the headshot.
In fact Yarborough said that Youngblood never ever jumped in the back.