Oswald in the doorway: the blog of the Oswald Innocence Campaign, by Ralph Cinque

The issue has been thrown at me again that I could be sued by the Bookhout family, particularly Jim Bookhout, the son of James Bookhout, for the things I am saying about his father. 

But, it's not true, at least not in the United States. You can't libel the dead, not here. Jim Bookhout would have to demonstrate that I defamed him and caused him damage before he could sue me. 

And the other thing is that we are talking about a historical event from over half a century ago, in which his father was a public figure. I am entitled to give my opinion about historical events. And this is my opinion, that the garage shooter of Lee Harvey Oswald, seen on television, was not Jack Ruby but rather James Bookhout. 

But, imagine if Jim Bookhout could sue me and did sue me. It would come down to the veracity of my claim, right? So, by suing me, he would basically be putting his father on trial for shooting Oswald, where he would be the defense, and I would be the prosecutor.  How is going to defend his father when his father gave a very weak alibi for not being in the garage: that he remained in Fritz' office during the jail transfer for no reason at all. And then, he said he came down and followed Oswald's stretcher from the jail office into the garage. Is Jim Bookhout going to deny in a court of law, under oath, that this is his father?

And remember that we have the yearbook photos of him, which no one denies is him. So, I could show this to the jury, and Jim Bookhout would have to explain why this guy meshes so perfectly and seamlessly with the young James Bookhout. 

And remember that this was a very finite environment. It's not like it was a train station where anybody could walk by. That guy, just to be in that position, had to be a policeman or an FBI agent. So, if he's not James Bookhout, who is he? 

So no, I don't think Jim Bookhout would sue me even if our libel laws were more liberal. 

And remember also that I have stated publicly that if Jim Bookhout sends me a photograph of his dad that I can vet, which conflicts with him being the Garage Shooter, say, because he's too tall, I'll admit it. And really: why should I even have to ask? Why are there no images of James Bookhout from the JFK assassination? (other than the ones that I and The Wizard have found) He was a guy who followed Oswald around pretty much constantly. Look at all the images we have of Elmer Boyd leading Oswald around. Do you really think that, just by chance, there are no images of James Bookhout, not one? Chance has nothing to do with it. They made sure that no images of James Bookhout survived. And now I've got people telling me that he was 6 feet tall- but without providing images. Pluck that. James Bookhout was short. It's why he had to stand on a pedestal in the hall to see Hosty. And frankly, I think it's a reason why he developed such a good rapport with Oswald, where Oswald went up to talk to him in the hall. Being shorter than Oswald, he was not intimidating. And I suspect that he also spoke in a very soft, gentle, respectful voice to Oswald- he wasn't gruff. And the result was that he became Oswald's buddy. 

It is VERY significant that just one time Oswald went up and spoke to someone in the hallway, where it was obviously the continuation of a conversation they were having. That person was James Bookhout.

  Now, if that's not James Bookhout on the left, who is it? It has to be someone whom Oswald could have been in conversation with behind closed doors. The possibilities are very, very limited. Very few. I guarantee you: it's James Bookhout.