THE SECRET SERVICE INTERVIEWS
Vincent Michael Palamara
Part 2
FLOYD M. BORING was the Assistant.-Special-Agent-In-Charge (ASAIC)
of the WHD during the Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, and part of the
Johnson years; he was the #2 man, behind SAIC Behn and ahead of #3
man Kellerman. I spoke to Boring twice from 1993 to 1994, and I am
the only person to get Boring to talk in detail about the JFK years
(U.E. Baughman's book Secret Service Chief, David McCullough's Truman,
and Boring's Truman Library oral history deals almost exclusively with
Harry S. Truman. The quote attributed to Boring in Manchester's book
is false -- Floyd told me "I never told him that....No, no, no--
that's not true"). When asked, point blank, if JFK had ever ordered
the agents off the rear of the limousine, including in Tampa on 11/18/63,
Boring told me, "Well, that's not true. That's not true. He was
a very nice man; he never interefered with us at all." In regard
to Tampa, Floyd said "He actually -- No, I told them....He didn't
tell them anything...He just -- I looked at the back of the car and
I seen these fellahs (Zboril and Lawton) were hanging on the limousine
-- I told them to return to the (follow-up) car...He [JFK] was a very
easy-going guy; he didn't interfere with our actions at all."
As for his involvement in the planning
of the Texas trip, Floyd told me simply "I was involved in that,
yeah." In fact, he also told the Truman Library in 1988: "I
was on all the advance work out of there....I did all of the advance
work, sort of an administrator."[see also The Day Kennedy Was
Shot by Jim Bishop, p. 558 (1992 edition) and my interviews with
Sam Kinney mentioned above]. Incredibly, even more so that agent
Lawton above, Floyd seemed to doubt that ATSAIC Stu Stout was even
IN Dallas: "Oh, gee, I don't think so...then again, I guess
I should have known he was there cause he died shortly therafter."
GERALD A. "JERRY" BEHN was
the SAIC of the WHD from September 1961 until January 1965, and had
served in the Secret Service from 1941 until 1967. I spoke to Jerry
Behn three times on 9/27/92. I was the first private researcher to
interview Behn. Other than the FBI and the HSCA [documents only recently
released], no one else had spoken to Behn in detail about 11/22/63,
and the JFK administration. Behn joined many of his notable colleagues
mentioned above denoncing the whole mythology of JFK ordering the
agents off the rear of the limousine: "I don't remember Kennedy
ever saying that he didn't want anybody on the back of his car. I
think if you watch the newsreel pictures and whatnot [sic] you'll
find agents on there from time to time." As just one of many
examples, Behn cited the June 1963 trip to Berlin.
Although Behn was on the very next trip,
El Paso, Texas, 6/5/63, riding in the limousine with Greer and Governor
Connally, he did NOT make the Texas trip in the fall (El Paso was
in the initial planning stages FOR the Texas trip; as we know, Behn
took his first-ever vacation in the three years under JFK). When
I asked Jerry what the HSCA asked of him in Executive Session [not
the staff interviews just released], Behn told me he was asked two
things: they wanted to know about the Florida trip (manned by ASAIC
Boring) AND WHY THE ROUTE WAS CHANGED FOR DALLAS! (author's empasis)
Behn told me "I know it was changed, but why...I've forgotten
completely -- I don't know." Interestingly, Jerry considered
his January 1965 transfer out of the WHD a "demotion." Jerry
passed away in April, 1993.
Other agents I interviewed were Rufus
W. Youngblood (ASAIC of the LBJ detail on 11/22/63; interviewed 1992-1994;
deceased October 1996), Robert I. Bouck (SAIC of PRS; interviewed
1992), Abraham W. Bolden, Sr. (WHD, 1961; Chicago Office, 1961-1964;
interviewed 1993-1996), Maurice G. Martineau (SAIC of Chicago Office;
interviewed 1993 and 1996), Winston G. Lawson (advance man, WHD;
interviewed 1992), P. Hamilton Brown (Joe Kennedy, Sr. detail; interviewed
1992), Forrest V. Sorrels (SAIC of Dallas; interviewed 1992; deceased
1993), Richard E. Johnsen (keeper of CE399; interviewed 1992), Robert
A. Steuart (Dallas office; interviewed 1992 and 1994); James J. Rowley
(Chief, 1961-1973; interviewed 9/27/92; deceased 11/1/92), H. Stuart "Stu" Knight
(SAIC of LBJ detail on 11/22/63, later Chief, 1973-1981; interviewed
1993-1994), Gerald S. "Jerry" Parr (SAIC of WHD, Carter-Reagan;
interviewed 1995), and Bill Livingood (rookie Dallas agent, later
WHD; interviewed 1992). I also interviewed Richard Greer (son of
the late William R. Greer; interviewed 1991-1992), June Kellerman
(wife of the late Roy H. Kellerman; interviewed twice in 1992), Sandra
Kane (daughter of the now-deceased Jerry Behn; interviewed 1995),
Jean Brownell Behn (wife of the now-deceased Jerry Behn; interviewed
1995), Marty Underwood (DNC advance man for Houston and Austin trips;
interviewed 1992 [responsible for Livingstone's interview]), Dave
Powers (aide, riding in follow-up car on 11/22/63; corresponded 1993),
Cecil Stoughton (WH photographer on Texas trip; corresponded 1996),
Gerry Patrick Hemming (intelligence operative; interviewed twice
in 1992), and Jerrol Custer (x-ray technician at Bethesda on 11/22/63;
interviewed with Livingstone, 11/22/91).
Needless to say, this was a rich body
of primary-source information; luckily many of these people will
not now go to their graves without revealing what they know about
the tragic events of 11/22/63.
Mr. Palamara is a graduate of Duquesne
University where he earned a degree in Sociology. In his research,
he has contacted over twenty different former Secret Service agents,
White House aides, and surviving family members, resulting in the
manuscript entitled "The Third Alternative-Survivor's Guilt:
the Secret Service and the JFK Murder," (now re-published by
JFK Lancer). Since 1991, His articles have been published in the
following journals: The Third Decade, The Fourth Decade, Investigator,
Back Channels, Lobster, JFK/ Deep Politics Quarterly, and Kennedy
Assassination Chronicles
Research assistance credit: High Treason
2 ,Killing the Truth and Killing Kennedy by Harrison E. Livingstone,
The Complete Videography-1963 to 1992 by Anthony Frewin, Treachery
in Dallas,The JFK Assassination Quiz Book and The Warren Omission
by Walt Brown, Breach of Faith by Dr. William Truels, Motorcade Schematic
by Todd Vaughan.
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