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Revision as of 04:47, 8 March 2003 by Hoshie (talk | contribs) (added info on Hidell alias)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)Lee Harvey Oswald (October 18, 1939 - November 24, 1963), a somewhat enigmatic figure, was the alleged assassin of John F. Kennedy. He was born in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Oswald was a former United States Marine who had served as a Russian language translator, and who lived in the USSR for a time, after his military career. He married a Russian national, Marina (née Nichilayeva) Oswald, and eventually made his permanent home in the US. In March 1963, Oswald (using a false name--Alek J. Hidell) purchased a rifle and handgun that was later linked to the events of November 22, 1963.
Oswald was apprehended shortly after the shooting on November 22, 1963. He denied the shooting while in custody, saying "I didn't shoot anyone" and "I'm just a patsy" to reporters. In point of fact, during his military career Oswald failed to attain his marksmanship badge which has raised further suspicion as to his guilt, as the rate of fire and accuracy he is purported to have attained has never been matched in latter day testing by known marksmen.
Oswald was shot and killed by Texas nightclub owner Jack Ruby in Dallas, Texas while being transferred to county jail, two days after the president's assassination, and before being brought to trial. Many alternative theories of the assassination contend that he acted on behalf of others, or even that Oswald was not the actual assassin. The Warren Commission was created by President Lyndon B. Johnson on November 29, 1963 to investigate the assassination, and it reported its conclusion that Oswald did assassinate Kennedy and, further, that he acted alone. The proceedings of the commission were secret, and its files have yet to be released to the public, further fuelling speculation about the assassination. A later investigation by the House Select Committee on Assassinations, during the late 1970s, established that President Kennedy had been assassinated as a result of a conspiracy.