THE SECRET SERVICE INTERVIEWS

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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