ORGANIZATION OF THE MOTORCADE
Secret Service arrangements for Presidential trips, which were followed in the Dallas motorcade, are designed to provide protection while permitting large numbers of people to see the President.[C2-92] Every effort is made to prevent unscheduled stops, although the President may, and in Dallas did, order stops in order to greet the public.[C2-93] When the motorcade slows or stops, agents take positions between the President and the crowd.[C2-94]
The order of vehicles in the Dallas motorcade was as follows:
Motorcycles.—Dallas police motorcycles preceded the pilot car.[C2-95]
The pilot car.—Manned by officers of the Dallas Police Department, this automobile preceded the main party by approximately a quarter of a mile. Its function was to alert police along the route that the motorcade was approaching and to check for signs of trouble.[C2-96]
Motorcycles.—Next came four to six motorcycle policemen whose main purpose was to keep the crowd back.[C2-97]
The lead car.—Described as a “rolling command car,” this was an unmarked Dallas police car, driven by Chief of Police Curry and occupied by Secret Service Agents Sorrels and Lawson and by Dallas County Sheriff J. E. Decker. The occupants scanned the crowd and the buildings along the route. Their main function was to spot trouble in advance and to direct any necessary steps to meet the trouble. Following normal practice, the lead automobile stayed approximately four to five car lengths ahead of the President’s limousine.[C2-98]
The Presidential limousine.—The President’s automobile was a specially designed 1961 Lincoln convertible with two collapsible jump seats between the front and rear seats.[C2-99] (See Commission Exhibit No. 346, [p. 44].) It was outfitted with a clear plastic bubble-top which was neither bulletproof nor bullet resistant.[C2-100] Because the skies had cleared in Dallas, Lawson directed that the top not be used for the day’s activities. He acted on instructions he had received earlier from Assistant Special Agent in Charge Roy H. Kellerman, who was in Fort Worth with the President.[C2-101] Kellerman had discussed the matter with O’Donnell, whose instructions were, “If the weather is clear and it is not raining, have that bubbletop off.”[C2-102] Elevated approximately 15 inches above the back of the front seat was a metallic frame with four handholds that riders in the car could grip while standing in the rear seat during parades.[C2-103] At the rear on each side of the automobile were small running boards, each designed to hold a Secret Service agent, with a metallic handle for the rider to grasp.[C2-104] The President had frequently stated that he did not want agents to ride on these steps during a motorcade except when necessary. He had repeated this wish only a few days before, during his visit to Tampa, Fla.[C2-105]
Commission Exhibit No. 346
Interior of Presidential limousine used on November 22, 1963.
President Kennedy rode on the right-hand side of the rear seat with Mrs. Kennedy on his left.[C2-106] Governor Connally occupied the right jump seat, Mrs. Connally the left.[C2-107] Driving the Presidential limousine was Special Agent William R. Greer of the Secret Service; on his right sat Kellerman.[C2-108] Kellerman’s responsibilities included maintaining radio communications with the lead and followup cars, scanning the route, and getting out and standing near the President when the cars stopped.
Motorcycles.—Four motorcycles, two on each side, flanked the rear of the Presidential car. They provided some cover for the President, but their main purpose was to keep back the crowd.[C2-109] On previous occasions, the President had requested that, to the extent possible, these flanking motorcycles keep back from the sides of his car.[C2-110]
Presidential followup car.—This vehicle, a 1955 Cadillac eight-passenger convertible especially outfitted for the Secret Service, followed closely behind the President’s automobile.[C2-111] It carried eight Secret Service agents—two in the front seat, two in the rear, and two on each of the right and left running boards.[C2-112] Each agent carried a .38-caliber pistol, and a shotgun and automatic rifle were also available.[C2-113] Presidential Assistants David F. Powers and Kenneth O’Donnell sat in the right and left jump seats, respectively.[C2-114]
The agents in this car, under established procedure, had instructions to watch the route for signs of trouble, scanning not only the crowds but the windows and roofs of buildings, overpasses, and crossings.[C2-115] They were instructed to watch particularly for thrown objects, sudden actions in the crowd, and any movements toward the Presidential car.[C2-116] The agents on the front of the running boards had directions to move immediately to positions just to the rear of the President and Mrs. Kennedy when the President’s car slowed to a walking pace or stopped, or when the press of the crowd made it impossible for the escort motorcycles to stay in position on the car’s rear flanks.[C2-117] The two agents on the rear of the running boards were to advance toward the front of the President’s car whenever it stopped or slowed down sufficiently for them to do so.[C2-118]
Vice-Presidential car.—The Vice-Presidential automobile, a four-door Lincoln convertible obtained locally for use in the motorcade, proceeded approximately two to three car lengths behind the President’s followup car.[C2-119] This distance was maintained so that spectators would normally turn their gaze from the President’s automobile by the time the Vice President came into view.[C2-120] Vice President Johnson sat on the right-hand side of the rear seat, Mrs. Johnson in the center, and Senator Yarborough on the left.[C2-121] Rufus W. Youngblood, special agent in charge of the Vice President’s detail, occupied the right-hand side of the front seat, and Hurchel Jacks of the Texas State Highway patrol was the driver.[C2-122]
Vice-Presidential followup car.—Driven by an officer of the Dallas Police Department, this vehicle was occupied by three Secret Service agents and Clifton C. Carter, assistant to the Vice President.[C2-123] These agents performed for the Vice President the same functions that the agents in the Presidential followup car performed for the President.
Remainder of motorcade.—The remainder of the motorcade consisted of five cars for other dignitaries, including the mayor of Dallas and Texas Congressmen, telephone and Western Union vehicles, a White House communications car, three cars for press photographers, an official party bus for White House staff members and others, and two press buses. Admiral George G. Burkley, physician to the President, was in a car following those “containing the local and national representatives.”[C2-124]
Police car and motorcycles.[C2-125]—A Dallas police car and several motorcycles at the rear kept the motorcade together and prevented unauthorized vehicles from joining the motorcade.
Communications in the motorcade.[C2-126]—A base station at a fixed location in Dallas operated a radio network which linked together the lead car, Presidential car, Presidential followup car, White House communications car, Trade Mart, Love Field, and the Presidential and Vice-Presidential airplanes. The Vice-Presidential car and Vice-Presidential followup car used portable sets with a separate frequency for their own car-to-car communication.