Mr. Belin. How long had you known Officer Tippit?
Mr. Walker. Ever since I have been on the police department. When I first came to work, I was assigned to the Oak Cliff substation and worked there until I went to traffic investigation, and he was there all the time.
I am sure I worked with him when I first started out and was training and stuff like that. But I had worked with him prior to his death for, I know, maybe 2 or 3 years.
Mr. Belin. Now at the time of the Tippit shooting, there had been no call for Lee Harvey Oswald as an individual, although there was a call for—I mean there was an announcement of a general description of the suspect in the assassination?
Mr. Walker. Yes.
Mr. Belin. Just from your knowledge of the way Tippit operated, do you have any reason to think whether that general call might have affected his perhaps stopping this man on the street at the time of the shooting?
Mr. Walker. I believe the type of officer Tippit was, that he was suspicious of him as a suspect.
Mr. Belin. Why do you believe that?
Mr. Walker. Well, Officer Tippit was an exceptional officer. He made good arrests. It was known around the station that he was exceptionally good with investigative work and just general police work. He was above normal.
Mr. Belin. Why do you think he stopped this man?