Fifty-four years ago today, John Fitzgerald Kennedy was assassinated as his wife Jackie sat next to him, while riding in a presidential motorcade in Dallas, Texas.
Now, over the past five decades there have been a whole load of conspiracy theories about JFK's murder. The official line is that the 35th President of the USA was killed by former U.S. Marine Lee Harvey Oswald, who acted alone, but Oswald himself was gunned down two days later while in police custody.
That's what the Warren Commission - the official investigation into JFK's murder - proclaimed, but questions about it remain unanswered. As a result, many people still believe Oswald wasn't just a lone wolf but acting on behalf of someone - or something - else.
Lee Harvey Oswald. Credit: PA
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Some theories point the finger at the CIA They include the involvement of the CIA (which is actually quite possible), Vice-President Lyndon Johnson, Cuban Prime Minister Fidel Castro or even the KGB.
None, however, have accused JFK's wife of being the culprit. Until now. The official report, you see, states that that Oswald fired sniper-style at the presidential limo twice from the sixth floor of the Texas Book Depository.
One shot missed the car, and one killed the president and injured Governor John Connally as the car cruised down Dealey Plaza.
Credit: PA
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The problem, according to some people, is that the facts just don't add up. Dr. James Fetzer, author of Murder In Dealey Plaza, suggests the assassin was definitely not Oswald.
He states: "According to the Warren Report, Lee Oswald scored two hits, firing three shots in six seconds... with a medium to low velocity weapon, which couldn't have inflicted the damage to the President's skull."
For him, the weapon had to have been a lot closer - like, for instance, in the hand of the very person sitting next to JFK - and that he was actually shot and killed from the front, not the back as the official explanation suggests.
Credit: PA
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While the Warren Commission states two shots were fired from behind, it's claimed that Kennedy's injuries showed he was shot from the front, with the bullet making an exit at the back of his skull.
"The autopsy x-rays were fabricated to conceal a massive blow-out to the back of the head, caused by a shot fired from in front," said Fetzer. "The autopsy record was falsified."
And while over 40 witnesses described the fatal injury as a gaping wound at the back of the president's head, the autopsy only showed a small round hole at the back of his neck.
Credit: PA
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So where does Jackie Kennedy come into all this? Well, Dallas dress manufacturer Abraham Zapruder, is said to be a bystander on Dealey Plaza who was filming the motorcade as it passed by.
The film was confiscated immediately after the assassination and not shown to the public until 1975, though it has now been seen by millions worldwide.
In the footage, which some people claim has been edited, Jackie Kennedy is said by conspiracy theorists to act in a strange way.
In the film, Kennedy seems to be in some kind of distress as the motorcade approaches. Jackie then moves forward in her seat and turns 90 degrees to face her husband.
Credit: PA
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Conspiracy theorists have described how she then leans in towards him, raising her left hand towards his throat when a sudden flash or orange goes off and Kennedy slumps forward, the right side of the head clearly blown out.
Jackie is then seen clambering over the back of the car - not, as you might expect, ducking and hiding - and conspiracy theorists say something can be seen flashing in her hand.
But would she - at the behest of the CIA - have killed her husband? His affair with Marilyn Monroe was certainly well-known. And JFK hadn't hidden his desire to cut down the powers of the CIA.
Could they have persuaded an already jealous and angry Jackie into doing their dirty work? Probably not. But you never know. And what's more, you never will.
Words: Mischa Pearlman
Topics: World News, US News