Part 61

Mr. EISENBERG. Mr. Cadigan, I now show you Commission Exhibit No. 795, consisting of an item purporting to be a Selective Service System notice of classification in the name of "Alek James Hidell"; Commission No. 801, a Selective Service System notice of classification in the name of Lee Harvey Oswald; Commission Exhibit No. 802, a registration certificate of the Selective Service System in the name of Lee Harvey Oswald; Commission Exhibit No. 803, a photographic negative; Commission Exhibit No. 804, a photograph negative; Commission Exhibit No. 805, a photograph negative; and Commission Exhibit No. 811, a photographic negative, and I ask you whether you have examined these various items?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. Based on that examination, Mr. Cadigan, could you discuss your conclusions concerning Commission Exhibit No. 795?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes. Commission Exhibit No. 795 is a fraudulent and counterfeit reproduction made from the retouched photographic negatives in Commission Exhibits Nos. 804, 805, and 811 which in turn were made from Commission Exhibits Nos. 801 and 802.

Mr. EISENBERG. And how were they prepared precisely, Mr. Cadigan?

Mr. CADIGAN. These are photographic reproductions. What was done was to take a genuine Selective Service System notice of classification, Commission Exhibit No. 801 in the name of Lee Harvey Oswald. From this, a photographic negative was prepared. Then various portions of the information, including the name, the selective service number, the signature of the clerk of the local board were obliterated with a red opaque substance, and I noted that in the course of this the individual preparing the negative had inadvertently cut off portions of the printed letters, had thickened printed lines, and especially I noted in the signature portion had destroyed portions of the printed letters, and I compared the Commission Exhibit No. 795 with the retouched negative itself, and observed that the defects in the Commission Exhibit No. 795 were due to the retouching of the negative. Although the negative has been blotted out, or the information has been blotted out, it is readily visible to the naked eye that on Commission Exhibit No. 893, which was also examined in connection with the examination of Commission Exhibit No. 795, the original writing, the original signature and the typed information "Lee Harvey Oswald" and selective service number is the same as it appears on Commission Exhibit No. 801. The opaquing is merely to remove this information photographically. There was an intervening step where a small negative or a reduced negative of the lower portion of the face of the card which refers to the penalty for violation concerning carrying the card itself was made. The individual responsible made a reduced photograph but, again, the same characteristics are apparent, and by comparing the print, the photographic print Commission Exhibit No. 795 with these negatives, it is possible to determine that the Commission Exhibit No. 795 was produced from the negatives and the negatives in turn were produced from Commission Exhibits Nos. 801 and 802.

In this connection, I would point out that the reverse side of Commission Exhibit 795 is the form used for a registration certificate, and it is not a proper face of a notice of classification. Here, again, the same procedure was followed. The original card is photographed. The unwanted information is painted out with an opaque substance, and then a photographic print is prepared. Then the individual responsible typed in the information "Alek James Hidell" with the selective service number, descriptive data on the reverse, and the number of the local board.

Further, an examination of the Commission Exhibit No. 795 shows the individual had placed the photograph in a typewriter and struck a number of keys which did not print. The indentations from the typewriter keys can be clearly seen in side lighting. Also, in the selective service number on the face of the card and the data on the back of the card, indentations of typewriter keys were noted.

Mr. EISENBERG. Mr. Cadigan, returning to the negatives, I see that in Commission Exhibit No. 803, as you pointed out, the information that was originally on the card is visible.

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. Whereas, in Commission Exhibit No. 894 it is not visible.

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. Can you explain the difference?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes; because Commission Exhibit No. 804 is an intermediate step. Commission Exhibit No. 803 was first prepared, and a print was made from this exhibit. The photographic print would not have the name "Lee Harvey Oswald" in red on it. In the place of "Lee Harvey Oswald" it would show as a blank. Then using the print, a second negative is prepared, and further retouching is done, and also the warning notice in a reduced form is inserted into the negative, so that the data from the original notice of classification issued in the name of Oswald appears on the first negative and does not appear on the second negative, but both negatives are directly linked to the original card of Oswald and to the counterfeit reproduction.

Mr. EISENBERG. Now, have you prepared photographs of this card showing some of the details you have been discussing?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. That will be Cadigan Exhibit No. 15.

(The document referred to was marked Cadigan Exhibit No. 15.)

Mr. EISENBERG. This Cadigan Exhibit----

Mr. CADIGAN. Actually, there are four different photographs, photographic enlargements that comprise Cadigan Exhibit No. 15, the face and reverse of the notice of classification made in normal lighting, and the face and reverse of the card made with side lighting showing the typewritten indentations.

Mr. EISENBERG. Let's mark those, then, Cadigan Exhibits Nos. 15, 16, and 17, and 18.

(The documents referred to were marked Cadigan Exhibits Nos. 15, 18, 17, and 18.)

Mr. EISENBERG. Now, Cadigan Exhibit No. 15 shows the face with normal lighting?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. Cadigan Exhibit No. 16 shows the reverse with normal lighting?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. Cadigan Exhibit No. 17 shows the face with side lighting?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. And Cadigan Exhibit No. 18 shows the reverse with side lighting?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. These exhibits also contain pictures of another questioned document which we will get to shortly, and that is the certificate of service in the name of Alek James Hidell, is that correct?

Mr. CADIGAN. That is correct.

Mr. EISENBERG. Now, starting with Cadigan Exhibit No. 15, could you discuss several of the features on which you base the conclusions you have given us earlier?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes. The observation of this exhibit will show in the blocks for the selective service number fragmentary portions of the original selective service number. The lines have been thickened. In the space provided for "been classified in Class," in the middle, in approximately the middle of the space there is a heavy dotted line. By comparing this with the original card issued in the name "Oswald" is seen the lower portion of the capital letter "I."

Mr. EISENBERG. Have you taken a photograph of the original card?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. That we will mark Cadigan Exhibit No. 19.

(The document referred to was marked Cadigan Exhibit No. 19.)

Mr. CADIGAN. On the right-hand side of the card the word "President" appears, and on Cadigan Exhibit No. 15 a portion of the "r" and the "e" is missing, due to the retouching. Examination of the corresponding area on Cadigan Exhibit No. 19 shows that this was due to retouching a portion of the signature of the local board. Similarly, in the wording "heavy penalty for violation" appearing below the signature, the word "violation" is considerably distorted in that portions of the various letters are missing. The negative shows this is due to retouching, and a comparison with the original card of Oswald, of which Cadigan Exhibit No. 19 is an enlargement, shows where the lower loops of the letter "f" cut into the letter, cut into the printed word "violation," which required retouching by the individual to remove it.

Mr. EISENBERG. Have you taken photographs of these negatives to illustrate these points?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. This is that photograph?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. That will be marked Cadigan Exhibit No. 20.

(The document referred to was marked Cadigan Exhibit No. 20.)

Mr. CADIGAN. And by referring to the Cadigan Exhibit No. 20, which shows the retouching, examination of the area in the word "President" will show where the portion of the "r" has been cut off. It will show where the capital letter "I" appears in the space provided "been classified in Class," the "I" being part of the classification, Roman numeral "IV-A," which appears on the original card.

Cadigan Exhibit No. 20 shows, also, the intermediate negative where the size of the warning appearing on the bottom of the card was reduced, and the additional retouching made that causes the distorted appearance of the word "violation" on the Commission Exhibit No. 795, so that it was based on my comparison side by side of the negatives, the photographic print, and the original exhibit in the wallet of Oswald, which enabled me to determine that this Commission Exhibit No. 795 was a fraudulent counterfeit made from retouched negatives which, in turn, were made from the original exhibits, Commission Exhibits Nos. 801 and 802.

Mr. EISENBERG. I think that Cadigan Exhibits Nos. 16, 17, and 18 are self-explanatory.

Mr. CADIGAN. They merely serve to illustrate the indented typewriting that appears on these exhibits.

Mr. EISENBERG. Mr. Cadigan, I now hand you Commission Exhibit No. 806, purporting to be a certificate of service that Alek James Hidell has honorably served on active duty in the U.S. Marine Corps, and ask you whether you have examined that document?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. And I hand you Commission Exhibit No. 812, consisting of two negatives. Have you examined those negatives?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. Based upon your examination, have you come to any conclusion as to the construction of Commission Exhibit No. 806?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes; again, this is a fraudulent and counterfeit reproduction made from photographic negatives which, in turn, were made from the original card issued in the name of Lee Harvey Oswald.

Mr. EISENBERG. Have you taken a photograph of the original card?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. And where does that appear? That is the photograph you are handing me now, which we will label Cadigan Exhibit No. 21?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

(The document referred to was marked Cadigan Exhibit No. 21.)

Mr. EISENBERG. Cadigan Exhibit No. 21 includes the selective service registration certificate we have been discussing, is that correct?

Mr. CADIGAN. No; it includes an enlargement of the original Selective Service System registration certificate issued in the name of Lee Harvey Oswald.

Mr. EISENBERG. And that is the Selective Service System certificate on which the forgery in the name of Hidell was based?

Mr. CADIGAN. From which the reverse side of the forged or the fraudulent and counterfeit notice of classification was prepared.

Mr. EISENBERG. Focusing our attention on the certificate of service, could you illustrate by use of this photograph and any others you have already introduced some of the points which led you to your conclusion----

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. As to Commission Exhibit No. 806?

Mr. CADIGAN. The two negatives in Commission Exhibit No. 812, which appear on Cadigan Exhibit No. 20, show the areas of retouching. Examination of the negatives themselves in Commission Exhibit No. 812 shows that the original entries on the face and reverse side can be seen. It appears in red. The face reads "Lee Harvey Oswald, 1653230." And the reverse side bears his signature.

From a study of the negatives and from the enlarged photographs, Cadigan Exhibits Nos. 15, 16, 17, and 18, I wish to point out some of the evidence that links these three items together. On Cadigan Exhibit No. 16, on the reverse side in the printed word "signature," the "u" is misshapen, due to some of the retouched substance crossing the letter, and this is exactly in the area where the upper portion of the name "Lee" appears on the original card. This is seen on Cadigan Exhibit No. 21.

Also on the line below, in which appears the printed wording "signature of certifying officer," in the letter "n" in "certifying" can be seen a long line which at first glance might appear to be a part of the signature "A. G. Ayers, Jr.," but which corresponds exactly to the ending stroke of the letter "y" in "Harvey."

Also, in the printed word "officer" on the same line can be seen the effects of the retouch in that the upper part of the first "f" has been cut off by the retouch substance. So that by a study and a comparison of the Commission Exhibit No. 806 with the negatives, with particular reference to where the retouching fluid has cut into lines or printing, and further comparing the same negative with the original card, as shown in Cadigan Exhibit No. 21, I determined and it can be seen that the Commission Exhibit No. 806 was produced from the negatives in Exhibit No. 812, which, in turn, were produced from the original card of which Cadigan Exhibit No. 21 is a photograph.

Mr. EISENBERG. Mr. Cadigan, in either the fraudulent selective service notice of classification or certificate of service, have attempts been made to reinstate portions of printed lines which were blocked out by the opaque substance?

Mr. CADIGAN. No; I didn't notice that, particularly. I noticed from a technical standpoint that the opaquing was rather crudely done, in that the opaquing of negatives is a common photographic technique, and with reasonable care you can avoid cutting into lines. I didn't particularly observe any areas where the lines had been put back in.

This does not eliminate the possibility, because it is a very simple matter of scratching through the opaque emulsion to produce such a line.

Mr. EISENBERG. Where the line is thickened, as is visible in Cadigan Exhibit No. 15, how would you account for that, Mr. Cadigan? I am looking now at Cadigan Exhibit No. 15 in the block, that portion of the rectangular block surrounding the number "224," and particularly the bottom of the block.

Mr. CADIGAN. A study and examination of Cadigan Exhibit No. 19 shows that these areas correspond to the figures "114" which appear in the second block of the Selective Service number, and which were not retouched off.

Mr. EISENBERG. So you feel that, rather than the bottom of that block being thickened in the retouching, what you have is a residue from the typed-in portion----

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. Which appeared on the original card?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes; and this can be further seen. The right-hand side of the block for the first two letters of the selective service number shows a thickened area which corresponds to the numeral "1" on the original card of Oswald.

Mr. EISENBERG. Mr. Cadigan, returning now for a moment to Commission Exhibit No. 795, were you able to identify either of the two signatures written in ink on that card, the one being "Alek J. Hidell," and the other a signature written over the caption "Member or clerk of local board"?

Mr. CADIGAN. No; I did examine the "Alek J. Hidell" signature appearing as the signature of registrant, but the known writings available of Lee Harvey Oswald were not sufficiently comparable with the signature to reach a definite opinion. I did note, however, some similarities in the letter "A" and in the last name, the letter "H" and the ending "l." But these were not of sufficient weight nor of sufficient number nor of sufficient combination to warrant a definite opinion.

Mr. EISENBERG. You say you compared this item, this signature with the known standards. Did you compare the signature with questioned documents which you already identified?

Mr. CADIGAN. No.

Mr. EISENBERG. Mr. Cadigan, I wonder whether after this deposition would you compare this signature with those questioned signatures of "Alek J. Hidell" which you have now identified?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes; certainly.

Mr. EISENBERG. Mr. Cadigan, I now hand you Commission Exhibit No. 817, consisting of a portion of an application for a post office box 30061 in New Orleans, POD Form 1093, and ask you whether you have examined that item?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. And have you attempted to determine whether that item, Commission Exhibit No. 817, was prepared by Lee Harvey Oswald, whose known writings we have introduced previously?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes; I have.

Mr. EISENBERG. And what was your conclusion?

Mr. CADIGAN. On Commission Exhibit No. 817 the hand printed names, "A. J. Hidell," and "Marina Oswald," and the signature "L. H. Oswald," were written by Lee Harvey Oswald, based on a comparison with his known standards of writing.

Mr. EISENBERG. Have you prepared a photograph of Commission Exhibit No. 817?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. And does that also include a photograph of another item, apparently another part of the application?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. Did your identification of the Commission Exhibit No. 817 depend in any way upon your identification of the other part of the item which is shown in your photograph?

Mr. CADIGAN. It did not.

Mr. EISENBERG. I will mark the photograph Cadigan. Exhibit No. 22. (The document referred to was marked Cadigan Exhibit No. 22.)

Mr. EISENBERG. Was this prepared by you or under your supervision?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. And it is an accurate photograph?

Mr. CADIGAN. It is.

Mr. EISENBERG. We haven't been going over that with all the other photographs, but is that true of all the photographs we have introduced so far?

Mr. CADIGAN. That is correct.

Mr. EISENBERG. And any other photographs you may introduce during the balance of this deposition?

Mr. CADIGAN. That is true.

Mr. EISENBERG. Mr. Cadigan, by use of that photograph and by use of the photographs of the standards, could you explain some of the points which led you to your conclusion concerning Commission Exhibit No. 817?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes; here again, it is the presence of the same combination of characteristics in the hand printing and signature on Cadigan Exhibit No. 22 and on Cadigan Exhibits Nos. 4 through 10. For example, the word "Marina" on Cadigan Exhibit No. 22 can be compared with the same word or the same name on Cadigan Exhibit No. 10, the "M" being characterized by a rather long beginning stroke, the center of the letter is high, giving the letter somewhat the appearance of the numeral "3" tipped on its side. The "A" is similar to or made in the same way as previous "A's," with a pointed top, with the beginning stroke about two-thirds of the way up the staff. The "i", again, is very small in relation to the letters coming before and after it. In the "N" there is a curve at the base of the letter. It is more pronounced on Cadigan Exhibit No. 22 than in the name "Marina" in Cadigan Exhibit No. 10, but in the name "Lillian," on the same exhibit, the same kind of curve is observed.

In "Oswald," again in the signature "L. H. Oswald," I find the same characteristics and combinations of characteristics. In the questioned signature in Cadigan Exhibit No. 22 as in the various known signatures in Cadigan Exhibits Nos. 4 through 10, here I think the ending "ld," the narrow pointed loops used for the "l" and "d" are very small, and with a rather misshapen body or upper stroke.

Again, it is the presence of the same combination of handwriting and hand printing characteristics which led me to the opinion that this exhibit had been prepared by Lee Harvey Oswald.

Mr. EISENBERG. Mr. Cadigan, I now hand you Commission Exhibit No. 813, a vaccination certificate, a purported vaccination certificate, signed by "A. J. Hidell," and I ask you whether you have examined that item?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes; I have.

Mr. EISENBERG. Now, this bears writing on the outside and the inside. Have you attempted to determine whether that writing is the writing of Lee Harvey Oswald?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. What is your conclusion?

Mr. CADIGAN. That the hand printing and the Oswald signature were written by Lee Harvey Oswald, again based on the presence of the same combination of individual handwriting and hand printing characteristics.

Mr. EISENBERG. Have you taken photographs of this exhibit?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. Those will be Cadigan Exhibits Nos. 23 and 24.

(The documents referred to were marked Cadigan Exhibits Nos. 23 and 24.)

Mr. CADIGAN. I would point out that these represent only a portion of the original document, since for demonstration purposes the lower printed blank is not included in these exhibits.

Mr. EISENBERG. Now, the document as we see it now exhibits extremely faint writing. Can you explain the reason for that?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes; this is due to treatment of the card for latent fingerprints by chemical process which bleaches and makes inks run.

Mr. EISENBERG. Was the document treated to restore the original color after it had been treated for fingerprints?

Mr. CADIGAN. No; from looking at this, it has been desilvered, but it has not been completely desilvered since parts of the stains of the chemical treatment remain.

Mr. EISENBERG. When you first saw the document and made your examination, was the document in its original condition, that is, had it been treated yet for fingerprints?

Mr. CADIGAN. I never saw the original.

Mr. EISENBERG. You never saw the original?

Mr. CADIGAN. No; I had a Xerox copy of the original exhibit. I did not see this original exhibit.

Mr. EISENBERG. You said before you had examined this exhibit?

Mr. CADIGAN. To be more exact, I examined a Xerox copy of this exhibit.

Mr. EISENBERG. Do you know who prepared the Xerox copy?

Mr. CADIGAN. It was submitted by our Dallas office.

Mr. EISENBERG. Was this a copy of the front and the back?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes.

Mr. EISENBERG. And are your photographs of the Xerox or of the original?

Mr. CADIGAN. They are made from the Xerox.

Mr. EISENBERG. Is this the first time you saw the original?

Mr. CADIGAN. I believe it is.

Mr. EISENBERG. Based upon your examination of the original at this point, and a comparison of the photograph of the Xerox copies, would you conclude that the Xerox copies had been made before the document had been treated for fingerprints?

Mr. CADIGAN. Very definitely.

Mr. EISENBERG. Could you note a few of the points which led you to your conclusion concerning the handwriting appearing on the documents you photographed as Cadigan Exhibits Nos. 23 and 24?

Mr. CADIGAN. Yes; the handwritten signature "Lee H. Oswald" is written in a very distinctive manner. The "L" with its rather long beginning stroke, and its narrow upper, and the lower loop, is almost in the shape of a triangle. The large loop formation at the top of the "O" leading into the letter "s" and the loop at the base of the "s" is almost a carbon copy of the same characteristic appearing on Cadigan Exhibit No. 10, page 2. And again, the narrow "l" and relatively large "d" with a very pronounced ending stroke on the "d" is typical of the manner in which this man writes his signature.

So also in the hand printing, on Cadigan Exhibit No. 10, we see the "LEE" and the "OSWALD," the little hook at the start of the "L" and the reverse curves at the base of both the "L" and the following "EE's." Again, we see the use of the lowercase "l" and the lowercase "d" in the formation of "Oswald," whereas the rest of the letters are capital letters.

Here, again, the presence of the same combination of characteristics led me to the opinion that this writing had been prepared by Lee Harvey Oswald.