The JFK Assassination CHOKEHOLDS
By Jim DiEugenio, Paul Bleau, Matt Crumpton, Andrew Iler, and Mark Adamczyk
Vanessa Bleau interview of her father and author Paul Bleau
OK, SO LET’S GET INTO THE THICK OF THINGS. WHAT STIMULATED THE DECISION TO WRITE A BOOK?
On the fiftieth anniversary of the JFK assassination, I performed the first study on how history books covered the assassination. What I found was lamentable. Almost all the books peddled the lone nut scenario and after questioning authors, I discovered that they almost all relied on the repudiated Warren Commission conclusions. Very few authors had even heard of the HSCA or the ARRB. When it came to their own code of conduct, they broke some of the most basic rules. For instance, their writings never evolved beyond what the Warren Commission put forward in 1964 despite an onslaught of new information. Bottom line, captive audiences of young students were being given a biased, incomplete picture of one of the biggest tragedies of the last century.
Last year I revisited the books and observed almost no change. It was at the CAPA conference, that some of the other authors and I agreed on doing something about this for the sixtieth anniversary.
WHO ARE THE OTHER AUTHORS?
I am really pleased with the team we put together. Jim DiEugenio needs no introduction. He contributed two of the ten chapters, ensured quality control of the whole book, and tapped into his network of contacts for surgical insights that add so much detail we find in the book. Matt Crumpton, a lawyer from Ohio, whom I met in Dallas during the conference, also wrote two chapters. His involvement in the publishing efforts and the roll-out cannot be overstated. Watch out for him, he will be leading the next generation of researchers. Andrew Iler, a Canadian lawyer who understands the JFK Act inside out, kept the whole body of work grounded around standards of proof which were top of mind for each of the writers. He also contributed writings about how Biden and Trump broke the law by refusing to release classified documents about the assassination. Mark Adamczyk, a lawyer from Florida, recruited Andrew for the project, participated in the concept development and helped edit two chapters. Overall, the combination of knowledge and legal expertise permeates through the book.
CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT THE TITLE OF THE BOOK AND WHY IT WAS CHOSEN?
The first time I heard the word chokeholds used in this case was by the legendary Malcolm Blunt when he was describing how the CIA managed the Oswald file which clearly suggested that when he went to Russia, he was no ordinary defector. Many arguments in proving a conspiracy can be seen as persuasive but not necessarily conclusive. Chokeholds cannot be countered. In the view of the authors the ten bodies of evidence put forward, each on their own, constitute a chokehold that inescapably proves a conspiracy.
We avoid delving into subjects such as the limousine stopping or not during the motorcade, the suspicious backyard photos, the prayer man photo… not that these are not intriguing, for us they simply do not rise to the chokehold status yet. A student who would challenge a historian pushing the lone assassin scenario with any one of the chokeholds we lay out would have him cornered. The book provides clear and convincing evidence that there was a conspiracy and more than enough exculpating evidence and problems with the Warren Commission investigation that Oswald could not have been found guilty beyond reasonable doubt. In the process, the Warren Commission Report which is the go-to source for most backers of the lone nut version of this most important historical event, is completely repudiated and should become a topic to be studied in the field of mass psychology henceforth.
WHAT ARE SOME OF THE CHOKEHOLDS?
The first chokehold is called: The Official Record Impeaches the Warren Commission. Really it does more than this. From the written words taken straight out of the reports of six government inquiries, one civil trial and other investigations and the spoken ones from investigation insiders, readers will be astounded by the sheer number of troubling statements that were made throughout the years by those who were closest to the primary data and the status of these investigators. We are not talking about independent researchers here. Its the hands-on professionals employed to look into the case who were lawyers, doctors, intelligence officers, and staff members who had a direct role in collecting and analyzing the facts overwhelmingly agree that something more sinister happened between November 22 and November 24, 1963, in Dallas than three lone gunman assassinations.
This chapter on its own turns the tables on Warren Commission apologists by placing them at the opposite end of the official records. All the accusations of paranoia, quackery, and conspiracy mongering directed at the Mark Lanes and Jim Garrisons as well as independent authors will now rain down right back in their faces. The side that believes in a conspiracy is power-packed and overwhelms the small ragtag team of today’s Warren Commission defenders, both by their numbers and credibility.
You will find some of the usual themes, but presented in an all-encompassing way. For instance, proof of front shot will of course include the Zapruder film’s revelation of the violent back and to the left movement of JFK’s head when struck by the death blow, which had to be kept hidden from the public for so long because of what it demonstrated… However, it is only by outlaying this with the other highly incriminating evidence of a front shot that we arrive at a level of consilience that makes a front shot a fact.
The final chapter is about sixty years of obstruction of justice. According to Jim, there has never been something this comprehensive that has been written about the relentless attempts to deprive the public from accessing the truth. The other seven chapters are just as powerful. The belief in just one of them destroys history books' depiction of what happened.
WHAT ELSE CAN READERS LOOK FORWARD TO FROM THIS BOOK?
The authors feel that this book will represent the all-defining case for a conspiracy. I am currently reading Sylvia Meagher’s Accessories after the Fact. This book on its own obliterated the Warren Commission findings and conclusions.
But Chokeholds is contemporary. Bolstered by sixty years of findings, all the way up to the most recent 2023 declassified documents. Readers will see the actual FBI spectrographic report of JFK’s necktie interpreted today by a reputable criminal investigator, they will read about Arlen Specter’s little-known admission of what prompted him to come up with the single bullet theory, they will learn about Russian reaction to Oswald’s target shooting while he was in Russia, and lots more new or little known facts pertinent to the assassination.
I think the similar case analysis and comparison has been brought to a level that will surprise even the most knowledgeable researchers. There is an intelligence file we refer to that clearly demonstrates how links to the FPCC were made with several useful idiot patsy candidates. There are over 800 citations and exhibits referring to mostly primary data. But the real novelty is how everything has been put together. Every chapter has an executive summary and a summation looked into by our lawyer authors.
YOU ONCE TOLD ME THAT YOU HAD NO TIME TO WASTE ON PROVING THAT THERE WAS A CONSPIRACY, YET THIS BOOK DOES JUST THAT. WHAT MADE YOU CHANGE YOUR MIND?
You are right, I always felt many of us were being drawn into trying to sway people who were either obfuscators with an agenda or people who are simply stubborn. But there are many people who have trouble navigating through this saga because of all the false flags and unreliable books out there as well as and the sheer complexity of the case. Over 80% of the people have not seen the Zapruder film, do not know about the many investigations that followed the Warren Commission or about the mystery of Mexico City. Chokeholds, by focusing on a top ten approach, will bring clarity for the layman and will deliver plenty of new material for seasoned researchers. Despite yearly declassification of documents, who in the media or academia is actually ferreting through this untapped source of information? Why is it left to the Morleys, Newmans and DiEugenios of this world to help inform the public? It makes no sense. We also provide groundwork for more areas to explore. By presenting what happened, we are in a better position to ask ourselves who did what?
HAVE YOU HAD ANY REACTIONS SO FAR?
We have received very positive comments from researchers who helped us with some proofreading. John Newman, Cyril Wecht and Oliver Stone have written very nice blurbs about the book. Also, I had the opportunity to do two presentations: one to a group of JFK researchers and another to over ninety average citizens and in both cases the messages got through and the reactions were very positive.
WHY IS THIS SUBJECT STILL IMPORTANT TODAY?
The most powerful nation in the world is polarized and unstable. Its government and media have lost the trust of the people. There was an insurrection at the Capitol on January 6, 2021. In my opinion, this race to the bottom started with the JFK assassination and picked up steam with Vietnam, other political assassinations, Watergate, Iran/Contra, the war in Iraq and now you have Trump and Biden breaking the law of the land. If people like JFK, RFK and Martin Luther King are taken away from us without any lessons learned, then how can democracy survive? And then what takes over? A dictatorship like in Russia, which is not a solution and would be far worse than the challenges the West is currently facing.
SO WHO KILLED JFK?
Stay tuned.
WAS IT THE CIA?
No.
HOW DO YOU KNOW?
McCone had no clue, in my opinion.
WHAT ABOUT DULLES?
He was no longer part of the CIA.
BUT WHO HAD THE POWER TO COVER EVERYTHING UP?
That is a different question. Everyone at that time wanted to keep their distance from this stink bomb. They still do, but the media this year seemed more willing to get their feet wet.
HAS THE CASE BEEN SOLVED?
To a certain degree. Many researchers have a pretty good idea of what happened.
HOW CAN IT BE FULLY SOLVED?
Perhaps it will never be fully solved with certainty. Releasing the files fully, conducting a real investigation led by the people of the like of Richard Sprague and Robert Tanenbaum, combing through the already released files, talking to the few surviving witnesses and the relatives of persons of interest, investigating similar cases, building an entity-link diagram… this could be done. But is there the will?
WAS WRITING THIS A LOT OF WORK?
This is not a job, there are no expectations of making money and we were five people on this. Though this is a hobby for me, it is one I take seriously. Because I had already written about the subjects over the years, it was easier to update than to start from scratch. Serious effort is what I would call it.
WILL THERE BE A PART TWO?
I think we need to do a post-mortem on this work first. Right now, I am working on finishing a French version of Chokeholds.
WHY FRENCH?
The reception of Oliver Stone and the documentary JFK Revisited in Quebec City and France and the open-mindedness of Europeans in general have convinced the authors that it will be well received.
ANYTHING ELSE YOU WOULD LIKE TO ADD?
I would like to thank the co-authors who gave it their all as well as Gerry Simone, David Josephs, David Boylan, Jeff Meek, Brian Edwards, Larry Hancock, Matt Douthit, Jean-François Larouche, Joçanne Prévost and Gary Murr for their valuable help. Because of all these amazing people who put their heart and soul in helping us, I feel reassured that readers will get full value.
In many ways our generation has not always been the best model for yours. How people will react to this book will say a lot about them. We know what the playbook is to counter work such as this. I expect it will rear its ugly head.
One of my favorite lines from the movies comes from Gladiator: “What we do in life echoes in eternity.” There is a rightful place in history for Jim Garrison, Gaeton Fonzi, Mark Lane and those who fought hard for the truth and there is another one for the sheer evil perpetrated against them…a place Angleton alluded to. I know which one I want to end up in.
