who was clay shaw's attorney

by Ellis Quigley 10 min read

author Mark Lane

Who was Clay Shaw and what did he do?

 · Clay Shaw's Attorneys To-Do List Here is a letter from Edward Wegmann to Irvin Dymond with a to-do list. They had a huge task list -- in addition to checking out a variety of New Orleans witnesses, they were also forced to investigate leads related to the Warren Report and the JFK assassination that really had nothing to do with Clay Shaw.

Who was the first person Clay Shaw called after he was arrested?

 · These tangled webs of conspiracy theories are what led to Shaw’s indictment on charges he conspired to kill Kennedy. Enter Jim Garrison, the district attorney for New Orleans. He was ambitious. He wanted this job and, as an assistant district attorney, ran against his boss to win election to the post in 1962.

Was Clay Shaw really involved in JFK’s assassination?

 · Dymond was Clay Shaw's trial attorney. The prosecution did not ask any questions relating to the CIA. Since Clay Shaw was not paid by the CIA, one can clearly see that, in a very common sense, Shaw was telling the truth. The CIA was not his employer. W e know that Clay Shaw did not work for the CIA. He was just a domestic contact.

Who played Clay Shaw in Oliver Stone's JFK?

Defendant: Clay L. Shaw Crime Charged: Conspiracy to assassinate John F. Kennedy Chief Defense Lawyers: Irvin Dymond, Salvatore Panzeca, Edward F. Wegmann, and William J. Wegmann Chief Prosecutors: James Alcock, William Alford, Jim Garrison, Alvin Oser, and Andrew Sciambra Judge: Edward A. Haggerty Place: New Orleans, Louisiana

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Where is Jim Garrison buried?

Metairie Cemetery, New Orleans, LAJim Garrison / Place of burialMetairie Cemetery is a cemetery in southeastern Louisiana. The name has caused some people to mistakenly presume that the cemetery is located in Metairie, Louisiana, but it is located within the New Orleans city limits, on Metairie Road. Wikipedia

Where is Clay Shaw buried?

Woodland Cemetery, Kentwood, LAClay Shaw / Place of burial

Who was Jim Garrison married to?

Leah Elizabeth ZieglerJim Garrison / Spouse (m. ?–1992)

What happened Clay Shaw?

Death. A heavy smoker most of his life, Shaw died at the age of 61 at his home on August 15, 1974. The cause of death was listed as metastatic lung cancer. He was buried in Woodland Cemetery in Kentwood, Louisiana.

Who was Clay Shaw?

Clay Shaw, a successful businessman, playwright, pioneer of restoration in New Orleans' French Quarter, and director of the International Trade Mart in New Orleans. David Ferrie, a former Eastern Airlines pilot and associate of Guy Banister. Ferrie drove from New Orleans to Houston on the night of the assassination with two friends, ...

What was Clay Shaw's alias?

In his book On the Trail of the Assassins, Garrison says that after a long search of the New Orleans French Quarter, his staff was informed by the bartender at the tavern "Cosimo's" that "Clay Bertrand" was the alias that Clay Shaw used. According to Garrison, the bartender felt it was no big secret and "my men began encountering one person after another in the French Quarter who confirmed that it was common knowledge that 'Clay Bertrand' was the name Clay Shaw went by." A February 25, 1967 memo by Garrison investigator Lou Ivon to Garrison states that he could not locate a Clay Bertrand despite numerous inquiries and contacts.

What did the judge say about Clay Shaw's fingerprint?

At the trial, the prosecution sought to have entered into evidence a fingerprint card containing Clay Shaw's signature and admission to using the alias "Clay Bertrand." In regard to this, Judge Edward Haggerty, after dismissing the jury, conducted a day-long hearing, in which he ruled the fingerprint card inadmissible. He said that two policemen had violated Shaw's constitutional rights by not permitting the defendant to have his lawyer present during the fingerprinting. Judge Haggerty also announced that Officer Habighorst had violated Miranda v. Arizona and Escobedo v. Illinois by not informing Clay Shaw that he had the right to remain silent. The judge said that Habighorst had violated Shaw's rights by allegedly questioning him about an alias, adding, "Even if he did [ask the question about an alias] it is not admissible." Judge Haggerty exclaimed, "If Officer Habighorst is telling the truth — and I seriously doubt it!" The judge finished with the statement, "I do not believe Officer Habighorst!"

How long did it take for the jury to find Clay Shaw guilty?

At the trial's conclusion — after the prosecution and the defense had presented their cases — the jury took 54 minutes on March 1, 1969, to find Clay Shaw not guilty.

How long did Clay Shaw have to be acquitted?

Clay Shaw was acquitted by the jury after less than an hour of deliberation.

Why did Clay Bertrand tell the FBI?

Andrews testified to the Warren Commission that the reason he told the FBI this was because of FBI harassment.

When was the Shaw trial?

On January 29, 1969, Shaw was brought to trial in Orleans Parish Criminal Court on these charges. On March 1, 1969, a jury took less than an hour to find Shaw not guilty. It remains the only trial to be brought for the assassination of President Kennedy .

What was Clay Shaw's relationship with the CIA?

The tenuous connection Garrison made between this newspaper headline and Clay Shaw were about the former military man’s foreign connections. After retiring from the military as a major in 1946, Shaw consulted with the CIA regarding the business dealings of Americans abroad. The idea was to point the American intelligence community towards any possible Soviet activity that could undermine U.S. interests. The Domestic Contact Service (DCS) was top-secret, and Shaw made 33 reports to the agency over seven years before ending the amicable relationship in 1956.

How long did Clay Shaw's trial last?

Unfortunately, the trial ruined the businessman’s reputation. He had to come out of retirement to pay his legal bills. Shaw died in 1974, just five years after his trial and seven years after his indictment.

Why was Shaw put on trial?

Shaw was the only person put on trial with regards to the Kennedy assassination, and it was all because of a single lie from a single media source printed two years before the president’s death. After the events of late November 1963, the nation was reeling.

What was the role of Shaw in the World Trade Center?

A pillar of the city’s economic growth, Shaw was instrumental in creating New Orleans’ World Trade Center in the late 1940s after the war ended. Shaw was also, unwittingly and mistakenly, part of the city’s most infamous connection to the assassination of John F. Kennedy. Shaw was the only person put on trial with regards to ...

Why did Shaw deny involvement with the CIA?

Shaw also denied any involvement with the CIA, which was true at this point because he stopped being an informant in 1956. The circus of a trial had its own missteps.

What is the lesson from Shaw's trial?

Those were prominent before Shaw’s trial and continue today. The lesson here is that one lie in one headline from one media outlet can ruin people’s lives. Think about that in the Internet Age when headlines or fake news spread in mere seconds.

Who was the district attorney in the 1970s?

Garrison held the post of district attorney until 1973 when he lost an election to Harry Connick Sr. After that defeat, Garrison worked as a judge on the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals starting in the late 1970s until his death in 1991.

Who was Clay Shaw's lawyer?

One of Shaw’s lawyers, Salvatore Panzeca told me that “Clinton never happened.”.

Who was Clay Shaw's contact in New Orleans?

This 1978 document confirms that Clay Shaw’s CIA contact in New Orleans was Hunter Leake, second in command at CIA’s New Orleans field office. Leake’s son, Rob, has talked about how his father reminisced about his knowledge of Oswald, but not for publication.

What is the CIA document dated 1992?

A CIA document dated 1992 tells a different story. This document, issuing from CIA’s History Review Staff, or Historical Review Group, among its PROJFILES at once demolishes the defenders of Clay Shaw.

What did Oswald learn about Clay Shaw?

This, Oswald learned when he got up there, was a mental hospital. After the trial of Clay Shaw, where he was acquitted, jurors expressed their bewilderment as to motive. Respectable socialite Clay Shaw, it strained credulity as to why he would become involved in the murder of the President.

How long was Clay Shaw in the CIA?

Another CIA document, released in 2003 and dated June 28, 1978, describes Clay Shaw’s service to CIA as running from 1949 through 1972, which is more realistic. (Shaw died in August 1974). It indicates that Shaw was serving the SAG, Security Analysis Group, of the Office of Security.

Who was the man who was the CIA's shield?

These files referred to a man named “Jack Martin” or “John G. Martin” or “Joseph James Martin.”. Of all the people CIA felt it necessary to shield, they chose two: not surprisingly, one was Oswald. The other was Jack Martin – which may be surprising – rather than, for example, David Ferrie or even Clay Shaw.

Did Clay Shaw use the CIA?

Shaw replied: “No, I have not.”. As recently as last May 2013, a writer named Donald H. Carpenter self-published a biography of Clay Shaw in which he repeats the disinformation that CIA utilized Shaw only for debriefings, as a “source” of no greater importance than many others.

Where was Clay Shaw born?

On March 17, 1913, Clay Lavergne Shaw was born in Kentwood, Louisiana. In 1935, he was working as a district manager for Western Union in New York City, where he also attended Columbia University.

How did Clay Shaw die?

In 1963, he was living in the French Quarter, New Orleans. On August 14, 1974, Clay Shaw died of lung cancer in New Orleans (buried quickly).

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Overview

On March 1, 1967, New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison arrested and charged New Orleans businessman Clay Shaw with conspiring to assassinate President Kennedy, with the help of Lee Harvey Oswald, David Ferrie, and others. On January 29, 1969, Shaw was brought to trial in Orleans Parish Criminal Court on these charges. On March 1, 1969, a jury took less than an hour to find Sha…

Key persons and witnesses

• Jim Garrison, District Attorney of New Orleans, who believed, at various points, that the John F. Kennedy assassination had been the work of Central Intelligence Agency personnel, anti-Castro Cuban exiles, "a homosexual thrill killing," and ultra right-wing activists. "My staff and I solved the case weeks ago," Garrison announced in February 1967. "I wouldn't say this if we didn't have evidence beyond a shadow of a doubt."

Background

The origins of Garrison's case can be traced to an argument between New Orleans residents Guy Banister and Jack Martin. On November 22, 1963, the day that President John F. Kennedy was assassinated, Banister pistol whippedMartin after a heated exchange. (There are different accounts as to whether the argument was over phone bills or missing files.) Over the next few days, Marti…

Trial

On February 6, 1969, Garrison took 42 minutes to read his 15-page opening statement to the jury. Garrison stated that he would prove that Kennedy was shot from multiple locations; that Oswald conspired with Shaw as early as June 1963; that Shaw, Oswald, and Ferrie traveled to Clinton, Louisianawhere they were observed by a witness; that Oswald transported the gun identified by the Warren Commission as the assassination rifle to the Texas School Book Depository and tha…

Verdict and juror reaction

At the trial's conclusion — after the prosecution and the defense had presented their cases — the jury took 54 minutes on March 1, 1969, to find Clay Shaw not guilty.
Attorney and author Mark Lanesaid that he interviewed several jurors after the trial. Although these interviews have never been published, Lane said that some of the jurors believed that Garrison had in fact proven to them that there really was a conspiracy to kill President Kennedy, …

Later findings, and CIA revelations

On May 8, 1967, the New Orleans States-Item reported that Garrison charged that the CIA and FBI cooperated to conceal the facts of the assassination, and that he planned to seek a Senate inquiry looking into the CIA's role in the Warren Commission's investigation.
Garrison later wrote a book about his investigation of the JFK assassination a…

Reaction

According to The New York Times, the trial of Clay Shaw was "widely described as a circus". Jerry Cohen of the Los Angeles Times said it was "a lengthy comic-opera trial devoid of evidence against the man accused". Burt A. Folkart, also of the Los Angeles Times, called it "a farcical trial." Leading up to the trial, Hugh Aynesworth of Newsweekwrote: "If only no one were living through it—and standing trial for it—the case against Shaw would be a merry kind of parody of conspiracy theori…

Notes

1. ^ The United States House Select Committee on Assassinations noted that "25,000 Americans annually provided information to the CIA's Domestic Contacts Division on a nonclandestine basis" and that "such acts of cooperation should not be confused with an actual Agency relationship."