Fox News Flash top headlines for August 30
Fox News Flash top headlines for August 30 are here. Check out what's clicking on Foxnews.com
The Texas police officer handcuffed to Lee Harvey Oswald when he was fatally shot at Dallas police headquarters two days after the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy, died Thursday at age 99, according to family.
Former Dallas police Detective Jim Leavelle was transporting Oswald to the Dallas County Jail when the assassin was suddenly shot on live television by nightclub owner and police informant Jack Ruby at point-blank range on Nov. 24, 1963.
Karla Leavelle, daughter of the retired detective, confirmed her father's death to FOX 4 Dallas.
NEW JFK ASSASSINATION RECORDS FOCUS ON LEE HARVEY OSWALD'S TRIP TO MEXICO, CIA TIES
In addition to the television footage, historic photos show Leavelle wearing a light-colored suit and matching cowboy hat as a bullet whizzes into Oswald, who later died from the gunshot wound.
This Sept. 10, 2013 photo shows an image taken by Bob Jackson of the Dallas Times Herald on Nov. 24, 1963, of Lee Harvey Oswald, assassin of U.S. President John F. Kennedy, reacting as Dallas night club owner Jack Ruby, foreground, shoots at him from point blank range in a corridor of Dallas Police Headquarters, juxtaposed with the current scene at the Dallas Police Headquarters, in Dallas. (Associated Press)
Two days earlier, President Kennedy was assassinated while riding in a motorcade during a Dallas campaign visit. Oswald was arrested that day in connection with Kennedy’s death, as well as the fatal shooting of Dallas patrolman J.D. Tippit, History.com reports.
Authorities say Lee Harvey Oswald was the lone gunman responsible for John F. Kennedy's death. (Associated Press)
Another of Leavelle's daughters, Tanya Evers of San Antonio, told the Dallas Morning News that her father felt obligated, as he grew older, to dispel conspiracy theories around Kennedy’s assassination and Oswald’s subsequent death.
Leavelle previously said he met Ruby at his nightclub, where officers patrolled around closing time to prevent disturbances. He said he spoke to Ruby again after his arrest.
"I told him, 'You know you didn't do us any favor by shooting Oswald,’” Leavelle told the Dallas Morning News before his passing. "He said, 'All I wanted to do was to be a hero, and it looks like all I did was foul things up.’"
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Before joining the police department, Leavelle fought in the Navy during World War II and was aboard one of the first destroyer ships to respond to the Dec. 7, 1941, Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. He was born outside of Detroit but settled in Dallas after leaving the Navy.
He celebrated his birthday in Colorado last week with a group of about 60 family members and friends -- including a man who worked as a reporter covering the Oswald shooting and a woman who wrote to Leavelle as a middle-school student, asking about Kennedy’s assassination, the Dallas Morning News reported. Leavelle fell and broke his hip Monday before his death Thursday.
True Crime
The hottest stories ripped from the headlines, from crime to courts, legal and scandal.
By entering your email and clicking the Subscribe button, you agree to the Fox News Privacy Policy and Terms of Use, and agree to receive content and promotional communications from Fox News. You understand that you can opt-out at any time.
