In light of ongoing public interest and recent revelations that federal agencies had not disclosed important information to the Warren Commission investigation, the U.S. House of Representatives establishes the House Select Committee on Assassinations (HSCA) to reopen the investigations of the assassinations of President Kennedy and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. As part of the Kennedy investigation, a reenactment was conducted in Dealey Plaza. In March 1979, the HSCA issued a 26-volume report. The committee supported the Warren Commission’s findings that Lee Harvey Oswald fired three shots, killing President Kennedy and wounding Governor Connally. However, relying heavily upon scientific analysis of controversial acoustical evidence that established a 95% probability of a second gunman firing a fourth shot from the grassy knoll (which missed), the HSCA concluded that President Kennedy was probably killed as a result of a conspiracy by unidentified individuals.

Image 1: HSCA Report. Gordon M. Thomas Collection/The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza

Image 2: Black and white photographic print of a sharpshooter during the House Select Committee on Assassinations Investigation. August 8, 1978. The Dallas Morning News Collection/The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza. Donated by The Dallas Morning News in the interest of preserving history.