T02 Transcript of State vs. Ruby: Writ of Habeas Corpus, Volume 2

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Transcript of The State of Texas vs. Jack Rubenstein alias Jack Ruby, Writ of Habeas Corpus No. 1193, Volume 2. Melvin Belli, Joe Tonahill, Phil Burleson, Tom Howard and others spoke for Ruby; Henry Wade, Dallas County District Attorney, was the prosecutor, assisted by Jim Bowie and Bill Alexander. The presiding judge was Judge Joe B. Brown.The following appeared as witnesses: Roy Schafer, Walter Bromberg, Jesse E. Curry, John T. Holbrook, C. Ray Hall, L. C. Graves, B. H. Combest, W. F. Alexander, Hillel E. Silverman, Jack Revill and Glenn D. King. At the conclusion, Tom Howard withdraws Ruby's application for a writ of habeas corpus - it had originally been submitted so Ruby could seek psychiatric assessment, but since the judge had assigned an unbiased doctor to assess Ruby the need for it no longer existed. The judge remanded Ruby back to the custody of Dallas County Sheriff Bill Decker.Transcript retains both original covers; typed pages 1 - 292 of sturdy onionskin paper; each page has a printed footer that reads, "James J. Muleady, Dallas, Texas". The cover does not refer to "volume 2" in the title, but the first proceeding of the court on pages 1 - 2 is to remind participants that the first part of the hearing was held December 23, 1963, and that the court has been recessed since then.Text on the cover:"In the Criminal District Court No. 3, Dallas County, Texas. January Term, A. D. 1964.Writ of Habeas CorpusNo. 1193Ex ParteJack Ruby, RelatorStatement of FactsHearing held January 20 - 21, 1964"There is a handwritten note along the bottom left spine edge of the cover in blue ink that says, "Extra copy for J J Muleady".

Object Details

Object title:

T02 Transcript of State vs. Ruby: Writ of Habeas Corpus, Volume 2

Date:

01/20/1964 - 01/21/1964

Medium:

Paper

Dimensions:

11 3/16 × 8 5/8 × 1 1/8 in. (28.4 × 21.9 × 2.9 cm)

Credit line:

Dallas County District Clerk Collection/The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza

Object number:

1994.002.0009.0002

Curatorial Note:

A writ of habeas corpus is defined as a recourse in law in which a person can report an unlawful detention or imprisonment. Ruby requested to be freed on bail; the judge refused. After his writ of habeas corpus was denied, Ruby remained in police custody. - Lindsey Richardson, Curator of Collections

The Museum recorded oral histories with the following individuals named in this document: FBI agent C. Ray Hall; Rabbi Hillel Silverman; Dallas Police Department officers L.C. Graves, Glenn King and Jack Revill; defense attorneys Joe Tonahill and Phil Burleson and Dallas County D.A. Henry Wade. - Stephen Fagin, Curator

The late C. Ray Hall, an FBI agent for thirty-five years, conducted a five-hour interview with Jack Ruby shortly after the shooting of Lee Harvey Oswald on Sunday, November 24, 1963. In his 2010 oral history with The Sixth Floor Museum, Mr. Hall explained, "I did not interview Ruby about his shooting of Oswald because it was a state crime. At the time, oral interviews were not admissible in state court. It had to be written. I did not want to get involved in taking a written statement from Ruby. My interest was finding out everything I could about Jack Ruby to see if he was involved in any plot with some foreign agent or anything else." Mr. Hall went on to describe Ruby's emotional state: "Jack was an emotionally disturbed person, in my opinion. He would talk awhile and then he'd cry and said, 'I don't want to talk anymore.' When he'd say that, we'd just sit there. In a little bit, he'd get composed and he'd voluntarily start talking again. And when he'd start talking, I'd ask him questions, and that went on all afternoon." - Stephen Fagin, Curator