The Three Small Puncture Wounds in JFK's Right Cheek: Proof of a Second Gunman

[Michael T. Griffith]

The ARRB-released medical files include the disclosure that at the autopsy, mortician Tom Robinson noticed three small puncture wounds in JFK's right cheek. Robinson filled the holes with wax because embalming fluid was leaking from them (Meeting Report: Interview of Tom Robinson, ARRB, 6/21/96, p. 2). Robinson even drew a diagram of the wounds for the ARRB. The conspiracy theory of the JFK case can explain these wounds. We have credible evidence that a bullet from the front penetrated the front windshield. This bullet certainly must have blown glass and metal particles toward JFK, providing us with a plausible and logical explanation for those three small puncture wounds.

How can the lone-gunman theory explain the three small wounds in JFK's right cheek? It cannot.

The bullet that struck the pavement early in the shooting landed near the limousine and deposited several small fragments in the back of JFK's skull, so that bullet could not have caused the three small puncture wounds in the right cheek.

No fragment from the back of the skull, ricochet or not, could have made it to the right cheek wound without smashing through the intervening bone. And a ricochet fragment off the inside back of the skull would have had to travel at a downward angle to reach the cheek, even ignoring the intervening bone structures, while the bullet from which this fragment would have had to come allegedly exited above the right ear.

Robinson said the three cheek holes were not visible in the right superior profile autopsy photo because it is of poor quality (p. 4), which means the holes would be visible if a better-quality photo had been taken.

The obvious and most logical and plausible explanation is that the wounds were made by three small projectiles that struck the surface of the cheek, but lone-gunman theorists cannot accept this because they have no bullet that could have produced three small fragments that hit the surface of the cheek.

The first lone-gunman answer was that the three holes were "most likely" caused by three bone fragments "exiting as a result of the EOP shot." But this won't work because the fragments would have had to tear through the cheek bone.

The second lone-gunman answer was that the three fragments could have come from the eye socket. But this won't work because the fragments would have had to somehow travel virtually straight down from the eye socket, barely missing the cheek bone, and then, even more amazingly, made a sharp turn to exit the cheek.

The third and apparently final lone-gunman answer is that a pressure wave from the EOP head shot caused the three puncture wounds. This pressure wave supposedly began at some point between the EOP entry site and the alleged exit wound above the right ear, then passed through the right cheek bone without damaging it, and then made the three small holes in the right cheek. This magic pressure wave not only did no damage to the cheek bone but did not make holes in any other place on the face--just the three holes that the morticians noticed and filled with wax.

Pressure waves are most often associated with cavitation caused by high-velocity bullets, but the alleged assassin used a low-velocity rifle:

Mr. EISENBERG. How does the recoil of this weapon [the Mannlicher-Carcano rifle that
Oswald supposedly used] compare with the recoil of the average military rifle?
Mr. FRAZIER. Considerably less. The recoil is nominal with this weapon, because it
has a very low velocity and pressure, and just an average-size bullet weight.
Mr. EISENBERG. Is the killing power of the bullets essentially similar to the killing power
at these ranges---the killing power of the rifles you have named?
Mr. FRAZIER. No, sir.
Mr. EISENBERG. How much difference is there?
Mr. FRAZIER. The higher velocity bullets of approximately the same weight
would have more killing power. This has a low velocity. . . . (3 H 414, emphasis added)

There is some question about whether pressure waves actually do cause wounds. Forensic expert Martin Fackler has argued that pressure waves do not cause tissue disruption, that temporary cavitation is the actual cause of tissue disruption, and that this damage is mistakenly attributed to pressure waves. Experts are divided on whether pressure waves contribute to wound injury. One article concludes that no "conclusive evidence could be found for permanent pathological effects produced by the pressure wave" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrostatic_shock).

The windshield bullet's course could have been slightly altered while penetrating the windshield, causing the bullet to narrowly miss JFK, but some glass fragments from this shot could have hit JFK in the throat and face.

The bottom line is that those who posit multiple gunmen have a credible explanation for the three small puncture wounds. Those who posit a lone gunman and only three shots have no credible explanation for the wounds.

[Royell Storing]

  With the possibility of the curb/street being hit with a missed shot and then spewing (3) concrete fragments into the (R) Cheek of JFK, also comes the possibility of other concrete fragments from this same missed shot striking/chipping the (R) side of the JFK Limo. If only (3) fragments struck JFK in the cheek, there had to of been other concrete fragments that fell short of striking JFK. These fragments would have struck the (R) rear side of the JFK Limo and left mark(s) on the highly polished/detailed exterior of that car. Images of the (R) rear of the JFK Limo need to be scrutinized. 

[Michael T. Griffith]

  With the possibility of the curb/street being hit with a missed shot and then spewing (3) concrete fragments into the (R) Cheek of JFK, also comes the possibility of other concrete fragments from this same missed shot striking/chipping the (R) side of the JFK Limo. If only (3) fragments struck JFK in the cheek, there had to of been other concrete fragments that fell short of striking JFK. These fragments would have struck the (R) rear side of the JFK Limo and left mark(s) on the highly polished/detailed exterior of that car. Images of the (R) rear of the JFK Limo need to be scrutinized.

The problem with this idea is that the pavement bullet sent several fragments into the back of JFK's head, with two of them (the McDonnel fragment and the 6.3 x 2.5 mm fragment) lodging in different layers of the outer table of the skull and with several small particles lodging around the 6.3 x 2.5 fragment. The trajectory from the pavement strike to JFK's right cheek seems impossible.

We have good evidence that a bullet made a hole in the front windshield. It is entirely plausible that three small glass fragments from this windshield strike hit JFK's right cheek, creating the puncture wounds.

[Royell Storing]

  When you say "impossible", you need to remember that the alleged shot striking the street/curb was possibly a 4th "missed" shot. If this 4th shot/missed shot is also what the HSCA Acoustics Experts were referencing, the shooter of that 4th Shot would be located somewhere along the picket fence firing (E) down Elm St. This would change the trajectory of the alleged spewed concrete fragments.   

[Michael T. Griffith]

  When you say "impossible", you need to remember that the alleged shot striking the street/curb was possibly a 4th "missed" shot. If this 4th shot/missed shot is also what the HSCA Acoustics Experts were referencing, the shooter of that 4th Shot would be located somewhere along the picket fence firing (E) down Elm St. This would change the trajectory of the alleged spewed concrete fragments.

I just don't see how a bullet that sent several bullet fragments toward the back of the head could have also sent concrete fragments toward the right cheek. In order to send bullet fragments to the back of the head, the bullet must have struck behind the limousine, as some witnesses indicated. I don't see how such a bullet could have sent concrete fragments toward the right cheek.

[Royell Storing]

I just don't see how a bullet that sent several bullet fragments toward the back of the head could have also sent concrete fragments toward the right cheek. In order to send bullet fragments to the back of the head, the bullet must have struck behind the limousine, as some witnesses indicated. I don't see how such a bullet could have sent concrete fragments toward the right cheek.

   Depends on the position of JFK's head with respect to the Back of the head and the (R) cheek wounds. A missed 4th Shot would be at some point after the 3 shots. How long after I do Not know. We also have the wound on the (R) Forehead/Hairline Level. Keep that in mind too.

[Mitch Todd]

The ARRB-released medical files include the disclosure that at the autopsy, mortician Tom Robinson noticed three small puncture wounds in JFK's right cheek. Robinson filled the holes with wax because embalming fluid was leaking from them (Meeting Report: Interview of Tom Robinson, ARRB, 6/21/96, p. 2). Robinson even drew a diagram of the wounds for the ARRB. The conspiracy theory of the JFK case can explain these wounds. We have credible evidence that a bullet from the front penetrated the front windshield. This bullet certainly must have blown glass and metal particles toward JFK, providing us with a plausible and logical explanation for those three small puncture wounds.

How can the lone-gunman theory explain the three small wounds in JFK's right cheek? It cannot.

The bullet that struck the pavement early in the shooting landed near the limousine and deposited several small fragments in the back of JFK's skull, so that bullet could not have caused the three small puncture wounds in the right cheek.

No fragment from the back of the skull, ricochet or not, could have made it to the right cheek wound without smashing through the intervening bone. And a ricochet fragment off the inside back of the skull would have had to travel at a downward angle to reach the cheek, even ignoring the intervening bone structures, while the bullet from which this fragment would have had to come allegedly exited above the right ear.

Robinson said the three cheek holes were not visible in the right superior profile autopsy photo because it is of poor quality (p. 4), which means the holes would be visible if a better-quality photo had been taken.

The obvious and most logical and plausible explanation is that the wounds were made by three small projectiles that struck the surface of the cheek, but lone-gunman theorists cannot accept this because they have no bullet that could have produced three small fragments that hit the surface of the cheek.

The first lone-gunman answer was that the three holes were "most likely" caused by three bone fragments "exiting as a result of the EOP shot." But this won't work because the fragments would have had to tear through the cheek bone.

The second lone-gunman answer was that the three fragments could have come from the eye socket. But this won't work because the fragments would have had to somehow travel virtually straight down from the eye socket, barely missing the cheek bone, and then, even more amazingly, made a sharp turn to exit the cheek.

The third and apparently final lone-gunman answer is that a pressure wave from the EOP head shot caused the three puncture wounds. This pressure wave supposedly began at some point between the EOP entry site and the alleged exit wound above the right ear, then passed through the right cheek bone without damaging it, and then made the three small holes in the right cheek. This magic pressure wave not only did no damage to the cheek bone but did not make holes in any other place on the face--just the three holes that the morticians noticed and filled with wax.

Pressure waves are most often associated with cavitation caused by high-velocity bullets, but the alleged assassin used a low-velocity rifle:

Mr. EISENBERG. How does the recoil of this weapon [the Mannlicher-Carcano rifle that
Oswald supposedly used] compare with the recoil of the average military rifle?
Mr. FRAZIER. Considerably less. The recoil is nominal with this weapon, because it
has a very low velocity and pressure, and just an average-size bullet weight.
Mr. EISENBERG. Is the killing power of the bullets essentially similar to the killing power
at these ranges---the killing power of the rifles you have named?
Mr. FRAZIER. No, sir.
Mr. EISENBERG. How much difference is there?
Mr. FRAZIER. The higher velocity bullets of approximately the same weight
would have more killing power. This has a low velocity. . . . (3 H 414, emphasis added)

There is some question about whether pressure waves actually do cause wounds. Forensic expert Martin Fackler has argued that pressure waves do not cause tissue disruption, that temporary cavitation is the actual cause of tissue disruption, and that this damage is mistakenly attributed to pressure waves. Experts are divided on whether pressure waves contribute to wound injury. One article concludes that no "conclusive evidence could be found for permanent pathological effects produced by the pressure wave" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrostatic_shock).

The windshield bullet's course could have been slightly altered while penetrating the windshield, causing the bullet to narrowly miss JFK, but some glass fragments from this shot could have hit JFK in the throat and face.

The bottom line is that those who posit multiple gunmen have a credible explanation for the three small puncture wounds. Those who posit a lone gunman and only three shots have no credible explanation for the wounds.

MG: mortician Tom Robinson noticed three small puncture wounds in JFK's right cheek.

In his HSCA testimony with Purdy, Robinson said that the only wounds to JFK's head were the large gaping wound and a single small wound in the hairline of the right temple, which ascribed to being caused by a fragment. He was asked about any other wounds and said no. Three wounds to JFK's face would be clearly visible to everyone else in the morgue, yet no one else at the autopsy saw anything like that. Nor do these wounds show up in the autopsy photos, as you've sorta noticed.. The only way to believe that those wounds existed is to cherry-pick Robinson's statement to Horne then filter out the rest of the universe.

[Royell Storing]

  Mortician Robinson also mentioned that every bone in JFK's Face was Broken. I thought that was very strange. Almost like the body of JFK had been dropped  or fallen at some point.