The 1967 CBS Rifle Test: More Evidence Against the Lone-Gunman Theory

[Michael T. Griffith]

In 1967, CBS conducted a rifle test that was admittedly more realistic and harder than the WC's rifle test. Thus, it is revealing and important that the CBS test provided more evidence that the lone-gunman theory's version of the shooting is impossible and that Oswald did not shoot JFK.

12 riflemen took part in the CBS test. Only two of them had rifle skills that were comparable to Oswald's rifle skills on his best day at the range as a Marine. On his best day at a Marine rifle range, Oswald barely qualified in the second of three qualification categories, a feat often achieved by new recruits with little or no experience firing rifles. The 10 other riflemen in the CBS test were clearly far more experienced and skilled than Oswald.

Unlike the WC's rifle test, where three Master-rated riflemen fired at stationary target boards from only 30 feet up, the riflemen in the CBS test fired from a 60-foot tower at target boards that were mounted on a sled that moved away from them on a track.

The weapon used in the CBS test was a well-maintained Carcano rifle, not the alleged murder weapon itself. Revealingly, though well-maintained, the rifle jammed several times for the shooters in the CBS test.

The CBS test failed to include important factors of the alleged shooting feat. The CBS riflemen did not fire from a half-open window in cramped quarters. The riflemen were allowed to fire nine practice shots before the test, a luxury that Oswald would not have enjoyed. And, CBS counted as a hit any shot that landed on the target silhouettes, even if it landed far down on the back or far out on the shoulder of the silhouette. Obviously, this had the effect of at least tripling the size of the target for the CBS riflemen, in contrast to the small area of the neck and head allegedly hit by Oswald. 

With all these advantages over the conditions of the feat attributed to Oswald, surely at least half of the experienced, highly skilled riflemen in the CBS test scored two hits in 5.6 seconds on their first attempt, right? No. Not even close.

Only one of the 12 CBS shooters managed to score at least two hits in less than 6 seconds on his first attempt, and he was a Maryland state trooper and a highly skilled rifleman. Seven of the 12 riflemen failed to score two hits in under 6 seconds on any of their attempts. In six of the 36 series, the rifle jammed. And keep in mind that CBS counted as a hit any shot that landed anywhere in the target silhouette, no matter how far away it struck from the small area that Oswald allegedly hit.

In short, 10 experienced and highly skilled riflemen tried to duplicate part of Oswald's alleged shooting feat. I say "part" because they got to fire nine practice rounds, because they didn't have to fire in cramped quarters through a half-open window, and because any of their shots that landed anywhere on the target silhouettes, even shots that landed far outside the area that Oswald allegedly hit, were counted as hits. Yet, even in these easier conditions, only one of them managed to score two hits in under 6 seconds on the first attempt, keeping in mind that Oswald would have had only one attempt.

How did the two less-experienced and less-skilled riflemen do? They failed to score two hits in less than 6 seconds on their first attempt. In fact, they failed to do so on any of their attempts.

NOTE: In seven of the series, the riflemen took more than 6 seconds. In six other series, as mentioned, the rifle jammed. In 30 of the series, the riflemen failed to score at least two hits. Again, only one of the riflemen, an experienced and expert gunman, scored two hits in under 6 seconds on his first attempt.

So when you hear quacks like the Haags declare that Oswald's alleged shooting feat would have been "easy," much less that they've actually done it many times, you know they're quacking nonsense.

Any objective analysis of the WC and CBS rifle tests leads to the conclusion that the tests prove that the lone-gunman theory's version of the shooting feat is impossible and that Oswald most certainly did not have the rifle skills to do it. 

[Jack Nessan]

In 1967, CBS conducted a rifle test that was admittedly more realistic and harder than the WC's rifle test. Thus, it is revealing and important that the CBS test provided more evidence that the lone-gunman theory's version of the shooting is impossible and that Oswald did not shoot JFK.

12 riflemen took part in the CBS test. Only two of them had rifle skills that were comparable to Oswald's rifle skills on his best day at the range as a Marine. On his best day at a Marine rifle range, Oswald barely qualified in the second of three qualification categories, a feat often achieved by new recruits with little or no experience firing rifles. The 10 other riflemen in the CBS test were clearly far more experienced and skilled than Oswald.

Unlike the WC's rifle test, where three Master-rated riflemen fired at stationary target boards from only 30 feet up, the riflemen in the CBS test fired from a 60-foot tower at target boards that were mounted on a sled that moved away from them on a track.

The weapon used in the CBS test was a well-maintained Carcano rifle, not the alleged murder weapon itself. Revealingly, though well-maintained, the rifle repeatedly jammed for the shooters in the CBS test.

The CBS test failed to include important factors of the alleged shooting feat. The CBS riflemen did not fire from a half-open window in cramped quarters. The riflemen were allowed to fire nine practice shots before the test, a luxury that Oswald would not have enjoyed. And, CBS counted as a hit any shot that landed on the target silhouettes, even if it landed far down on the back or far out on the shoulder of the silhouette. Obviously, this had the effect of at least tripling the size of the target for the CBS riflemen, in contrast to the small area of the neck and head allegedly hit by Oswald. 

With all these advantages over the conditions of the feat attributed to Oswald, surely at least half of the experienced, highly skilled riflemen in the CBS test scored two hits in 5.6 seconds on their first attempt, right? No. Not even close.

Only one of the 12 CBS shooters managed to score at least two hits in less than 6 seconds on his first attempt, and he was a Maryland state trooper and a highly skilled rifleman. Seven of the 12 riflemen failed to score two hits in under 6 seconds on any of their attempts. In six of the 36 series, the rifle jammed. And keep in mind that CBS counted as a hit any shot that landed anywhere in the target silhouette, no matter how far away it struck from the small area that Oswald allegedly hit.

In short, 10 experienced and highly skilled riflemen tried to duplicate part of Oswald's alleged shooting feat. I say "part" because they got to fire nine practice rounds, because they didn't have to fire in cramped quarters through a half-open window, and because any of their shots that landed anywhere on the target silhouettes, even shots that landed far outside the area that Oswald allegedly hit, were counted as hits. Yet, even in these easier conditions, only one of them managed to score two hits in under 6 seconds on the first attempt, keeping in mind that Oswald would have had only one attempt.

How did the two less-experienced and less-skilled riflemen do? They failed to score two hits in less than 6 seconds on their first attempt. In fact, they failed to do so on any of their attempts.

So when you hear quacks like the Haags declare that Oswald's alleged shooting feat would have been "easy," much less that they've actually done it many times, you know they're quacking nonsense.

Any objective analysis of the WC and CBS rifle tests leads to the conclusion that the tests prove that the lone-gunman theory's version of the shooting feat is impossible and that Oswald most certainly did not have the rifle skills to do it.

“Any objective analysis of the WC and CBS rifle tests leads to the conclusion that the tests prove that the lone-gunman theory's version of the shooting feat is impossible and that Oswald most certainly did not have the rifle skills to do it.” 

“Only one of the 12 CBS shooters managed to score at least two hits in less than 6 seconds on his first attempt, and he was a Maryland state trooper and a highly skilled rifleman. Seven of the 12 riflemen failed to score two hits in under 6 seconds on any of their attempts. In six of the 36 series, the rifle jammed. And keep in mind that CBS counted as a hit any shot that landed anywhere in the target silhouette, no matter how far away it struck from the small area that Oswald allegedly hit.”

You are on fire today. I guess 21 years in the military was very informative. These are all good points. Your point that three shots in 5.6 seconds is highly improbable is well understood by all. Why else would there be a need for an unproven early missed shot. On the other hand, two shots were very doable and easily can be proven. Good work Michael.
 

[Michael T. Griffith]

“Any objective analysis of the WC and CBS rifle tests leads to the conclusion that the tests prove that the lone-gunman theory's version of the shooting feat is impossible and that Oswald most certainly did not have the rifle skills to do it.” 

“Only one of the 12 CBS shooters managed to score at least two hits in less than 6 seconds on his first attempt, and he was a Maryland state trooper and a highly skilled rifleman. Seven of the 12 riflemen failed to score two hits in under 6 seconds on any of their attempts. In six of the 36 series, the rifle jammed. And keep in mind that CBS counted as a hit any shot that landed anywhere in the target silhouette, no matter how far away it struck from the small area that Oswald allegedly hit.”

You are on fire today. I guess 21 years in the military was very informative. These are all good points. Your point that three shots in 5.6 seconds is highly improbable is well understood by all. Why else would there be a need for an unproven early missed shot. On the other hand, two shots were very doable and easily can be proven. Good work Michael.

Another example of your refusal to deal logically and credibly with facts. One, you've ignored the fact that the CBS shooters fired under easier conditions than those in which Oswald allegedly fired. Two, you've ignored the fact that CBS counted as a hit any shot that struck any part of the target silhouettes, even if the shot landed far from the neck and head area allegedly hit by Oswald. Three, you've again overlooked the fact that, as with the WC's rifle test, the first shot took only a fraction of a second, since they didn't need to work the bolt before firing it.

For your benefit, I just added the following information on the CBS rifle test results to the OP:

NOTE: In seven of the series, the riflemen took more than 6 seconds. In six other series, as mentioned, the rifle jammed. In 30 of the series, the riflemen failed to score at least two hits. Again, only one of the riflemen, an experienced and expert gunman, scored two hits in under 6 seconds on his first attempt.

I was going to include this info originally but decided there was really no need, since the results that I did provide are telling and significant and speak for themselves, at least to those who can be objective. However, given your strained inference, I've now added the info.

[Jack Nessan]

Another example of your refusal to deal logically and credibly with facts. One, you've ignored the fact that the CBS shooters fired under easier conditions than those in which Oswald allegedly fired. Two, you've ignored the fact that CBS counted as a hit any shot that hit the target silhouettes, even if the shot landed far from the neck and head area allegedly hit by Oswald. Three, you've again overlooked the fact that, as with the WC's rifle test, the first shot took only a fraction of a second, since they didn't need to work the bolt before firing it.

For your benefit, I just added the following information on the CBS rifle test results to the OP:

NOTE: In seven of the series, the riflemen took more than 6 seconds. In six other series, as mentioned, the rifle jammed. In 30 of the series, the riflemen failed to score at least two hits.

I was going to include this info originally but decided there was really no need, since the results that I did provide are telling and significant. However, given your strained inference, I've now added the info.

But it was firing three shots in 5.6 seconds. How would they have done firing just two, like LHO did. As a 21 year military veteran you should be able to appreciate aiming and firing vs just firing shlts down range against an impossible time.

[Michael T. Griffith]

But it was firing three shots in 5.6 seconds. How would they have done firing just two, like LHO did. As a 21 year military veteran you should be able to appreciate aiming and firing vs just firing shots down range against an impossible time.

You must know this is nonsensical and disingenuous. You start with the fringe assumption that your alleged lone gunman fired only two shots, a view that even the vast majority of your fellow WC apologists rightly reject. That's your silly starting point.

To maintain that absurd starting point, you must dismiss/ignore the Aldredge miss and the manhole-cover-grass miss.

You must also float the ludicrous theory that one of your LHO shots supernaturally managed to send a fragment streaking hundreds of feet to hit the curb near Tague and then managed to send a fragment from the curb strike streaking toward Tague to cut his cheek.

No rational, objective person can take this zany stuff seriously.

[Tom Graves]

[...]

Dear Comrade Griffith,

Lance Payette was right.

There's something seriously wrong with you.

Question:

Did the Russians recruit you when you were in Army Intelligence or some-such thing?

-- Tom

[Zeon Mason]

Nobody has yet fired the MC rifle as rapidly as Harold Norman replicated with his boom click click demonstration  ( completed in 4 secs)

Imo  3 shots fired over 10 sec is not what the vast majority of witness heard.

Nor did vast majority hear only 2 shots. The 3/4ths concensus is that 3 shots were heard and at least 2/3rds witness heard the last 2 shots pretty  close together, like in about 1-2 secs apart.

The one CBS shooter ( old engineer guy) seen in the film supposedly shooting 3 shots in 5.1 secs ( according to Dan Rather) ) and supposedly he scored 3 hits , is  NOT substantiated by the filming of that event.

There is no close up recording simultaneously capturing bullet holes appearing in the target as this guy fires the rifle.

What happened  to that guy? Why no interview with this guy to verify his own supposed feat?

Where’s the target evidence?

Shooting with a  fully functional aligned scope MC rifle  at  red target on black background moving along  an  easily seen track, does not adequately replicate correctly the shooters actual situation.

[Lance Payette]

I don't happen to think three shots were fired in 5.6 seconds but set forth below is the relevant portion of the transcript of the CBS broadcast. This "could have done it, couldn't have done it" debate is endless. We will never know exactly what occurred. CT hyperbole - "proves!" "impossible!" - is just silly. One point Cronkite makes is, IMO, critical. No one will ever duplicate the adrenaline that had to be pumping through Oswald. The assumption always seems to be that the stress of a situation such as the JFKA would impair performance; in fact, adrenaline can result in faster reaction times and heightened focus, sometimes to an astonishing degree. Lastly, any notion that every clod off the street is a sharpshooter is nonsense; specific statistics are difficult to find, but in one Marine annual rifle qualification I found only 21% qualified as sharpshooters and the percentage typically cited is around 30%. CTers do themselves a disfavor when they resort to the sort of hyperbole they seemingly can't resist.

RATHER: Results varied. A Maryland state trooper made two hits in the
silhouette, one near miss -- in slightly less than five seconds.
Another state trooper's best time was 5.4 seconds. One hit,
two near misses,

A weapons engineer had the best score. Three hits in 5.2
seconds. A technician at the H. P. White Ballistics Laboratory
managed three shots in the fastest time, 4.1 seconds, half a
second faster than the fastest time turned in for the Warren
Commission, but only one hit.

Altogether the eleven volunteer marksmen made 37 attempts to
fire three shots at the moving target. 17 of those attempts
had to be called no time, because of trouble with the rifle.
In the 20 attempts where time could be recorded, the average
was 5.6 seconds.

CRONKITE: From our own tests we were convinced that a rifle
like Oswald's could be fired in 5.6 seconds or less, and with
reasonable accuracy, at a target moving much the same as the
Presidential limousine was travelling away from the Book
Depository's sixth-floor window,

So, clearly, there is no pat answer to the question of how
fast Oswald's rifle could be fired. In the first place, we
did not test his own rifle. It seemed reasonable to say
that an expert could fire that rifle in five seconds. It
seems equally reasonable to say that Oswald, under normal
circumstances, would take longer. But the circumstances
were not normal. He was shooting at a President. So our
answer is: probably fast enough.