Couple of Oswald questions

[Sean Kneringer]

1. Did Marina know about the Mexico City trip before he went there?
2. Did Oswald have a key to the boarding house? If so, did they find it on his person or in his room after his arrest?

[Gerry Down]

She knew.

I don't think he had a key. There was a curfew at the rooming house, something like 11pm or something that people had to be back by. Not sure if he had a key to his own bedroom, the key probably stayed in the lock on the inside of the bedroom door.

[Benjamin Cole]

SK:

Yes, if I remember correctly, Marina was aware of LHO's pending trip to MC. It was part of plan he was hatching to return them both to Russia, or possibly to Cuba (although he may have wished to go to Cuba alone).

[Steve M. Galbraith]

1. Did Marina know about the Mexico City trip before he went there?
2. Did Oswald have a key to the boarding house? If so, did they find it on his person or in his room after his arrest?

Marina testified (and stated elsewhere) that Oswald told her in August about the plan to go to Mexico City and that he was going to defect to Cuba. He wasn't interested in going back to the USSR. It's why he was protesting for Castro that summer in New Orleans. He was creating a pro-Revolution resume to show the Cubans to convince them to let him in. They weren't impressed.

WC testimony:
Mr. RANKIN. Had he discussed with you the idea of going to Mexico City?
Mrs. OSWALD. Yes.
Mr. RANKIN. When did he first discuss that?
Mrs. OSWALD. I think it was in August.
Mr. RANKIN. Did he tell you why he wanted to go to Mexico City?
Mrs. OSWALD. From Mexico City he wanted to go to Cuba--perhaps through the Russian Embassy in Mexico somehow he would be able to get to Cuba.
Mr. RANKIN. Did he say anything about going to Russia by way of Cuba?
Mrs. OSWALD. I know that he said that in the embassy. But he only said so. I know that he had no intention of going to Russia then.

She told the HSCA this too.

As to a key. A brass key to his post office box was found but not one to his room.

It seems that the rooms, or some of them, had individual locks on the doors. I don't know about the main entrance to the house. Earlene Roberts testified that when the police came that Mrs. Johnson, the wife of the owner of the house, told her to "get your keys" to the rooms to open them for the police to search. I have to assume there was a lock on his door.

Robert's testimony:
Mrs. ROBERTS. Well, he [one of the police officers] was trying to make us understand that-I had two new men [who rented rooms] and they told me--Mrs. Johnson told me, "Go get your keys and let them see in". I had gone to the back and they still had the TV on, and they was broadcasting about Kennedy.

From Bugliosi/RH. The basement rooms were locked but apparently not Oswald's?

[John R. Tonkovich]

Marina testified that he told her in August about the plan to go to Mexico City and that he was going to defect to Cuba. He wasn't interested in going back to the USSR. It's why he was protesting for Castro that summer in New Orleans. He was creating a pro-Revolution resume to show the Cubans to convince them to let him in. They weren't impressed.

WC testimony:
Mr. RANKIN. Had he discussed with you the idea of going to Mexico City?
Mrs. OSWALD. Yes.
Mr. RANKIN. When did he first discuss that?
Mrs. OSWALD. I think it was in August.
Mr. RANKIN. Did he tell you why he wanted to go to Mexico City?
Mrs. OSWALD. From Mexico City he wanted to go to Cuba--perhaps through the Russian Embassy in Mexico somehow he would be able to get to Cuba.
Mr. RANKIN. Did he say anything about going to Russia by way of Cuba?
Mrs. OSWALD. I know that he said that in the embassy. But he only said so. I know that he had no intention of going to Russia then.

As to a key. It seems that the rooms, or some of them, had individual locks on the doors. I don't know about the main entrance to the house. Earlene Roberts testified that when the police came that Mrs. Johnson, the wife of the owner of the house, told her to "get your keys" to the rooms to open them for the police to search. However, the only key found on Oswald was the one for his post office box. I have to assume there was a lock on the door.

Robert's testimony:
Mrs. ROBERTS. Well, he [one of the police officers] was trying to make us understand that-I had two new men and they told me--Mrs. Johnson told me, "Go get your keys and let them see in" I had gone to the back and they still had the TV on, and they was broadcasting about Kennedy.

From Bugliosi/RH. The basement rooms were locked but apparently not Oswald's.

Interesting. Thx.
Source? Please.