The Tippit Shooting At 1:15-1:16, FACT

[John Corbett]

Official time of death is not always stated precisely as evidenced by JFK's official time of death as 1:00pm CST. The priests who entered the ER to administer the last rights before that time said he was already covered with a sheet when the last rights were administered to the body.

The only reason that I know of why a precise time of death might be important is the provisions of some wills. As executor of my father's will, I know there was a provision that excluded the named heirs in the event they preceded him in death. It also stated that if the order of their deaths could not be determined, it was to be presumed they preceded him in death. I think it would be highly unusual that such a provision would come into play. Perhaps if the people question were both killed in a car or plane crash and both were declared dead at the scene. Hard to say from just a few examples but it looks to me like it might be a common practice to round off the time of death to the nearest 15 minute time frame.

[Lance Payette]

I found on Facebook this snip of the supposed HSCA interview or testimony of Methodist Hospital nurse Thompson (Lotti or Lottie). I'm mystified as to why I can't seem to locate the document itself.

[Martin Weidmann]

Official time of death is not always stated precisely as evidenced by JFK's official time of death as 1:00pm CST. The priests who entered the ER to administer the last rights before that time said he was already covered with a sheet when the last rights were administered to the body.

The only reason that I know of why a precise time of death might be important is the provisions of some wills. As executor of my father's will, I know there was a provision that excluded the named heirs in the event they preceded him in death. It also stated that if the order of their deaths could not be determined, it was to be presumed they preceded him in death. I think it would be highly unusual that such a provision would come into play. Perhaps if the people question were both killed in a car or plane crash and both were declared dead at the scene. Hard to say from just a few examples but it looks to me like it might be a common practice to round off the time of death to the nearest 15 minute time frame.

Official time of death is not always stated precisely

That's probably true, but it doesn't mean that the official time is always wrong.

[Lance Payette]

Say what you will about Harvey and Lee, the John Armstrong Collection at Baylor is a goldmine. The snippet I posted above is actually a transcript of an interview with Methodist Hospital ER nurse Lottie Thompson conducted by Earl Holz of the Dallas Morning News. The full transcript is here:

https://digitalcollections-baylor.quartexcollections.com/Documents/Detail/tippitt-shooting-nov.-22-1963-d.o.a.-at-methodist-hospital/690058?item=690059

[Lance Payette]

Official time of death is not always stated precisely as evidenced by JFK's official time of death as 1:00pm CST. The priests who entered the ER to administer the last rights before that time said he was already covered with a sheet when the last rights were administered to the body.

The only reason that I know of why a precise time of death might be important is the provisions of some wills. As executor of my father's will, I know there was a provision that excluded the named heirs in the event they preceded him in death. It also stated that if the order of their deaths could not be determined, it was to be presumed they preceded him in death. I think it would be highly unusual that such a provision would come into play. Perhaps if the people question were both killed in a car or plane crash and both were declared dead at the scene. Hard to say from just a few examples but it looks to me like it might be a common practice to round off the time of death to the nearest 15 minute time frame.

Typically in wills we say "If my beloved but ne'er-do-well son Filbert does not survive me by 120 hours, then his share shall pass to my lovely but morally bankrupt daughter Gwendolyn" or something to that effect, which makes the exact time of death less critical. Some wills specify much longer periods - even up to a year. Almost all states have the Uniform Simultaneous Death Act whereby "if the devolution of property or donative provision in a governing instrument depends on one individual surviving another, and it cannot be established by clear and convincing evidence that the individual survived by 120 hours, such individual will be considered predeceased." It would be rare that the 120 hours would come down to the exact minute, but I suppose it could happen. That will be $342, please.