John F. Kennedy assassination conspiracy theories
any conspiracy theory that disputes official accounts of JFK's death
The assassination of John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, on November 22, 1963, has spawned numerous conspiracy theories. These theories allege the involvement of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the Mafia, Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson, Cuban prime minister Fidel Castro, the KGB, or some combination of these individuals and entities.
Some conspiracy theories have alleged a coverup by parts of the American federal government, such as the original investigators within the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Warren Commission, or the CIA. The lawyer and author Vincent Bugliosi estimated that a total of 42 groups, 82 assassins, and 214 individuals had been accused at one time or another in various conspiracy scenarios.
Background
On November 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated while traveling in a motorcade in an open-top limousine in Dallas, Texas. Lee Harvey Oswald was arrested for the murder of a Dallas policeman named J. D. Tippit and arraigned for both murders. On November 24, a nightclub owner named Jack Ruby shot and killed Oswald.
Immediately after Kennedy was shot, many people suspected that the assassination was part of a larger plot, and broadcasters speculated that Dallas right-wingers were involved. Ruby's murder of Oswald compounded initial suspicions. The author Mark Lane has been described as firing "the first literary shot" with his article "Defense Brief for Oswald" in the National Guardian's December 19, 1963, issue. Thomas Buchanan's book Who Killed Kennedy?, published in May 1964, has been credited as the first book to allege a conspiracy.
The public source identifies “John F. Kennedy assassination conspiracy theories” as any conspiracy theory that disputes official accounts of JFK's death. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around John, Kennedy and assassination.
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