February 14, 1969
MRS. ELIZABETH CAROLYN WALTON, a witness for the State, after first being duly sworn by the Minute Clerk, was examined and testified on her oath as follows:
DIRECT EXAMINATION BY MR. OSER:
Q: State your name for the record.
A: Mrs. Elizabeth Carolyn Walton.
Q: Where do you reside, Mrs. Walton?
A: In Dallas, Texas.
Q: How long have you been a resident of Dallas?
A: About 17 years.
Q: Mrs. Walton, on the date of November 22, 1963 did you have occasion to be in what is commonly called Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas?
A: Yes, I did.
Q: What was your primary reason for being in Dealey Plaza?
A: To see President Kennedy.
Q: Were you working at this time?
A: Yes, in the Dal-Tex Market Building.
Q: Is this located in Dealey Plaza?
A: Yes, sir, it is.
Q: At approximately noon that day or sometime around that hour did you have occasion to leave the Dal-Tex Building and go anywhere?
A: I went out in the street to see the President.
Q: And what position did you take on what street to view the Presidential Motorcade?
A: I was on Houston just off of the corner of Elm by the Records Building.
Q: Mrs. Walton, step down here for a moment, please. Mrs. Walton, I direct your attention to State Exhibit No. -- S-34, and ask you if this, on this exhibit --
THE COURT: Why not let her stand over here so that the Jury can see what she is doing?
BY MR. OSER:
Q: Using State Exhibit 34 I ask you whether or not you can point out on that exhibit where the Dal-Tex Building is located?
A: To the extreme right.
Q: Just speak into the microphone. Up in the right corner.
Q: This Dal-Tex Building, is this the building you were working at at this time?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: Can you show us on this exhibit what position you first took up to view the Presidential motorcade?
A: I was right on this corner.
Q: I now direct your attention, Mrs. Walton, to Exhibit State 36 to your left over here and ask you to view this exhibit and take this pin and place it in the approximate location you were standing on Houston Street at the time you viewed the Presidential motorcade.
A: Use the same here?
Q: Yes, ma'am. Now, Mrs. Walton, I ask you to step over to State Exhibit 36 and ask you to locate your position that you were standing at during the President's motorcade and place this emblem in the location you were standing at that time. You may resume your seat. Now at the time you were standing in the position you indicated on Houston Street had the President's motorcade passed yet?
A: No.
Q: At this particular time did you have occasion to view anything that caught your attention?
A: Yes, I had ten or fifteen minutes to look around.
Q: Speak a little louder.
A: We had ten to fifteen minutes to wait.
Q: You say "we," were you with someone else?
A: Yes, a friend.
Q: During this time was your attention drawn to anything in particular?
A: Well, we looked at the Dal-Tex Market Building and the School Book Depository.
Q: When you viewed the Texas School Book Depository did anything appear unusual to you?
A: Yes, sir, the windows were open and that was the first I'd ever seen them open.
Q: When viewing these windows did you have occasion to see anything?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: Tell the Gentlemen of the Court and the Gentlemen of the Jury what you saw.
A: The first time I looked I saw a man I think wearing a maroon shirt in the center of the building. The first time I looked at the building I saw a man I think in a maroon shirt in the center of the building stand up and later on I saw two men in another building and one was holding a gun and the other was standing beside him.
Q: Can you describe how the two men were dressed as you saw them?
A: The man wearing the gun I think was wearing a white shirt, I'm not sure.
Q: How was the other man dressed?
A: A brown suit coat.
Q: Did anything draw your attention away from this building?
A: Yes, the crowd started hollering that the motorcade was coming and I turned and looked the other way.
Q: Did in fact the motorcade pass in front of you at this time?
A: Yes, it did.
Q: While the motorcade was passing in front of you did you have occasion to hear any unusual noises?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: How many did you hear?
A: All together I heard four.
Q: At the time of the first noise what did that noise sound like to you?
A: It was a loud popping sound and I thought it was just a firecracker.
Q: Where were you located at the time you first heard the noise?
A: Still standing in the same position.
Q: And where was the President's car?
A: It had already passed the, the last car was passing in front of me when I heard the first shot.
Q: What did you then do?
A: I started walking back to your building, walking back to the Dal-Tex Building did you hear any other noise?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: Where were you located?
A: The second one I was just stepping off the curb.
Q: And where were you when you heard the third one?
A: Almost to the center of the street.
Q: And where were you when you heard the fourth one?
A: In the center of the street.
Q: What did the second shot sound like to you?
A: It sounded just like the first one.
Q: And what about the third one?
A: The same.
Q: And what about the fourth?
A: A little lower.
Q: The first three were of the same intensity and the fourth was a little lower?
A: Yes.
Q: After hearing these four noises what if anything did you do?
A: I stopped and said "That is gunshots."
Q: What did you do?
A: I started down the side on Elm Street and people were running and screaming.
Q: Would you step down one more time, Mrs. Walton and using the aerial photograph show which way you walked and which way were the people moving?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: First of all, which way did you walk? Stand on the side and point.
A: Down this way.
Q: Which way were the people moving?
A: This way.
Q: Have your seat back, Mrs. Walton. At the time you heard these noises and you were in this vicinity did you have any impression as to where the shots were coming from at the time you heard them?
A: Somewhere from my right, possibly to the front right.
MR. OSER: I tender the witness.
CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MR. DYMOND:
Q: Mrs. Walton, where were you standing when you got this impression that the shots were coming from your right?
A: In the same position I indicated on the map.
Q: That would be right there by the Texas -- by the Dal-Tex Building, across the street?
A: Across the street by the Records Building.
Q: Were you facing towards the Triple Underpass?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: The Book Depository would have been on your right, is that correct?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: Were you standing on that corner when you heard all four shots?
A: No, sir, I wasn't standing there for all four shots.
Q: You heard -- you had already started walking, is that correct?
A: Yes.
Q: And had you started walking towards the Triple Underpass or the other way?
A: I started back towards the Dal-Tex Market Building across Elm.
Q: Have you ever been interviewed by any representative of the Warren Commission?
A: No, sir, I have not.
Q: Did you volunteer your information?
A: To the FBI I did.
Q: Did you give them a statement?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: Do you ordinarily wear glasses, Mrs. Walton?
A: No, sir, I do not.
MR. DYMOND: That's all.
MR. ALCOCK: Your Honor, I haven't been requesting of the Court that the Jury be allowed to view the exhibits. At this time I think it would be appropriate for the Jury to review what was introduced in the first part of the trial and I request the Court's permission to do that.
THE COURT: I suggest you give a group to one and then another group to another so that we can facilitate it and one group can be looking at it while the other group looks at the other group.
(EXHIBITS GIVEN TO THE JURY TO EXAMINE.)
THE COURT: At any time during the course of the trial if any member of the fourteen wishes to examine any exhibit it will be given to him.
Gentlemen, I have been advised by the State that the weather conditions have delayed the plane from arriving and we are going to recess at this moment until tomorrow morning.
Gentlemen: Do not discuss the case amongst yourselves or anyone else until it is finally turned over to you for your decision.
... At the hour of 5:05 p.m. the Court recessed until 10:00 a.m. Saturday, February 15, 1969.
C E R T I F I C A T E
I, CHARLES A. NEYREY, an Official Court Reporter in and for the State of Louisiana, authorized and empowered by law to administer oaths and to take the depositions of witnesses under L.R.S. 13:961.1, as amended, do hereby certify that the above and foregoing deposition is true and correct as taken by me in the above entitled and numbered cause(s). I further certify that I am not of counsel nor related to any of the parties to this cause or in anywise interested in the event thereof.
New Orleans, Louisiana, on the 26th day of May, 1969.
/s/ Charles A. Neyrey
CHARLES A. NEYREY
OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER
STATE OF LOUISIANA