Our rating: Partly documented. Some of it is in the files; the bigger claims built on top are disputed or unproven. How we rate.
01 What the theory says
There are many theories, but most say Lee Harvey Oswald didn't act alone, or didn't act at all. Suspects named over the years include the CIA, the Mafia, Cuban exiles, Castro's government, the KGB and elements of the U.S. government. Common claims include a second shooter on the "grassy knoll" and a cover-up of the medical evidence.
02 Why people believe it
Because the official story has had real problems. A congressional committee once concluded there was "probably" a conspiracy. Oswald was shot dead two days later, before any trial. Agencies withheld records for decades, and the CIA had watched Oswald before the assassination. The famous Zapruder film seems to many viewers to show the fatal shot coming from the front.
03 What's on the record
Each point links to a primary source or official report.
- The Warren Commission concluded in 1964 that Oswald fired the shots that killed President Kennedy and found no evidence that he or Jack Ruby was part of a conspiracy. (Warren Commission Report)
- The House Select Committee on Assassinations concluded in 1979 that Kennedy was "probably assassinated as a result of a conspiracy," based largely on acoustic analysis of a police dictabelt recording that it said showed a fourth shot. (HSCA report)
- A National Academy of Sciences panel reviewed that acoustic evidence in 1982 and concluded that reliable acoustic data did not support the conclusion that there was a second gunman.
- In 1967 New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison brought the only trial for the assassination, against businessman Clay Shaw. Shaw was acquitted.
- In January 2025 Executive Order 14176 directed release of the remaining records. The National Archives released documents without redactions starting March 18, 2025, with further releases since. (National Archives: 2025 JFK release)
04 What's unproven or disputed
- A second shooter. The HSCA's main evidence for one, the acoustics, was rejected by the National Academy of Sciences panel and remains disputed.
- Involvement by the CIA, Mafia, Cuba or others. Released files show what agencies knew about Oswald and expose embarrassing operations, but no released document proves that any of these groups planned the killing.
- Altered evidence. Claims about the autopsy, the Zapruder film and the "magic bullet" are argued in detail on both sides; none has been established by an official body.
05 Open questions
- What exactly did the CIA know about Oswald's 1963 trip to Mexico City, and why was some of it withheld for so long?
- Are there records that were destroyed or never transferred to the Archives?
- Will anything in the newly unredacted files change the core conclusions?
