Robert J. Groden
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Robert J. Groden (born November 22, 1945) is an American author who has written extensively about
conspiracy theories A conspiracy theory is an explanation for an event or situation that invokes a conspiracy by sinister and powerful groups, often political in motivation, when other explanations are more probable.Additional sources: * * * * The term has a nega ...
regarding the assassination of U.S. President
John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...
. His books include ''The Killing of a President: The Complete Photographic Record of the JFK Assassination, the Conspiracy, and the Cover-up''; ''The Search for Lee Harvey Oswald: A Comprehensive Photographic Record''; and ''JFK: The Case for Conspiracy'' (shorter version than his 1975 co-authored book). Groden is a photo-optics technician who served as a photographic consultant for the
House Select Committee on Assassinations The United States House of Representatives Select Committee on Assassinations (HSCA) was established in 1976 to investigate the assassinations of John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1963 and 1968, respectively. The HSCA completed its ...
. A harsh critic of the
Warren Commission The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy, known unofficially as the Warren Commission, was established by President Lyndon B. Johnson through on November 29, 1963, to investigate the assassination of United States P ...
, he also testified at the 1975 United States President's Commission on CIA activities within the United States (sometimes referred to as the ''Rockefeller Commission'').


Early life

Groden attended Forest Hills High School in
Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...
, New York, leaving in the 11th grade. He served in the
Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...
starting in 1964, and first became interested in the
assassination of John F. Kennedy John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, was assassinated on Friday, November 22, 1963, at 12:30 p.m. CST in Dallas, Texas, while riding in a presidential motorcade through Dealey Plaza. Kennedy was in the vehicle with ...
that same year.


Career

After Groden returned from his Army tour in 1967, he became a photo technician working in a New York City motion picture processing lab; he had special expertise blowing up 8mm film for theatrical distribution. In 1969 the company did a large job processing film for the documentary ''
Woodstock Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held during August 15–18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, United States, southwest of the town of Woodstock. Billed as "an Aq ...
''; and because of that work, it was awarded a contract from ''
Life Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for Cell growth, growth, reaction to Stimu ...
'' to work on the
Zapruder film The Zapruder film is a silent 8mm color motion picture sequence shot by Abraham Zapruder with a Bell & Howell home-movie camera, as United States President John F. Kennedy's motorcade passed through Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas, on November ...
, the 27-second home movie captured by
Abraham Zapruder Abraham Zapruder (May 15, 1905 – August 30, 1970) was a Ukrainian-born American clothing manufacturer who witnessed the assassination of United States President John F. Kennedy in Dallas, Texas, on November 22, 1963. He unexpectedly captured ...
of the Kennedy assassination. Groden worked on that project and made an additional unauthorized copy of the film, which he then kept hidden for several years, fearing not only the legal ramifications but also for his own life. In 1973, Groden showed the film to a symposium of assassination researchers at
Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...
. In February 1975, Groden and
Stephen Jaffe Stephen Jaffe (born December 30, 1954, in Washington, D.C.newsobserver.com
...
, an investigator for New Orleans District Attorney,
Jim Garrison James Carothers Garrison (born Earling Carothers Garrison; November 20, 1921 – October 21, 1992) was the District Attorney of Orleans Parish, Louisiana, from 1962 to 1973. A member of the Democratic Party, he is best known for his investigat ...
, testified before the
Rockefeller Commission #REDIRECT United States President's Commission on CIA Activities within the United States #REDIRECT United States President's Commission on CIA Activities within the United States {{R from move ...
{{R from move ...
, chaired by Vice President Nelson Rockefeller, CIA activities related to the assassination of President Kennedy. Groden achieved his first national exposure on March 6, 1975, when he and
Dick Gregory Richard Claxton Gregory (October 12, 1932 – August 19, 2017) was an American comedian, civil rights leader, business owner and entrepreneur, and vegetarian activist. His writings were best sellers. Gregory became popular among the Afric ...
were on '' Good Night America'', a late-night TV program hosted by Geraldo Rivera, and they showed Groden's copy of the Zapruder film. It was the first time ever it was shown in motion to a national TV audience. In 1975, Groden co-authored, with F. Peter Model, the book ''JFK: The Case for Conspiracy''. In the late 1980s, Groden was a consultant for Oliver Stone's 1991 film ''
JFK John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination i ...
'', even appearing in two brief cameo roles: as a Parkland doctor working to save the President and as the courtroom projectionist showing the
Zapruder film The Zapruder film is a silent 8mm color motion picture sequence shot by Abraham Zapruder with a Bell & Howell home-movie camera, as United States President John F. Kennedy's motorcade passed through Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas, on November ...
during the
Clay Shaw Clay LaVergne Shaw (March 17, 1913 – August 15, 1974) was an American businessman and military officer from New Orleans, Louisiana. Shaw is best known for being the only person brought to trial for involvement in the assassination of John F. ...
trial in New Orleans. In 1989 Groden co-authored with Harrison E. Livingstone the book ''High Treason: The Assassination of President John F. Kennedy & the Case for Conspiracy'' (also referred to as ''High Treason I''). ''High Treason'' spent five weeks on the New York Times Best Seller list for paperback non-fiction. During the O.J. Simpson civil trial, Groden appeared as an expert witness and testified that a 1993 photograph of Simpson wearing Bruno Magli shoes at an NFL football game was a forgery. Even after 30 additional photos by a different photographer captured on the same day of Simpson wearing the same clothes and shoes surfaced, Groden still maintained that the original photograph was a forgery. Lacking certifications from professional organizations, Groden admitted his photography training relied on his experience as a professional photo lab technician. Groden sued
Random House Random House is an American book publisher and the largest general-interest paperback publisher in the world. The company has several independently managed subsidiaries around the world. It is part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by Germ ...
over a 1993 ''
New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' advertisement for
Gerald Posner Gerald Leo Posner (born May 20, 1954) is an American investigative journalist and author of thirteen books, including ''Case Closed: Lee Harvey Oswald and the Assassination of JFK'' (1993), which explores the John F. Kennedy assassination, and ' ...
's book '' Case Closed'' in which Groden was featured along with other
conspiracy theorists A conspiracy theory is an explanation for an event or situation that invokes a conspiracy by sinister and powerful groups, often political in motivation, when other explanations are more probable.Additional sources: * * * * The term has a nega ...
and declared "guilty of misleading the American public." The U.S. District Court issued a
summary judgment In law, a summary judgment (also judgment as a matter of law or summary disposition) is a judgment entered by a court for one party and against another party summarily, i.e., without a full trial. Summary judgments may be issued on the merits of ...
and dismissed the case. Groden has stated that his next book, ''JFK: Absolute Proof,'' documents his interview with a Dealey Plaza witness who was standing with
Lee Harvey Oswald Lee Harvey Oswald (October 18, 1939 – November 24, 1963) was a U.S. Marine veteran who assassinated John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, on November 22, 1963. Oswald was placed in juvenile detention at the age of 12 fo ...
on the second floor of the
Texas School Book Depository The Texas School Book Depository, now known as the Dallas County Administration Building, is a seven-floor building facing Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas. The building was Lee Harvey Oswald's vantage point during the assassination of United Sta ...
when they both heard shots being fired outside. Video documentaries he has released are ''JFK: The Case for Conspiracy: Assassination and Medical Evidence'', ''The Assassination Films: The Case for Conspiracy, Volume II'', and ''The Killing of a President: A Video Magazine''.


Free speech suits

the city of Dallas had charged Groden with illegal activity 82 times related to his sharing information near the place of the Kennedy assassination. The court has found in favor of Groden in all of those lawsuits. One motivation for the city bringing the suits is a city planning effort to prevent anyone from encouraging visitors to recognize the site of the assassination as a tourist destination. Groden was arrested in Dealey Plaza on June 13, 2010, and initially charged with selling magazines under a city ordinance that permits it. When that was pointed out, he was charged with violating an ordinance against selling merchandise in a city park without a permit; Dealey Plaza is under the control of Dallas' Parks and Recreation Department. In December 2010, the case was dismissed by a judge who agreed with Groden's defense that Dealey Plaza was not a city park and that the city neither offers nor requires permits to sell merchandise in parks; the city appealed. Groden, whose lawyers said that he was arrested without
probable cause In United States criminal law, probable cause is the standard by which police authorities have reason to obtain a warrant for the arrest of a suspected criminal or the issuing of a search warrant. There is no universally accepted definition o ...
and that his right to free speech was violated in the process, sued the City of Dallas for $900,000 in "mental anguish," $100,000 for damages to his reputation, and $1,000 for merchandise that was confiscated. In addition he sued certain police officers for violation of his constitutional rights. The City of Dallas filed a
motion to dismiss In United States law, a motion is a procedural device to bring a limited, contested issue before a court for decision. It is a request to the judge (or judges) to make a decision about the case. Motions may be made at any point in administrati ...
which the court subsequently granted on the basis that Groden failed to adequately plead his case against the city. The suit against one of the police officers proceeded to trial. On June 12, 2014, jurors deliberated for an hour and returned with a verdict stating that the arresting officer's actions did not violate Groden's constitutional rights. Groden's attorney claimed that the jury indicated they did not want to punish the officer for a crime committed by the city and asked why the city was not a defendant. In October 2014, Groden filed a motion in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas requesting for the dismissal order be
vacated A vacated judgment (also known as vacatur relief) makes a previous legal judgment legally void. A vacated judgment is usually the result of the judgment of an appellate court, which overturns, reverses, or sets aside the judgment of a lower court. ...
and he be granted a new trial against both the City of Dallas and the police officer. The Court denied the motion by stating that Groden failed to remedy the early deficiencies in his claims against the City. Groden successfully appealed the dismissal of his lawsuit against the City of Dallas. In June 2016, the United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the District Court's dismissal and remanded the case to continue against the city.http://www.ca5.uscourts.gov/opinions%5Cpub%5C15/15-10073-CV0.pdf Groden's '' Monell'' claim was allowed to be pursued. The Appeals Court permitted the police officer's ruling to stand.


Books

* (with F. Peter Model) ''JFK : The Case For Conspiracy'', Manor Books, 1977. * (with Harrison Edward Livingstone) ''High Treason: The Assassination of J.F.K. and the Case for Conspiracy'', Berkley Books, 1993. (provided the photographs; Livingstone wrote the text; Groden has often claimed sole authorship of the book; following a lawsuit, his name was taken off the book entirely). * ''The Killing of a President: Complete Photographic Record of the JFK Assassination'', Bloomsbury Publishing, 1993. * ''The Search for Lee Harvey Oswald: The Comprehensive Photographic Record'', Viking/Allen Lane 1995. * ''JFK: Absolute Proof'', Conspiracy Publications, 2013.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Groden, Robert J. 1945 births American conspiracy theorists American political writers American male non-fiction writers Forest Hills High School (New York) alumni John F. Kennedy conspiracy theorists Living people Researchers of the assassination of John F. Kennedy