JACK RUBY
Name: Jack Leon Ruby
Born March 25, 1911 Chicago, Illinois, USA
Died: January 3, 1967 Dallas, Texas, USA
Jacob Rubenstein (March 25, 1911 - January 3, 1967), who legally changed his
name to Jack Leon Ruby in 1947, was a businessman and nightclub owner from
Dallas, Texas. He was convicted on March 14, 1964 for the murder of Lee Harvey
Oswald on November 24, 1963, two days after Oswald was arrested for the
assassination of President John F. Kennedy. He successfully appealed his
conviction and sentence of death. As a date for his new trial was being set,
he became ill and died.
Jack Ruby was born Jacob Rubenstein to Joseph Rubenstein (1871-1958) and Fannie
Turek Rutkowski (or Rokowsky) in Chicago, in 1911, both Polish-born, Orthodox
Jews.
A number of writers have suspected Jack Ruby of being linked to organized crime,
and some have gone on to hypothesize that his alleged links to organized crime
were evidence of conspiracy to kill Lee Harvey Oswald and/or John F. Kennedy.
The House Select Committee on Assassinations said that Jack Ruby knew
restaurateurs Sam (1920-1970) and Joseph Campisi (1918-1990) since 1947, and had
been seen with them on many occasions. After an investigation of Joe Campisi,
the HSCA found,
While Campisi's technical characterization in Federal law enforcement records as
an organized crime member has ranged from definite to suspected to negative, it
is clear that he was an associate or friend of many Dallas-based organized crime
members, particularly Joseph Civello during the time he was the head of the
Dallas organization. There was no indication that Campisi had engaged in any
specific organized crime-related activities.
Similarly, a PBS Frontline investigation into the connections between Ruby and
Dallas organized crime figures reported the following:
In 1963, Sam and Joe Campisi were leading figures in the Dallas underworld. Jack
knew the Campisis and had been seen with them on many occasions. The Campisis
were lieutenants of Carlos Marcello, the Mafia boss who had reportedly talked of
killing the President.
A day before Kennedy was murdered, Ruby went to Joe Campisi's restaurant. At
the time of the Kennedy assassination, Ruby was close enough to the Campisis to
ask them to come see him after he was arrested for shooting Lee Oswald.
Some writers, including former Los Angeles District Attorney Vincent Buglosi,
dismiss Ruby's connections to organized crime as hearsay:
It is very noteworthy that without exception, not one of these conspiracy
theorists knew or had ever met Jack Ruby. Without our even resorting to his
family and roommate, all of whom think the suggestion of Ruby being connected to
the mob is ridiculous, those who knew him, unamimously and without exception,
think the notion of his being connected to the Mafia, and then killing Oswald
for them, is nothing short of laughable.
About an hour after President Kennedy was shot, an acquaintance of Jack Ruby,
former Dallas news reporter, Seth Kantor said that Ruby approached him at
Parkland Hospital where President Kennedy was being treated for his wounds.
Kantor, a Washington correspondent, testified to the Warren Commission that Ruby
came up to him and remarked, "Isn't this a terrible thing..." and that Ruby
asked him, "Should I close my places for the next 3 nights?..."When the
Warren Commission questioned Ruby about his presence at Parkland, he denied
being there, and the Commission concluded that "Kantor probably did not see Ruby
in Parkland Hospital." However, in 1979, the House Select Committee on
Assassinations arrived at a different conclusion declaring: "While the Warren
Commission concluded that Kantor was mistaken, the Committee determined he
probably was not."
Name: Jack Leon Ruby
Born March 25, 1911 Chicago, Illinois, USA
Died: January 3, 1967 Dallas, Texas, USA
Jacob Rubenstein (March 25, 1911 - January 3, 1967), who legally changed his
name to Jack Leon Ruby in 1947, was a businessman and nightclub owner from
Dallas, Texas. He was convicted on March 14, 1964 for the murder of Lee Harvey
Oswald on November 24, 1963, two days after Oswald was arrested for the
assassination of President John F. Kennedy. He successfully appealed his
conviction and sentence of death. As a date for his new trial was being set,
he became ill and died.
Jack Ruby was born Jacob Rubenstein to Joseph Rubenstein (1871-1958) and Fannie
Turek Rutkowski (or Rokowsky) in Chicago, in 1911, both Polish-born, Orthodox
Jews.
A number of writers have suspected Jack Ruby of being linked to organized crime,
and some have gone on to hypothesize that his alleged links to organized crime
were evidence of conspiracy to kill Lee Harvey Oswald and/or John F. Kennedy.
The House Select Committee on Assassinations said that Jack Ruby knew
restaurateurs Sam (1920-1970) and Joseph Campisi (1918-1990) since 1947, and had
been seen with them on many occasions. After an investigation of Joe Campisi,
the HSCA found,
While Campisi's technical characterization in Federal law enforcement records as
an organized crime member has ranged from definite to suspected to negative, it
is clear that he was an associate or friend of many Dallas-based organized crime
members, particularly Joseph Civello during the time he was the head of the
Dallas organization. There was no indication that Campisi had engaged in any
specific organized crime-related activities.
Similarly, a PBS Frontline investigation into the connections between Ruby and
Dallas organized crime figures reported the following:
In 1963, Sam and Joe Campisi were leading figures in the Dallas underworld. Jack
knew the Campisis and had been seen with them on many occasions. The Campisis
were lieutenants of Carlos Marcello, the Mafia boss who had reportedly talked of
killing the President.
A day before Kennedy was murdered, Ruby went to Joe Campisi's restaurant. At
the time of the Kennedy assassination, Ruby was close enough to the Campisis to
ask them to come see him after he was arrested for shooting Lee Oswald.
Some writers, including former Los Angeles District Attorney Vincent Buglosi,
dismiss Ruby's connections to organized crime as hearsay:
It is very noteworthy that without exception, not one of these conspiracy
theorists knew or had ever met Jack Ruby. Without our even resorting to his
family and roommate, all of whom think the suggestion of Ruby being connected to
the mob is ridiculous, those who knew him, unamimously and without exception,
think the notion of his being connected to the Mafia, and then killing Oswald
for them, is nothing short of laughable.
About an hour after President Kennedy was shot, an acquaintance of Jack Ruby,
former Dallas news reporter, Seth Kantor said that Ruby approached him at
Parkland Hospital where President Kennedy was being treated for his wounds.
Kantor, a Washington correspondent, testified to the Warren Commission that Ruby
came up to him and remarked, "Isn't this a terrible thing..." and that Ruby
asked him, "Should I close my places for the next 3 nights?..."When the
Warren Commission questioned Ruby about his presence at Parkland, he denied
being there, and the Commission concluded that "Kantor probably did not see Ruby
in Parkland Hospital." However, in 1979, the House Select Committee on
Assassinations arrived at a different conclusion declaring: "While the Warren
Commission concluded that Kantor was mistaken, the Committee determined he
probably was not."