Rosemary Willis

Rosemary Willis (born 1953) was a close witness during the assassination of President Kennedy.

Clearly seen in the Zapruder film at the start of the assassination wearing a white, hooded coat and a red skirt, located to the limousine's left, she runs southwestward and parallel with the limousine while she faces for a short time when the limousine was to her direct right.

At circa Zapruder film frame 190 (hereafter "Z-190"), she is seen slowing, then she stops running and, simultaneous with her slowing/stopping, she slightly turns her level-facing head to end up looking towards the southwest corner of the Texas School Book Depository.

Immediately after the sitting upright President Kennedy is first hidden at Z-207 by the "Stemmons Freeway" traffic sign in the Zapruder film, Rosemary suddenly, and beginning at Z-214, snaps her head very rapidly 90 to 100 degrees westward --completely away from the depository southwest corner-- within only 0.16 second to then face Abraham Zapruder and the grassy knoll by Z-217.

Precisely 0.60 second after starting her extremely quick westward headsnap towards Mr. Zapruder and the grassy knoll, President Kennedy's head then emerges back into the Zapruder film view at Z-225 still sitting upright with his face and arms already displaying a physical reaction to having already been impacted by a bullet.

Importantly, in 1978 Rosemary was interviewed by investigators from the House Select Committee on Assassinations and stated that she heard at least 4 shots during the assassination. She also stated to the HSCA that while she was still facing the grassy knoll picket fence, she was attracted to view the quick movement of a person who quickly dropped down behind a "wall" out of her view. Rosemary was also documented in the HSCA report that her father, military veteran Phillip Willis, became upset when the Dallas policemen, sheriffs, and detectives --who first quickly ran onto the grassy knoll where he thought the shots came from-- then the authorities ran away from the grassy knoll.

Rosemary's sister, Linda, stated to assassination researcher and author Richard Trask (“Pictures of the Pain” 1994) that after the assassination she and Rosemary also saw someone find a piece of the president's head that had landed in the grass located at least twenty-two feet to the left of the president.

After the assassination Willis, along with her sister, father (Phillip), and mother (Marilyn) were present at the Kodak photographic laboratory getting her father’s assassination related photo slides developed when the Zapruder film was also developed and first shown to approximately nineteen persons.

Rosemary Willis was never called to testify to the Warren Commission.

References

* [http://www.history-matters.com/archive/jfk/hsca/reportvols/vol12/html/HSCA_Vol12_0006a.htm House Select Committee on Assassinations, Volume 12, Section 2, page 7, "Presence of Possible Gunman on the Grassy Knoll", Rose Mary Willis interview (note her first name misspelled by HSCA report)]

External links

* [http://members.aol.com/DRoberdeau/JFK/ROSEwillisANNOUNCEMENT.html Details and Zapruder frames showing the Rosemary Willis rapid headsnap towards the grassy knoll]
* [http://www.jfkmurdersolved.com/film/Zapruderstable.mov An Image-stabilized Version of the Zapruder Film, Running in a Loop.] Users must initially wait a few seconds for the first quicktime version to download, after which the film runs continuously.
* [http://www.copweb.be/Phil%20Willis%20Camera.htm The Phil Willis Camera - Argus Autronic I - Camera revue and User's Manual]