Today I had lunch with some of my ol' buddies from the Dallas Police Department, Rick Janich and Jess Lucio and the Legend at a great old cafe that still serves those great home-cooked southern meals.
For those who do not know the man, Jim Levealle was the Dallas Homicide Detective to whom Lee Harvey Oswald was handcuffed on his way from the City Jail in DPD headquarters to the County Jail.
As Jim (on the left in the photo at the bottom) and his partner Det. L.C. Graves (to the right) with Oswald between them stepped toward the basement ramp to the waiting transfer vehicle Jack Ruby stepped out of the crowd, gun in hand, and shot Oswald.
But this was not Jim's first close call. He was indeed there at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 during the Japanese sneak attack and saw the horrific events unfold in front of him. Fortunately for Jim and his shipmates his ship, the USS Whitney, was moored across the harbor in East Loch, about a mile NE of Ford Island. (see immediately below)
It was a nice hot end of July morning for a large glass of iced tea and some 'home-cooking' a la The Goldmine. Great to see my friends Jess and Rick... and it's always a pleasure to be in Jim's company.