The FBI has found approximately 2,400 documents that had not previously been identified as related to the assassination of former President John F. Kennedy, according to CBS News. This discovery came after a search conducted in compliance with an executive order issued by Donald Trump, which required the declassification of files linked to the 1963 assassination.
The documents have already been cataloged and digitized, and the FBI has informed the relevant authorities of their existence. Currently, the necessary procedures are underway to transfer them to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) to include them in the declassification process that has been ongoing for decades. However, the specific content of these records has not yet been disclosed.
Trump signed this executive order during his first week as president, instructing the release of documents related not only to Kennedy’s assassination but also to those of his brother, Senator Robert F. Kennedy, and civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. The order set a 15-day deadline for the Director of National Intelligence and the Attorney General to present a plan for the “full and complete” release of the records.
Since 1992, the President John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act has required that all material related to the case be compiled into a single collection within the National Archives and made available to the public. This legislation gave federal agencies 25 years to process and disclose the documents, with some exceptions.
Currently, the National Archives hold over 5 million pages of records related to Kennedy’s assassination. Over the past 30 years, these documents have been gradually released, with the most recent update in August 2023. According to a National Archives statement in December 2022, more than 97% of the records are already accessible to the public.
The discovery of these 2,400 new documents raises questions about their potential impact on understanding Kennedy’s assassination. Although the FBI has not disclosed their contents, their inclusion in the declassification process could provide new insights or confirm existing information.
Kennedy’s assassination, which took place on November 22, 1963, in Dallas, Texas, marked a turning point in U.S. history. Although the Warren Commission concluded that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone, doubts and conspiracy theories have persisted for decades. This new discovery could reignite the debate surrounding one of the most enigmatic events of the 20th century.
Jefferson Morley, an expert on the subject and vice president of the Mary Ferrell Foundation, told Axios that the discovery “shows that the FBI is taking this seriously.”
“The FBI is finally saying, ‘Let’s comply with the president’s order,’ instead of continuing to keep things secret,” Morley stated.
Experts cited by Axios suggest that the remaining records, along with these newly discovered 2,400 documents, could provide a definitive answer as to whether Oswald acted alone or was part of a larger conspiracy.
