The testimony of Virginia Louise Davis was taken at 10 a.m., on April 1,
1964, in the office of the U.S. attorney, 301 Post Office Building, Bryan and
Ervay Streets, Dallas, Tex., by Mr. Wesley J. Liebeler, assistant counsel of the
President's Commission.
Mr. LIEBELER. Would you rise and raise your right hand. Do you solemnly swear
that the testimony you are about to give will be the truth, the whole truth, and
nothing but the truth, so help you God?
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Mrs. DAVIS. I do.
Mr. LIEBELER. My name is Wesley J. Liebeler. I am a member of the legal staff of the President's Commission that is investigating the assassination of President Kennedy. I have been authorized to take testimony from you and from other witnesses pursuant to authority granted to the Commission by Executive Order 11130, dated November 29, 1963, and Joint Resolution of Congress No. 137.
As I told your husband, whose testimony which I just took, Mr. Rankin sent you both a letter last week which was returned to Washington because it could not be delivered at the gun range. It was addressed to the Sports Drome Rifle Range and it could not be delivered there.
Mr. Rankin in the letter advised you that we would be in touch with you to arrange for the taking of your testimony. He enclosed copies of the Executive order and the congressional resolution, as well as a copy of the Commission's rules governing the taking of testimony from witnesses.
I gave your husband a copy of those documents and he has them and will make them available to you if you want to look at them. You have been provided with copies this morning.
As I told Mr. Davis, you are technically entitled to 3-days' notice before appearing before us, but since you are here, I presume that you would be willing to waive that notice and will go ahead?
Mrs. DAVIS. Sure.
Mr. LIEBELER. We want to question you about the possibility that Lee Harvey Oswald engaged in rifle practice at the rifle range which is operated by you and your husband.
Before I get into the details of that testimony, however, would you state your full name for the record?
Mrs. DAVIS. Virginia Louise Davis.
Mr. LIEBELER. You are married to Floyd Guy Davis, is that correct?
Mrs. DAVIS. Yes.
Mr. LIEBELER. Your address is 2825 Byway, Dallas?
Mrs. DAVIS. Dallas; yes, sir.
Mr. LIEBELER. You and your husband have been operating the Sports Drome Rifle Range since. some time in October 1963; is that correct?
Mrs. DAVIS. That's right.
Mr. LIEBELER. Are you a native of Dallas, Mrs. Davis?
Mrs. DAVIS. No; Kentucky.
Mr. LIEBELER. Where in Kentucky?
Mrs. DAVIS. Louisville.
Mr. LIEBELER. When did you move to Dallas?
Mrs. DAVIS. Oh, let's see, it has been 7 years ago, I think. I think we have been here 7 years.
Mr. LIEBELER. You and your husband moved to Dallas from Louisville together; is that correct?
Mrs. DAVIS. He came down about 6 months before I did.
Mr. LIEBELER. Were you married at that time?
Mrs. DAVIS. Yes.
Mr. LIEBELER. The Commission has had reports that various people observed a gentleman whom they believed to be Lee Harvey Oswald at the Sports Drome Rifle Range at 8000 West Davis on various occasions. I would like to have you tell us now just what you know about those reports, and whether or not you have ever seen anybody there that resembled Oswald?
Mrs. DAVIS. No; I did not.
Mr. LIEBELER. You have not?
Mrs. DAVIS. No. There is only three things that stand out in my mind at the time it happened that I can verify what they say, and that is the one night that I was there by myself and Mr. Howard Price got the last customer that came in and took him down there, and he said that he thought it was Lee Harvey Oswald because of the rifle, it being an Italian rifle with this scope on it, and he remembered the gun.
Mr. LIEBELER. Mr. Price told you that?
Mrs. DAVIS. Yes. And then the other time I was there was, this gentleman
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that was supposed to have been with him with the beard, and I couldn't forget him--if I would see the man right now I would recognize him, but he has never been back.
Mr. LIEBELER. Can you tell us the date that Mr. Price said he took Oswald in, or this man who he thought was Oswald, who was the last customer?
Mrs. DAVIS. I don't know the exact date, but I wrote it in my journal, but I don't have it with me.
Mr. LIEBELER. When you refer to the journal, what do you mean?
Mrs. DAVIS. It is a daily record I keep of everything that happens at the range. When we first opened, everyone had to sign it. But the FBI picked up the sign-in slips and checked it out, and, of course, Lee Harvey Oswald wasn't on it, but at the time we did not have fences up and anyone could get on the range without us knowing it.
Mr. LIEBELER. Do you know whether or not this man who Mr. Price took down to the range this evening as the last customer signed in the book or not?
Mrs. DAVIS. He did not. It was our last customer and he just went on down with him because it was late and they were tired and cold and wanting to get home. But he was in an old car and he was alone and he was a young slender man, and that is all I know.
Mr. LIEBELER. Do you know what kind of car it was?
Mrs. DAVIS. No; I don't.
Mr. LIEBELER. Mr. Price does?
Mrs. DAVIS. Yes; he does. But I don't. It is just an old car to me. I don't know too much about cars and then the day that Mr. Slack came up there in a panic because someone was shooting at a target that he had paid for instead of his own, I remember that. That is the only three incidents that I remember, and that is all.
Mr. LIEBELER. The first incident was when?
Mrs. DAVIS. A late customer when Mr. Price brought them in.
Mr. LIEBELER. The man was a late customer?
Mrs. DAVIS. Yes.
Mr. LIEBELER. Did you see this man?
Mrs. DAVIS. Yes; I did, but it was dark and I didn't see his face. I just went to the window and Mr. Price said, "I will take him. You won't have to take him down." We always take the customer to the range and stay with them and put their target up for them because you can't let them stay down there. They are liable to shoot anything, and he took him down, and I locked up, and I left, and they were there.
Mr. LIEBELER. You are not able to identify this man if I showed you a picture of Oswald or someone else?
Mrs. DAVIS. I don't remember.
Mr. LIEBELER. The second incident was when Mr. Slack reported to you that someone was firing his target, is that correct? Or was that the third incident?
Mrs. DAVIS. That was the third incident.
Mr. LIEBELER. Let's cover that one. Mr. Slack came up to the office, you say, and complained that someone was firing on his target?
Mrs. DAVIS. Yes.
Mr. LIEBELER. What did you do?
Mrs. DAVIS. My husband went down there and asked the boys to quit firing at someone else's target, and he said something about, "Boys, you must fire at your own target," or something like that. And he got it straightened out, but they left.
Mr. LIEBELER. Did you see any of these men at that time?
Mrs. DAVIS. No; I was in the office. I take care of that part of it.
Mr. LIEBELER. Was this man with the beard there at that time, do you know?
Mrs. DAVIS. No; that was on a Sunday afternoon or a Saturday. It was a Saturday or a Sunday, and the reason I remember him, it was the same day they said Oswald was out there, and I tried to talk to him, which I talked to everyone that comes in, and he was noticeable because he looked like the Castro type. He had this big beard and he was heavy set and big broad shoulders, and well, he was just outstanding in his appearance. He had big red earmuffs on and I couldn't help but notice him.
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Mr. LIEBELER. Was anyone with him?
Mrs. DAVIS. I don't know because he never spoke a word. I don't know if anyone was with him or not, but he did have several guns. When I say several, I mean not one or two. It was three or four, and he paid for each rifle.
Mr. LIEBELER. But you did not see anyone with him?
Mrs. DAVIS. No.
Mr. LIEBELER. That was Saturday or Sunday, you say?
Mrs. DAVIS. It was a Saturday or a Sunday, and we was having turkey shoots at the time and having several people out there.
Mr. LIEBELER. That is when the man with the beard was there, is that correct?
Mrs. DAVIS. Yes.
Mr. LIEBELER. Was that the same day that the gentleman complained about somebody firing into their target?
Mrs. DAVIS. It was. It was the same day they was complaining about the two boys next to him firing into his target.
Mr. LIEBELER. We mean Mr. Slack, do we not?
Mrs. DAVIS. Mr. Slack.
Mr. LIEBELER. But you yourself did not see either of these two men who were supposedly firing into Mr. Slack's target?
Mrs. DAVIS. No.
Mr. LIEBELER. So you did not yourself personally observe any of those gentle men or who was supposed to have been Lee Oswald, is that correct?
Mrs. DAVIS. That's right.
Mr. LIEBELER. Did you ever observe the rifle that was in the possession of this gentleman who was supposed to be Oswald?
Mrs. DAVIS. No; at the time I didn't know one gun from another. Now I can tell you everything they bring in.
Mr. LIEBELER. Do you remember whether or not on this Sunday that Mr.. Slack complained that someone was firing into his target, everybody signed into the journal?
Mrs. DAVIS. Not everyone, because at the time we didn't have our fences up. See, we have a fence that is all along the gun range, because there were too many getting on the range without paying.
Mr. LIEBELER. Do you know whether or not the two men who were supposed to be firing into Mr. Slack's target signed in the journal?
Mrs. DAVIS. No.
Mr. LIEBELER. You don't know one way or the other, Mrs. Davis?
Mrs. DAVIS. I don't know, because the only reason we was having them sign in was to sign them cards to invite them to the next turkey shoot.
Mr. LIEBELER. Would you have seen them at the time they signed it, necessarily, or might someone else?
Mrs. DAVIS. Someone might sign in for them.
Mr. LIEBELER. And you would not necessarily have observed these individuals signing in?
Mrs. DAVIS. No; because the man who was outstanding, he didn't sign in. I didn't see the man until he walked through the gun range. He didn't walk through the entrance, or I would have seen him.
Mr. LIEBELER. Mr. Davis mentioned the names of Mr. Slack and Mr. Price, and he said that there were some others.
Mrs. DAVIS. There was a doctor and his son that was out there that day. They remembered the rifle and they reported that to me before any of it came out in the paper, but I didn't get his name. But I do think that the FBI contacted this doctor.
Mr. LIEBELER. Would you remember his name if I told you it was Dr. Wood? Would that ring a bell with you?
Mrs. DAVIS. No, it doesn't. It has been so long ago.
Mr. LIEBELER. Now, other than this doctor and Mr. Slack and Mr. Price, do you know of anyone else who said that they thought that they saw Oswald at the range?
Mrs. DAVIS. Not that I would take their word for it.
Mr. LIEBELER. Tell us what you mean by that. You must have somebody in
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mind, somebody who told you these stories, and I would like to have you tell them to us if you would.
Mrs. DAVIS. Well, there was a mister--what is his name--Camplen, Charlie Camplen, and he said he was out there on a Wednesday.
Mr. LIEBELER. He said that Oswald?----
Mrs. DAVIS. But I didn't get into any detail, so I don't know.
Mr. LIEBELER. But Camplen told you he saw Oswald on a Wednesday?
Mrs. DAVIS. Yes.
Mr. LIEBELER. Is there anybody else that has claimed to have seen Oswald at the range?
Mrs. DAVIS. No.
Mr. LIEBELER. Do you know Mr. James Thompson?
Mrs. DAVIS. Yes; Jim, he did say he thought he did, and I think he kind of backed off. I don't know what to believe. I just don't know. He said he wasn't going to say he did, because he couldn't swear to it.
Mr. LIEBELER. Do you remember what day that he, Mr. Thompson, thought he might have seen Oswald?
Mrs. DAVIS. It was on a Sunday. It was the same Sunday, because he was helping run the targets down.
Mr. LIEBELER. What did Thompson tell you about this?
Mrs. DAVIS. He told--he didn't talk to me too much about it. In fact, he said he don't remember. He couldn't say he actually saw him. At first he did say he saw him, and he did remember the incident about the target, and Slack, but he don't, he said he couldn't swear that it was Oswald. And we have never discussed it further.
Mr. LIEBELER. Thompson lives----
Mrs. DAVIS. He is with the Bardahl Co. He is a representative of Bardahl.
Mr. LIEBELER. Does he live in the 1100 block of Gilpin Street?
Mrs. DAVIS. Yes.
Mr. LIEBELER. Is that in Dallas?
Mrs. DAVIS. Yes.
Mr. LIEBELER. What about Mr. B. G. Moses, do you know him?
Mrs. DAVIS. Yes; he is a neighbor. He lives across the street from me. But I just don't know about him. I mean, he hasn't had too much to say about it.
Mr. LIEBELER. Did he talk to you about it?
Mrs. DAVIS. No; in a way, he did, and well, in a way--he didn't actually come out and say--he said, "I think I saw him." I will put it that way. He thinks.
Mr. LIEBELER. Was this the same Sunday that you had the incident concerning the target?
Mrs. DAVIS. He worked that week, but I don't know if he was down there or not that Sunday. It seems to me like he was working the trap. He was in the office, come in and out of the office, but I don't think he was on the rifle range.
Mr. LIEBELER. On the Sunday we are speaking of?
Mrs. DAVIS. Yes.
Mr. LIEBELER. Do you remember the date of this Sunday?
Mrs. DAVIS. No, I don't. I think it was around November, maybe the 13th, something like that. I wouldn't know unless I had my dates in front of me. I don't remember names or dates too well, but I remember faces.
Mr. LIEBELER. Was it the weekend before the assassination?
Mrs. DAVIS. Oh, yes.
Mr. LIEBELER. It was the last weekend preceding the assassination?
Mrs. DAVIS. Yes; and we did quite a bit of advertising when we opened that range. The last week in October is when we opened the range, and we had in that month, we ran, let's see, it was 1600 and some people through there, so you know the word got around that it was a public gun range and was open.
Mr. LIEBELER. So that anybody who was interested in it would have known about it?
Mrs. DAVIS. That's right.
Mr. LIEBELER. Do you have any opinion as to whether or not Oswald was really at the range as a result of all these discussions?
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Mrs. DAVIS. I really do think he was. I didn't see the man. I couldn't say one word, but I really think he was, sincerely, because the two men, especially Howard Price, he is the kind of person that you can believe what he says. He is intelligent. When he says he knows a rifle, he knows that rifle. He can get out there and dig out slugs, which he does, and melt them down to the lead, and he can tell you what slug is out of each gun, which I can't do. He is just a gun enthusiast and he loves it and he remembered that gun.
But that is the only thing I can say. I did not see the man and I couldn't say. I mean nothing except I would take his word for it. He wouldn't be the kind, and he told us this before it all come out in the paper, and the rifle, it hadn't been identified in the paper when he identified it. But Slack, I don't know too much about him. He is just a temperamental hothead. He was very hot, and they kept kicking his booth. He said they had odd shoes on and kept kicking his booth. If someone is knocking this desk, she couldn't write, and he kept knocking the side of the booth and he couldn't shoot, and that made him angry. But that is the only thing that I know.
Mr. LIEBELER. You are basing your opinion basically on the conversation you had with Mr. Price and your respect for Mr. Price's judgment?
Mrs. DAVIS. That's right.
Mr. LIEBELER. Did Mr. Price tell you, or did you learn how these men got to the rifle range?
Mrs. DAVIS. No.
Mr. LIEBELER. Did they walk or come in a car?
Mrs. DAVIS. Now, Mr. Price said they came in a car, this old car. I think he knows the make of it, but like I say, I didn't see him. The only thing--only time I saw a car at a late arrival was the night I was telling you about that Price took him down there, but I saw the man get out, but that is all.
Mr. LIEBELER. Did Mr. Price see these two men on the Sunday before the assassination when they had the incident over the target?
Mrs. DAVIS. I don't think he was down there that day. I don't remember. I don't think so. I know Jim Thompson was working that day and Mr. Moses and my husband and I, and we never have over four, so I don't think we was--I may be mistaken, he may have been there, but not working for us, because he was there every day.
Mr. LIEBELER. Price was?
Mrs. DAVIS. Price was.
Mr. LIEBELER. Can you think of anybody else who might have seen Oswald at the range, or this fellow they thought was Oswald, come and told you about it?
Mrs. DAVIS. No, I sure can't.
Mr. LIEBELER. I don't think I have any more questions at this point. Is there anything that you can think of?
Mrs. DAVIS. I have thought and thought, and I would give anything if I could think of something or identify someone he was with. I think that would be more of a help to you people than anything, wouldn't it?
Mr. LIEBELER. Yes, it would.
Mrs. DAVIS. My husband did call in that he saw this bearded man. Do you have that on your records?
Mr. LIEBELER. Your husband told us.
Mrs. DAVIS. He went right to the phone and called, because we were convinced. Do you know anybody that was with him that day? The man may be completely innocent, but we just feel that he was with him because he was so belligerent and stood around and he wouldn't talk. You don't find people like that at a gun range. They are really friendly and they come out to shoot and have a good time, and I have never had anyone treat me like he did.
Mr. LIEBELER. This bearded man?
Mrs. DAVIS. Yes.
Mr. LIEBELER. Did you see the rifle that the bearded man had with him?
Mrs. DAVIS. He had several, yes. He had them, but I couldn't identify them. I could now. They like for you to discuss their rifles with them when they come in. They think they are important, you know. And now I can identify a rifle but I didn't know a rifle from a shotgun, a .22 from a 16-gauge shotgun, I mean, I didn't know the difference.
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Mr. LIEBELER. So you wouldn't be able to identify the rifle that the bearded man had with him if I showed you pictures of a rifle?
Mrs. DAVIS. No; because like I say, at that time they were just guns.
Mr. LIEBELER. If you don't have anything else that you think would be helpful to us at this point, I will thank you for coming in and cooperating with us the way you have. I want you to know the Commission appreciates it very much.
Mrs. DAVIS. All right.
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