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T34 Supplemental Transcript to a Writ of Habeas Corpus for Jack Ruby, 1966

Object number1994.002.0011.0004
Date03/31/1966
ClassificationsDocuments
ObjectDocument
Credit LineDallas County District Clerk Collection/The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza
MediumPaper
Dimensions14 × 8 1/2 × 1/16 in. (35.6 × 21.6 × 0.1 cm)
DescriptionSupplemental transcript to a Writ of Habeas Corpus on behalf of Jack Ruby, 1966. In this supplemental transcript, Ruby's lawyer Phil Burleson detailed the difficulty he had trying to obtain a full and factual transcript of the hearings of September 9-10, 1965, including a legible copy of Judge Joe B. Brown's manuscript of the book he was writing, "Dallas, Ruby and the Law." This transcript is a photocopy of typed original, on regular paper, with original blue front and back covers, 8 pages total. Has an original signature page at the back, notarized and signed by deputy Pat Dalton and dated March 31, 1966. Text typed on the front cover: "Supplemental Transcript No. 2076 Ex Parte Jack Ruby, Petitioner In the Criminal District Court No. 3 of Dallas County, Texas Before the Honorable Louis T. Holland, Judge, Thereof Attorneys for Petitioner Phil Burleson LTV National Bank of Commerce Dallas, Texas Sam Houston Clinton, Jr. 205 Texas AFL-CIO Building 308 West 11th Street Austin, TX 78701 William N. Kunstler, Elmer Gertz, Sol Dann, Of Counsel Writ of Habeas Corpus"
Curatorial Commentary
A writ of habeas corpus literally means to "produce the body," and is defined as a recourse in law in which a person can report an unlawful detention or imprisonment. Ruby's attorney Phil Burleson files this supplemental transcript to the writ of habeas corpus providing the timeline for the multiple attempts he has made with the Dallas County District Clerk's office to obtain complete and accurate Statement of Facts from court reporter L. B. Bailey, Jr. which contain testimony and exhibits from related hearings held September 9-10, 1965. These documents are needed for Mr. Burleson's appeal filed with the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals in Austin, Texas, with the goal of releasing Ruby from jail or at least getting him additional medical and mental health treatment. - Jan Masterson, Collections Cataloguer
The Museum recorded an oral history with the late defense attorney Phil Burleson. His lengthy interview was videotaped in April 1995, less than two months before his death. - Stephen Fagin, Curator

Judge Joe B. Brown's infamous book on the Jack Ruby trial, referenced in this document, was never published during the judge's lifetime. Joe B. Brown died of a heart attack on February 20, 1968. Decades later, his son, the late Judge Joe B. Brown, Jr. -- himself a district court judge in Dallas from 1988 to 1996 -- worked with psychologist and author Dr. Diane Holloway to edit his father's unpublished manuscript. The end result, coupled with Warren Commission testimony and new psychological commentary, was published as Dallas and the Jack Ruby Trial: Memoir of Judge Joe B. Brown, Sr. in 2001.

The judge's son, Judge Joe B. Brown, Jr., recorded an oral history with the Museum in 2004. - Stephen Fagin, Curator