Subject: Re: Banister and the ONI Date: Mon, 26 Jul 1999 14:07:26 GMT From: jpshinley@my-deja.com Organization: Deja.com - Share what you know. Learn what you don't. Newsgroups: alt.assassination.jfk In article <19990725043945.04826.00001814@ng-bk1.aol.com>, dreitzes@aol.com (Dave Reitzes) wrote: > >Subject: Banister and the ONI > >From: 6489mcadamsj@vms.csd.mu.edu (John McAdams) > > > >Dave Blackburst posted this chronology of Guy Banister's career. > > > > > > > >Here's a few dates and places: > > > > 11/5/34 joins FBI as Special Agent, Indianapolis IN > > > > 4/24/35 SA in New York City > > > > 5/11/38 Assistant SAC in Newark NJ > > > > 8/14/38 SAC in Butte MO > > > > 8/6/41 "transferred to Oakland City" > > > > 11/4/43 "transferred back to Butte" > > > > 10/1/51 SAC in Minneapolis MN > > > > 1/4/54 SAC in Chicago IL > > > > 12/12/54 retires from FBI > > > > > > > >Dave, or anybody else, can you give me a source for this? > > Guy Banister, autobiographical sketch, FBI #62-103863-13, cited in Vol. X, > paragraph 483. The following paragraph indicates that the HSCA examined > FBI files (and CIA, for that matter) relating to Banister, so presumably > the verifiable information in Banister's sketch checks out. (The HSCA was > apparently unable to verify Banister's claim in this sketch that he was > born in a log cabin, so they qualify that statement with an "according > to.") > AGENCY : HSCA RECORD NUMBER : 180-10096-1011 AGENCY FILE NUMBER : 007271 [5 OF 6] - ORIGINATOR : NEW ORLEANS DISTRICT ATTORNEY FROM : BANISTER, GUY TITLE : BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH - BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH W. Guy Banister - I was born in a log cabin in Caldwell Parish on March 7, 1901, the son of William Henry Banister and Aline Gregory Bainster, the oldest of 7 children. - I was educated in the Public Schools of Louisiana and attended Louisiana State University and Soule College of New Orleans. - The beginning of my career as an investigator was with the Monroe Police Department. I received an appointment as Patrolman in December 1929. About two weeks later, the Superintendent of Police asked me to take a course in stenography, afterwhich he would assign me to his office as his secretary with the pay of a sergeant. This was done at the end of six months from the date of my first appointment. About six months later, the Superintendent died and I was assigned duties that made me, actually, the Chief of Detectives. - On November 5, 1934, I was sworn in as Special Agent, Division of Investigation, U.S. Department of Justice. The name of this organization was changed a short time later to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. - In May, 1938, I was promoted to the position which now bears the title of Assistant Special Agent in Charge and assigned to the Newark, New Jersey office. - In August, 1938, I was promoted to the office of Special Agent in Charge and assigned to the Butte, Montana Office. This occurred less than four years from the date I entered on duty with the FBI. I served in this position until my retirement on December 31, 1954. - I served in the Butte Division until October 1941, when I was transferred to the Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Division where I stayed until November, 1943, when I was transferred back to the Butte Division. - In September 1952, I was transferred to the Minneapolis, Minnesota Division, where I remained until the last of December 1953, when I was transferred to the Chicago, Illinois Division. I remained there until the date of my retirement. - I have been informed that up to the time of my retirement, I had served longer in the position of Special Agent in Charge than any other person, a period of nearly seventeen years. - After retirement, I accepted an invitation from Mayor Delesseps S. Morrison to join the New Orleans Police Department with the assignment of cleaing up the Police Organized Graft System. This period was from 1955 to 1957. Many Police Officers were indicted. Some were tried and convicted in different courts, as the cases were prepared for Federal or State action. Others where removed from office and their cases were handled by the City Civil Service Commission. - Cases of malfeasance, etc. were prepared, and submitted to the Orleans Parish Grand Jury, against Mayor Morrison, Superintendent of Police Provosty A. Dayries and District Attorney Leon Dayries Hubert. The cases were "tried" before the Grand Jury and no indictments were returned. - Since February 1958, I have been engaged as a private investigator and criminologist and as President, Guy Banister Associates, Inc. I am organizing at this time a family real estate corporation. - While serving with the FBI as Special Agent in Charge, I supervised the investigative work of several hundred Special Agents and administered the affairs of the Division under my command. - The investigations could be, and were made in cases involving some 140 Federal laws, including anti-trust laws, bankruptcy, bank defalcations, bank robbery, extortion, kidnapping, murder, treason, espionage, sabotage and subversive activities cases. - As a part of my duties, I supervised the training of thousands of local law enforcement officers. I intoduced an innovation in law enforcement training. Major Universities were brought into the work, not as done in Louisiana where the University, apparently, takes the lead in establishing the curriculum, standards to be met, selection of instructors, etc., but the training courses were prepared by me. This was done by being accepted as a member of the teaching staff. The Universities concerned were: The University of Idaho, The Greater University of Montana, the University of South Dakota and the University of Minnesota. - I am a communicant of the Baptist Church and have served as church moderator, deacon, trustee and Sunday School Teacher. - I am a Past Master of Graham Surghnor Lodge #383, F. & A. M., Monroe, Louisiana. I still hold my membership there. - I am a member of the Scottish Rite and of Jerusalem Temple, New Orleans, Louisiana. - I am married to the former Mary Wortham of Oak Grove, La. We have one daughter, Mrs. Donald Duvio, and have three grandsons. - My only living brother is D. Ross Banister, General Counsel, Louisiana State Highway Department. My mother, Mrs. Aline Banister, still resides in the family home in Monroe. - [end of bio.] > > >Obviously, this is one of "Garrison's lies" -- unless somebody can > >come up with a plausible hypothesis about how Garrison might simply > >have been misinformed about this. Garrison asked: "Was it just > >conincidence . . . that Guy Banister, who had begun his career in > >World War II with the O.N.I., had chosen an office right across the > >street from his old employers?" OTTOTA, p. 26. > > > >.John > > To my knowledge, Garrison has never cited a source for this claim, but > Bill Turner *almost* has. In "The Garrison Commission" (*Ramparts, Jan. > 1968), Turner writes, "A man who knew Banister well has told Garrison that > Banister became associated with the Office of Naval Intelligence through > the recommendation of Guy Johnson, an ONI reserve officer and the first > attorney for Clay Shaw when he was arrested by Garrison" (*The > Assassinations: Dallas and Beyond,* Scott, Hoch, Stetler, eds., 284). > > Turner, obviously, does not name Garrison's source. > > Problem: We know from *OTTOTA* that Garrison considered Johnson "a friend > of mine" (1991 ed., 29 fn.). But Garrison doesn't name Johnson as his > source for this info, nor did his friend Guy Johnson ever seem to correct > Garrison about this Banister-ONI (or Johnson recommendation) claim. > (Garrison *never* discussed it at all with his pal Johnson?) BTW, I don't > recall Johnson being Shaw's lawyer at this time, though perhaps David > Blackburst or Jerry Shinley know better. It was the Wegmann brothers and > Sal Panzeca that Shaw phoned from NOPD the day he was arrested. > Guy Johnson worked briefly on Shaw's defense during the time between Shaw's arrest and the preliminary hearing. He and the Wegmanns were partners in the law firm of Herve Racivitch, who was DA from 1946 to 1950. Johnson and one or both of the Wegmanns served as assistant DAs during that time. > > Yet another BTW -- Contrary to what Bill Davy says in his new book, this > Guy Johnson -- Guy Persac Johnson -- is *not* the Guy Johnson -- Guy D. > Johnson -- who was approved for the mysterious QK/ENCHANT operation. > > Guy Persac Johnson was the ONI-lawyer guy, while Guy D. Johnson was in the > export business, which supports the claim that QK/ENCHANT was an operation > involved with gathering international trade intelligence. > > Jerry Shinley posted Guy D. Johnson's obituary: > > (end quote) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - > > New York Times Feb 8, 1971 P36 > Guy Johnson, 85, Type Exporter > Head of Company Dealing in Printing Gear Dies > - > Guy D. Johnson, president of Guy D. Johnson, Inc., exporters of > printing equipment, died at his home yesterday. He was 85 years old > and lived at 969 Park Avenue. > Mr. Johnson was born in New Orleans on Oct. 8, 1885. He spent > three years in railroad work in Central America before joining > National Paper and Type Company, a printing equipment exporter in > 1907. > He spent 45 years with that company, serving as president from > 1945 to 1953. In the latter year he organized his own company, in > which he had been active until recently. > Mr. Johnson had traveled extensively in Latin America, selling > printing equipment, and was well known as an authority in graphic > arts. > > [...] > > (end quote) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - > > Anyway, it's not clear where Garrison got his Banister-ONI claim, nor is > it clear why he believed his friend Guy Johnson had anything to do with > Banister and the ONI, when Johnson presumably could have offered some > information on this. > > Trivia question: Only one other person is known to have claimed that Guy > Banister served in the Armed Forces in WWII. Name that witness. > Ace-high Henry Earl Palmer? > > Dave > > Jerry Shinley Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/ Share what you know. Learn what you don't.