Jack Ruby’s fingerprint card, obtained the night he shot suspected John F. Kennedy assassin Lee Harvey Oswald, is listed for sale through Dallas-based Heritage Auctions.
The Dallas Sheriff’s Office made the card with Ruby’s prints on November 25, 1963, the same day President Kennedy was laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, D.C.
Jack Ruby was in the news worldwide two days after Lee Harvey Oswald was arrested. While officers attempted to transfer Oswald from police headquarters to a local jail, Ruby pushed his way through a crowd of reporters and journalists and shot Oswald with a .38 special Colt Cobra revolver.
Oswald was shot in the stomach and died the next day from his injuries. The murder took place in front of America as television cameras rolled.
Ruby had moved to Dallas in 1947 and went on to own and operate nightclubs, strip clubs, and other entertainment venues. How he got a gun into the courthouse and why he killed Oswald remain a mystery, with numerous dubious conspiracy theories linking him to the mob, Russians, and even the CIA.
Whatever his motivations, he was sentenced to death for Oswald’s killing. During his time in prison, Ruby never revealed anything about his motive or potential connections, according to Groovy History.
On October 5, 1966, the court ruled that Ruby’s motion for a change of venue in front of the original trial court should have been granted. Ruby’s original conviction and death sentence were overturned.
While awaiting a new trial, scheduled for February 1967 in Wichita Falls, Texas, Ruby fell ill. On December 9, 1966, he was admitted to Parkland Hospital in Dallas, suffering from pneumonia. The next day, doctors diagnosed Ruby with cancer of the liver, lungs, and brain. His health deteriorated quickly, and he died on January 3, 1967.
Only six fingerprint cards were created when Ruby entered the Dallas County Jail, Heritage Auctions said. The Dallas Sheriff’s Office had two, the Texas Department of Public Safety had one, and the FBI had three.
James Cron, a Dallas County Sheriff’s Department employee, has written a notarized letter of provenance, and Beckett Authentication Services have issued a full letter of authentication for the fingerprints on auction.
Heritage Auctions says the 8″ x 8″ booking sheet is in “fine condition” and has an estimated value of $40,000 and up. With sixteen days remaining as of February 10, the current bid is $10,000.
A link to the virtual auction can be found here.
