Here’s an additional thought that was prompted by the recently debuted “JFK in Tampa” documentary. How ironic that the word “alleged” is scrupulously–and appropriately–applied to (untried, unconvicted) murder suspects. And that includes, most notably, the infamous Dontae Morris, the alleged TPD cop-killer.
But for too many media members the word “alleged” no longer seems applicable to Lee Harvey Oswald.
Perhaps it’s self-consciousness over appearing to be duped by conspiracy opportunists and “nuts.” Perhaps it’s an ineluctable concession to permanently moving on past a half-century-old crime. Perhaps Oliver Stone has been replaced by Bill O’Reilly.
But there is one immutable, unquestioned fact. With summary suspect executions, you get no trial or conviction or perspective. Had Oswald been subject to a public trial, frankly, chain-of-evidence custody would have been a prosecutorial nightmare. Cherry-picked witnesses and conflicting testimony would have been beyond problematic. And, of course, there was no 1963 counterpart to a dashboard video.
Applied today to Oswald, “alleged” is no mere legal technicality. Its absence, however, is journalistic malpractice.