Secret Service Report on Dean Andrews
Secret Service Report on Dean Andrews
This is the report taken immediately after the assassination by the
Secret Service from Dean Andrews, receiver of the call from "Clay
Bertrand" to defend Oswald.
Reproduced from WCH V.26, from the Secret Service report made in New
Orleans 11/25/63 - 12/4/63 regarding Dean Andrews. It's a 3 page report.
Type of Case: Assassination of President
Status: Continued
Title or Caption: Lee Harvey Oswald/Assassination of President Kennedy.
SYNOPSIS
Dean Andrews, Jr., Attorney, New Orleans, advised that Oswald had visited
his office on approximately three occasions in June-July, relative to his
citizenship status, his wife's status and his undesirable discharge from
the Marine Corps. On 11/23/63 Attorney Andrews was contacted by telephone
by a Clay Bertrand, who inquiried [sic] if he would be interested in
defending Oswald. Inquiries made at Tulane University re Clay Bertrand
and A. J. Hidell.
DETAILS OF THE INVESTIGATION
Reference is made to previous reports submitted in this case.
On 11/25/63 Attorney Dean A. Andrews, Jr., who is well known to this
office, contacted SAIC Rice by telephone from the Hotel Dieu Hospital in
New Orleans, where he was confined as a patient.
He advised that in June and July, 1963, dates unrecalled, Lee H. Oswald
had visited his office on three occasions and expressed concern about (1)
his citizenship status; (2) his wife's status; and (3) his undesirable
discharge from the Marine Corps which he claimed had made it impossible
to obtain suitable employment.
Mr. Andrews said that Oswald was accompanied by a total of approximately
five persons during the three visits. He said that he knew two of the
subjects by sight, and that on two occasions he was accompanied by a
young man of Mexican extraction (not Cuban), whom he did not know. He
said he believed that all of Oswald's companions were homosexuals who
possibly frequent the Gaslight Bar in the French Quarter, where such
individuals congregate. He said Oswald was supposed to furnish him $20.00
and also his Marine Corps serial number in order to obtain copies of
pertinent records from the Marine Corps. He sad that Oswald did not
comply, and that he did not establish a file on him, or receive a fee.
He further advised that in about August, 1963, he saw Oswald on Canal
Street passing out literature favoring Castro, and that when he more or
less admonished him, Oswald indicated that he was receiving $25.00 a day
for this work.
Attorney Andrews also advised that on Saturday, November 23, 1963,
between 6:30pm and 9:00pm, while he was in the hospital, under sedation,
he received a telephone call, believed to a [sic] local call, although he
could not be positive, from a man giving the name of Clay Bertrand, who
inquired if he would be willing to defend Oswald in the murder and
assassination case. He said that Bertrand indicated that he would visit
him at the hospital later, but failed to do so; and that the following
day he learned that Oswald had been murdered.
He seems to feel that he had been previously contacted by Clay Bertrand
in connection with another case, but he could not place him or furnish
any information to assist in identifying or locating him. He said that he
had asked his secretary to check the records at his office concerning
Oswald and Bertrand, but that she had been unable to locate any records
pertaining to either of them. He said that when he returned to his office
he would personally check his files and advise us of the results. He
indicated that he believed that Bertrand was a homosexual.
On 11/26/63 Inspector Thomas J. Kelley was furnished this information by
telephone at Dallas. Deputy Chief Paul J. Paterni and SAIC Robert I.
Bouck, PRS, were also furnished the information in telephone conversation
on 11/29/63, as indicated in confirmation memorandum of the same date.
It was ascertained that Attorney Andrews had also furnished the same
information to SA Regis Kennedy, FBI, New Orleans.
On 11/27/63 SA Anthony E. Gerrets inquired of the Police Department
Intelligence Division concerning Clay Bertrand, with negative results.
During the period November 27-29, 1963, SA Gerrets also made inquiries at
the Bureaus of Identification, Detective Division, Narcotics Squad and
Vice Squad, New Orleans Police Department, and no record of Clay
Bertrand was located.
On 11/29/63 SA Roger D. Counts personally interviewed Attorney Dean
Andres, Jr., at his residence, and exhibited to him photographs of Oswald
and an unidentified subject passing out Fair Play for Cuba literature in
front of the International Trade Mart in New Orleans. Mr. Andrews said
he did not recognize the other man, and that he obviously was not one of
the several persons who had accompanied Oswald to his office as indicated
above.
During the period 11/29/63 to 12/4/63 SA Counts also made inquiries
relative to Clay Bertrand of the following persons: Mr. Lance A. Gracia,
Asst. Manager, New Orleans Credit Bureau; Mr. John E. Hevron, Assistant
Secretary-Treasurer, Public Library; Mr. Jack Sullivan and Mr. Killeen,
Louisiana State Employment Service; Mr. Bennerfield, employment office in
Oretna, Louisiana. Clay Bertrand was not of record at any of these places.
On 12/2/63 Attorney Dean Andrews, Jr., advised by telephone that he had
returned to work, and that ahceck [sic] of his office files had failed to
disclose any record of Oswald or Clay Bertrand. He said he would continue
to make inquiries in an effort to identify Clay Bertrand, and that he
would advise this office of the results.
On 12/2/63 SA Counts and SAIC Rice visited Tulane University, New
Orleans, and interviewed Dr. M.E. Lapham, Provost. He was informed that
Oswald reportedly told Charles H. Steele, Jr., that the Fair Play for
Cuba Committee circulars which they were passing out had originated at
Tulane University; and that we had also been informed that Oswald told an
attorney (Dean Andrews, Jr.) that he received $25.00 a day to pass out
the literature. Dr. Lapham said that he had not seen any of the circulars
on the campus and knew of no one connected with the Fair Play for Cuba
Committee. He was requested to have a record check made for Clay Bertrand
and Alek James Hidell.
On 12/3/63 Dr. Lapham advised by telephone that a careful check had been
made of all students, faculty members and employees of the University,
and no record was located on Clay Bertrand or Alek James Hidell, or
similar names. He said that he had made inquiries of appropriate
officials and none had any information relative to Fair Play for Cuba
Committee.
Dr. Lapham was not informed that we had established a connection between
Oswald and Dr. Leonard Reissman, a professor at Tulane, the latter
reportedly being active in the New Orleans Council for Peaceful
Alternatives, also know as Ban the Bomb.
Dr. Leonard Reissman, referred to in report dated 12/3/63 by SA A.G.
Vial, is of record in the subversive files of the Federal Bureau of
Investigation, New Orleans. ASAC Joseph Sylvester, FBI, has requested
that this office not interview Reissman because of their interest in
him. It is understood that the FBI office desires to interview him and
that he has been out of the city recently.
On 12/3/63 SA Regis Kennedy, FBI, advised that he had made extensive
inquiries relative to Clay Bertrand, and to date had been unable to
identify him. He said he would notify this office in the event he should
develop any information regarding this subject.
SA Kennedy also advised that his office had been unable to date to
identify the young man shown in photograph with Oswald passing out Fair
Play for Cuba literature.
UNDEVELOPED LEADS
Investigation is continued in the New Orleans Office relative to other
phases of this inquiry.
[Read Bill Davy's monograph "Through the Looking Glass: The Mysterious
World of Clay Shaw" to see that the FBI admitted they investigated Shaw -
that his name had come up in their investigation long before Garrison
looked into it.]
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