This is Later with Lee Matthews the Lee Matthews Podcast More What You Hear Weekday Afternoon's on the Drive. Paul Anders was a special agent and a witness to history back when the Kennedy assassination happened, and he is he was stationed in the car directly behind the President and Dealey Plaza inside the trauma room and has decided to tell his story in a new book, The Final Witness Kennedy Secret Service agent breaks his silence after sixty years of service. It is good to
have you along, Paul Landis, thank you, good morning. How are you? It is good now. We've had Clint Hill on a couple of times on our program that faithful day. Where were you in relation to Clint when that shot rang out? Well, Clint was on the front running board of half back Sikasoda's follow up car. I was like diagonally across behind him on the right rear running board. And when you first heard the shot ring
out, did you realize right away what it was? Yes, I knew it was a high powered rifle or the sound of a high powered rifle. I did a ben a hunter, and I was familiar with firearms and the
different sounds they make, so I knew somebody was shooting. What was your first reaction, I was wondering, Well, it was I heard the shot come over my right shoulder, and it was I I happened to be I've been scanning the surrounding as I happened to be looking right at the President's limo when that shot rang out, and I saw now the President kind of leaning to his left and he was raising his arms. I thought he was turning
to see where the sound came from. I didn't realize he'd been hit at that point, and then it was you know, you got six seconds to try to scan the entire area. I was scanning or the second shot, and I didn't see any reaction and the President's WIMO at that point. But very quickly after the second shot, the third shot rang out and I saw the presidents had split open and just think missed the blood and flesh and brain matter flew into the air. I duck that I wouldn't get splattered, but
it was over like just like that. We're talking to Paul Landis. He was one of the Secret Service agents on the detail of the Kennedy assassination. The final witnesses his book, A Kennedy Secret Service agent breaks his silence after sixty years and Paul right after that, did you jump on the President? Were you still with the vehicle when it went over to Parkland Hospital? Uh? Yeah, I had climbed inside that Actually I was pulled inside and to
the rear of the vehicle. Clint had meantime, he jumped up, he had raced to the president. Summa managed to pull himself up to cover the first lady and the President. At that time. I was in the in the back of the follow up car. As soon as we got to Parkland, I jumped out and raced around and raced up to the lima and tried to help Missus Kennedy out. She didn't want to leave. She was bending
over the President's covering the President's head at the time. Very peculiar thing also happened at Parkland Hospital that you were involved in that never has come out until you wrote this book. Well, I was in trauma room. I had taken the bullet that I found in the President's limo that as soon as Missus Kennedy stood up, I saw it on the back seat and I'm scanning around. I didn't see anybody. I didn't see any agents. I was worried
about a souvenir hunter or somebody grabbing this. It was an important piece of evidence. So I picked it up, put it in my pocket, and as we got through the lobby of the emergency room and got to trauma room, one was Missus Kennedy was right behind the gurney and I was stepped behind her to keep her from being pushed, and it was pretty chaotic at the
time and stressful. I just got shoved really into the trauma room and I was pushed up against the examination table where they had placed President Kennedy's body, and I was standing right there, and I just made a snap decision that this important piece of evidence needed to be left with the president. They would find it during autopsy and that would help them in some way. Little did
anybody know that would later become kind of the magic bullet theory. I also am an enthusiast when it comes to firearms, and one of the contentions I have always argued against was that nobody could have got off that many shots that quickly, that accurately. I'm here to tell you that from what I saw of Dealey Plaza. Any marine worth his salt would have been able to do that. What do you think that's for the experts. I have no ideas
really there. All my intention with the book was to simply tell people what I saw and what I did, and all the other theories and everything. I'm really not qualified to make a statement there. Special Agent Paul Landis is with us. His new book is about his experience as at Daly Plaza. The final witness Kennedy Secret Service agent breaks as silent after sixty years later, you were witnessed to the swearing in of Lyndon Johnson. What was the mood
on the plane at that point? Very very somber. I was when we got on the plane, I didn't even want to see him being I reached Air Force one. I immediately sat down and broke down, started crying. SAI See Kellerman came and shook me by the shoulder and said, come on, Paul, did a witness history? And I just said, no, no, I've seen enough history already. But he I went back and it
was very somber. I did see the president or Vice President Johnson being sworn in, and I went back to my seat and tried the rest of the way back to Washington. He writes all about it. In the final Witness of Kennedy, secret Service agent breaks his silence after sixty years, Special Agent Paul landis, thank you for joining us and thanks for this memoir. We will enjoy reading it. Thank you very much. I enjoyed talking to you.
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