Lee Harvey Oswald

Lee Harvey Oswald (1939-1963) was an American former U.S. Marine who is officially credited with the assassination of President John F. Kennedy on November 22, 1963, in Dallas, Texas. Born in New Orleans, Oswald had a troubled childhood and joined the Marine Corps in 1956, eventually becoming a radar operator. After his discharge, he defected to the Soviet Union in 1959 but returned to the United States in 1962. On the day of Kennedy's assassination, Oswald allegedly fired three shots from the Texas School Book Depository at the presidential motorcade. He was arrested hours later and was subsequently shot and killed by nightclub owner Jack Ruby while in police custody, just two days after the assassination. The Warren Commission concluded that Oswald acted alone, though his assassination remains one of the most debated events in American history, with numerous conspiracy theories continuing to emerge decades later.