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JUDGE TUNHEIM:  I call to order this public 
meeting -- public hearing of the Assassination Records 
Review Board.

Thank you all for coming today.  I want to 
first express my appreciation, the appreciation of the 
board to the National Archives for permitting us to 
meet in this historic reception room.  We are happy to 
be here and happy to be able to use the facilities. 

This is not a meeting or a function of the 
National Archives.  The Assassination Records Review 
Board is an independent federal agency, not part of the 
National Archives.  I would ask that everyone take care 
with the antiques and old furniture and rugs that are 
in this building -- or in this room.  We would 
appreciate that.

I also want to thank our witnesses today for 
agreeing to participate in this important hearing 
before the board.

A little information about the board.  The as 
as records review board members were appointed by 
President Clinton, confirmed by the Senate, in 1994.  

We have been at work now for almost three years working 
on implementing the President John F. Kennedy 
Assassination Records Collection Act of 1992.  

We primarily have been locating, securing, 
and releasing to the public records related to the 
tragic assassination of President Kennedy.  Much of the 
records that have been released are records that have 
been held in Federal Government files.  We also have 
been on the search for additional records, whether they 
be in the hands of state and local governments or in 
the hands of private individuals that may wish to 
donate their material to the United States.

This has resulted in an ever-growing 
collection of the records of the assassination at the 
National Archives at College Park.  Upwards of nearly 
three and a half million pages are now available to the 
public at the National Archives.

The goal of the Assassination Records Review 
Board is the goal -- was the goal of Congress in 
passing the Records Collection Act, is to ensure the 
broadest possible public release of the records of the 
assassination of President Kennedy, relevant records 
which were created before the assassination and 
certainly all of the records of its investigatory 
aftermath.  

It is not, I emphasize, it is not the 
responsibility of the Review Board to solve remaining 
mysteries associated with the assassination or to reach 
conclusions about the assassination itself.  Rather, it 
is the duty of the board and the responsibility of the 
board to secure and release to the public, to the 
greatest extent possible, the records that 
unfortunately have remained shrouded in secrecy through 
so many years since the events in 1963.

Let me turn to today's hearing.  The purpose 
of today's hearing is to seek public comment and advice 
on what should be done with the camera-original motion 
picture film of the assassination that was taken by 
Abraham Zapruder on November 22, 1963.  That film has 
been stored, the original has been stored at the 
National Archives.  It was placed there by Mr. 
Zapruder's heirs, which now have formed a company, and 
they claim to possess legal title to the film.  

So the Review Board is faced with the 
question of how to properly handle this artifact, the 
original -- the camera-original film from the day of 
the assassination.  We have assembled today for 
testimony an interesting group of experts related to 
legal issues that are associated with this question, 
and certainly issues relative to the value of the 
camera-original film taken by Abraham Zapruder, the 
film itself.

I would like to ask before we begin whether 
any of the other Review Board members have any comments 
that they would like to make before we get into the 
witnesses.

[No response.]

Again, I appreciate all of you coming today.  

Thank you for attending this hearing.  We are going to 
hear first from the general counsel for the 
Assassination Records Review Board, Mr. Jeremy Gunn, 
who is going to outline some of the issues that are 
presented to the Review Board by the Zapruder film.

Mr. Gunn.