There are throughout East Texas a number of historic
homes and buildings. One such is the former home of
Jasper attorney Joe Tonahill.
Tonahill, the colorful defense attorney who helped
represent
Lee
Harvey
Oswald’s killer Jack Ruby in
Dallas in the 1960s, died in
2001 at the age of 88.
When Lee Harvey Oswald
assassinated President John
F. Kennedy in 1963, the East
Texas lawyer soon found himself thrust into history.
Tonahill, who by then was
already a noted attorney, became the lawyer for Ruby,
who shot Oswald as he was
being transferred while in police custody 50 years ago this
year..
The trial made Tonahill
famous, but he was already
highly respected throughout
Texas legal circles.
“Joe Tonahill is an important
part of American history,” says
David Shultz, who bought
the Tonahill home in 2013
and converted it into the
headquarters
of
Shultz
Funeral Home and CremaJoe Tonahill, left, of Jasper, Texas, , Jack Ruby, Center, and Melvin tory. “There is a lot of history
associated with Joe Tonahill
Belli of San Francisco before court was in session for a bond
hearing in