The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy, known colloquially as the Warren Commission, was established on November 29, 1963, by President Lyndon B. Johnson through Executive Order 11130. Created in the immediate aftermath of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy on November 22, 1963, the Commission was officially authorized by Congress under Senate Joint Resolution 137. This mandate granted the body the power to compel witness testimony and obtain crucial evidence to reconstruct the events surrounding the tragedy. Chaired by Supreme Court Chief Justice Earl Warren, the Commission consisted of several high-profile public officials, some of whom participated only reluctantly due to concerns that the investigation would spark more public controversy than consensus.
The Commission's primary contribution is its massive, 888-page final report, which was presented to President Johnson on September 24, 1964, and published three days later. The report concluded that Lee Harvey Oswald acted entirely alone in the assassination of President Kennedy, and that Jack Ruby also acted alone when he killed Oswald two days after the assassination. Since its release, the Warren Commission's findings have remained highly controversial, serving as a focal point for extensive public debate, alternative theories, and subsequent academic and governmental investigations that have both challenged and supported its original conclusions.
