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fad ih inn coy es C A naam tape md WE th a re ne in the h7 feet from th Qeimie of the "reaction tin @@equired for validiy, the questions that folku.ied concerred the veicht of in Se, condition of the tires ami brakes (both excellent), etc. At no time wes this fact esteblished. Insnector Kennedy also made some measurenents—the "skid marks", the dis- tances from the edge of the bricze to the points mhere the wheels went over. . The right one was 18 feet, the left, 33 feet, two inches. But an extrenely in- teresting thing about the locations of those points of departure from. the x bridze that. the Inspector did not Féveal is that the one mede by the left whedl ended less than four feet from the "peak" of the bridge. This will be more clearly understood from a superficial description of tre bridse construction ig. Anomaly G. Suffice it to say here that there is an elevated center section and that the remp sections on either side have a gradient of some eleven desrees or more. That this means is that the vehicle ran 15 fees up an eleven-degree in- clired plane vefore plunging oif and that this would nave had a decelerating ef=- fect, which means further that the estimated speed of 26-1/2 miles per hour when the car hit the edge of the bridge is due another upgrading. How about 26: ; Here is some more. On each side of the bridge there is a low. curd or rub rail nine inches wide and there was a deep gorge at the approximate midpoint be- 4reen the tro tire marks caused by the transaission housing as it vem over. From the standpoint of horizontally directed force, as vhen the trensnis sion housing gashed across it, the width is equivalent to thicmess. This caused | more deceleration, of course, and so more speed upgrading is necessarye To 30? But we aren't finished yet. If the brakes were apolied, as Inspects Vee nedy indicated, this vould mean more deceleration fron the begimring of t- bridge. The Inspector stated, and rightly so, that it takes a greater distance to stop on wood than on macadan end still more if the surface is lightly sandy. The mentioned 25 feet was for macadam. One of the pieces of defensive evidence submitted on Senator Kemety's behalf was a rather sovhisticated engineerirg study, mentioned more fully in Anomaly G, that included several one-the-scene tests made following the accident, Here is an excerpt: a Data on a test perfomed in the vresence of Ux. George Kennedy, of the Massachusetts Division of Motor Vehicies, in which a 1969 Chevrolet — approached the pridge at 20 mph. The prekes were applied at the instanv the front wheels touched the bridge. The car came to a Stop with the front wheels at a distance of 53 feet from the beginning of the pridg2. The test was performed on a dry pridge, but with 2 slightly sandy surfacc. That was just two inches short of where. the left front wheel of the Olds- mobile went off, wasn't it? Accordingly, 47 the 1967 Oldsmobile was traveling at only 20-22 miles ver hour as it approached the bridse, as poth Senator Ken- nedy and Insvector Kennedy maintained, it should have at least decelerated sur ficiently that, if it did not stop compleatly, only the right front wheel would have gone over. 3ut did -i4? You know it didn't. The flight of the Olds- mobile ended 36 feet further east on he vottom of the neck just entering into Poucha Pond. And so we are nov faced with more necessary sveed vegrading. 35? ho? 45? 50? Ye do not knov why Inspector Kennedy ovriously ignored this greater dis- tance, since he said the car had been noved fron jts oviginal spot at the time of his arrival, but we do know from his testizony that the Senator knew thai. the Inspector knew about the plunge. From the bridge, the Insnector went di- rectly to Police Headgursirrs, there the Senntor wes at the tie and snent about, forty-five minutes with hin. But Inscecvor Kennedy is an honorable man} so are they all, all, honorable mn (and women). ; Now, what was that Judge Boyle said at the opening just tr days before ‘Inspector Kennedy testified? 2bb/ ivid., p» 93+ ——