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• OPTIONAL FORN NO. 10

2025 RELEASE UNDER THE PRESIDENT JOHN E KENNEDY ASSASSINATION RECORDS ACT OF 1992

5010 - 104

UNITED STATES GOVE

)MENT

Memorandum

TO

: Files

FROM : M. D. Stevens

DATE: 29 January 1054

SULJECT: THE LEE HARVEY OSWALD CASE

#351164

1. According to a nevspaper column of "Allen and Scott" in the

Chicago Anerican of 6 Decenber 1963, on the OSWALD Case, Abram CHAYES,

Legal Officer of the State Department, was one of two persons im

mediately responsible for OSWAlD's being permitted to return to the

United States from the Soviet Union in June 1952. The other indiviaual

named was Llewellyn THOMPSON, the then Ambassador to Russia. Another

said to have been involved in the handling of OSWALD's case was Samuel

WISE, Counsel of the American Embassy in Moscow.

2. Abram CHAYES, 1352234, who as of 16 February 1961 was described

as "the new Counsel in State"

was granted Security approval for lielcon

contact with J. Foster COLLINS (in the office of the Chief of the Covart

Action Staff) on 6 March 1961. The request for CHAYES' clearance vas a

• "Blanket" request to permit discussion with him of NSC 5412/2 matters ci

a need-to-know basis..

3. In September 1961 there was a White

House namecheck request 0!1

CHAYES' wife Antonia (Toni) Leigh CHAYES, nee: HANDLER.,

4..

In March 1962, CHAYES was granted a reneval of his liaison

contact clearance with C/CA on a continuing basis. This time his contact

was Archibala ROOSEVErI, SX.

5. On 10 February 1962, HUMAN EVENIS reported as follows

with

reference to CHAYES:

"SOFT ON COMMUNISM: Representative Francis I. Walter (R.-Pa.),

Chairman of the House Committee on Un-American Activities, has

scored the new State Department regulations on passports,

clain-

ing they vould allow Reds denied passports to "rifle freely tha

confidential files of the FBI, the CIA and other investigative

agencies."

The man behind the new regulations, which Walter

claims violate the Internal Security Act of 1,50, is reportedly

State's chief legal officer, Abran Chayes.

Chayes, & Kennedy

appointee, is an ex-Harvard professor who was Chester Bowles?

top legal adviser when Bowles was Governor of Connecticut.

Walter has introduced legislation to remedy the new passport

regulations."

Eland tron arenatic

Le irarem

cellensifle dist

02680

Document Number

1271-1029

for FOlA Review on

FED 1977

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TSECRET

6. Samuel WISE, "Counsel in the American Embassy in Moscow" who

is referred to above, may well be Sanuel Griffin WISE Jr., #74574,

SD & SSD, who apparently was once a contract employee on AFACTIVE.

The State Department reviewed WISE's file on 2 June 1954; and as of

September 1962 a Samuel G. WISE was Second Secretary of the American

Imbassy in Moscow. At that time WISE advised in a cable to the State

Department

'DAVIS' case is very similar to that of

OSWALD; and he, like OSWALD, lived in the Soviet Union for two years

after his defection and prior to making application for return to the

7. WISE was an applicant for CIA employment in early 1953 and

was security approved subject to polygraph on 11 August 1953. He did

not enter on duty and in September 1953 the office which had been

interested in him vas "no longer interested". On 13 Novenber 1953,

WISE was granted a CSA to permit his use as a contract employee on

AEACTIVE in New York City. His CSA was cancelled on 24 March 1958.

8. WISE was naned as a friend of William Orville MUNSELL, 761693-DI,

during an investigation of the latter for possible CIA employment in 1952.

WISE, according to MUNSELL's landlady and social acquaintance in Washington,

D.C. during the period of about a year which ended in April 1952, was the

only person she knew by name with whon MUNsIft was friendly. According

to the informant, WISE was a student at Columbia University whose adäress

was 423 Furnald Fall. MUNSELL was Security disapproved for CIA employment

in June 1952 because of his close association on a professional anâ social

basis, while attending Denver University from 1946 to 1951, with persons

of questionable loyality. In Novenber 1954, MUNSHII was of interest to

project FJALIVE with reference to assignment to Dhahran, Saudi Arabia;

however, the interested office withdrew their request on him, after

Security advised of the derogatory information regarding him.

9. WISE from 1951 to 1954 attended Scarsdale High School in Scarsdale,

New York, which was attacked by a Citizen's Group, which alleged Comminist

influence in the school systen.

He had several questionable associates in

addition to MUNSELI.

M. D. Stevens

CEOS 1

C2:..6067 890

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