Born in Chicago, Ruby operated nightclubs in Texas. On November 24, , two days after President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Ruby shot and mortally wounded Oswald in Dallas Police Headquarters and was immediately arrested. The shooting happened on live television. Ruby was convicted and sentenced to death; this was overturned on appeal, and he was granted a new trial, but Ruby fell ill, was diagnosed with cancer , and died of a pulmonary embolism on January 3, In , the Warren Commission concluded that Ruby acted alone in killing Oswald, that Ruby shot Oswald on impulse and in retaliation for the Kennedy assassination.
The commission's findings have been supported by some writers but also challenged by various critics who hypothesize that Ruby was part of a conspiracy surrounding the Kennedy assassination. Ruby was the fifth of his parents' 10 surviving children.
While he was growing up, his parents were often violent towards each other and frequently separated; Ruby's mother was eventually committed to a mental hospital. His troubled childhood and adolescence were marked by juvenile delinquency with time being spent in foster homes. He was arrested at the age of 11 for truancy. Ruby eventually skipped school so often that he had to spend time at the Institute for Juvenile Research.
He sold horse-racing tip sheets and various novelties, then acted as a business agent for a local refuse collectors union that later became part of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters IBT. From his early childhood, Ruby was nicknamed "Sparky" by those who knew him. In the s, Ruby frequented race tracks in Illinois and California. He was drafted in and served in the U. He had an honorable record and was promoted to Private First Class. Upon discharge, in , Ruby returned to Chicago.
In , Ruby moved to Dallas , purportedly because of the failure of merchandise deals in Chicago and to help operate his sister's nightclub. The stated reason for the name change was that the name "Rubenstein" was too long and that he was "well known" as Jack Ruby. He developed close ties to many Dallas police officers who frequented his nightclubs, where he provided them with free liquor, prostitutes, and other favors. Ruby never married and had no children. Warren Commission lawyer, Burt Griffin, later told author Gerald Posner : "I'm not sure if Senator was honest with us about his relationship with Ruby.
