Read Ebook: Trials of war criminals before the Nuernberg military tribunals under control council law no. 10 volume III by Various

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Moreover the grounds for awarding the punishment are not sufficiently set forth. The verdict must make a clear decision--if the court finds an action punishable, then it has to award the punishment appropriate for this action regardless of whether other courts have, because of incorrect deductions, acquitted the culprit. The idea that the defendant did not have to expect a sentence with certainty because the court rulings, owing to deviating verdicts, were not yet uniform does not justify leniency. The court which is lenient because of one single wrong judgment actually compromises with the defendant. But what she did was a typically Jewish camouflage in her business dealings. It is surprising that people are only gradually realizing this.

TRANSLATION OF DOCUMENT NG-315 PROSECUTION EXHIBIT 82

EXTRACTS FROM ISSUE NO. 3 OF THE JUDGES' LETTERS, 1 DECEMBER 1942, SUMMARIZING TWO CASES AND GIVING IN EACH CASE THE OPINION OF THE REICH MINISTER OF JUSTICE

Judgment of a local court of November 1942

A 19-year-old, so far unpunished clerk, who had worked in a firm of machine tool makers wanted to be employed in a larger enterprise. For this purpose she made herself out a testimonial of her present firm in which she confirmed that she was efficient and able to cope with an "independent leading position." She forged the signature of her chief by tracing it from the signature folder and copying it with ink. This brazen forgery was immediately discovered when the testimonial papers were submitted to the new firm, to which she had been referred by the labor office.

The prosecution sees in the action of the part of B. severe forgery of documents on account of the fact that the forgery was committed for monetary gain. The proposed penalty was 2 months' imprisonment and a fine of 30 reichsmarks.

The local court saw in this offense the given facts as contained in the former paragraph 363 of the Reich Criminal Code which provided imprisonment or a fine up to 150 reichsmarks for forgery of testimonials for the purpose of improvement of one's position. As this ruling, however--this is what it says in the judgment--has been rescinded through the law of 4 September 1941 and has been substituted by the new paragraph 281 of the Reich Criminal Code --which however does not apply in this case as the testimonial is not a document of identification--the court has only to regard the action of B. either as a grave forgery of a document according to paragraphs 267 and 268 of the Reich Criminal Code or "again to apply the provision of paragraph 363 of the Reich Criminal Code despite its having been cancelled and to consider it still in existence in accordance with the sound sentiments of the people and in accordance with the will of the legislator insofar as the provisions of paragraph 281 of the Reich Criminal Code are not complied with." The court assumed the alleged second possibility. "Working on the principle that nowadays the judge is no longer obliged to adhere slavishly to the exact letter of law, the court found the accused guilty of having forged a testimonial according to paragraph 363 of the Reich Criminal Code."

The sentence was 3 weeks' arrest.

On passing sentence the judge remarked that the convicted person may be placed on probation, which was later granted.

Opinion of the Reich Minister of Justice

It is correct that nowadays the judge should no longer have to adhere strictly to the letter of law in a slavish way. This freedom in applying the law should, however, not lead the judge to base judgment on a law, which the legislator has cancelled. Moreover, the manner in which paragraph 363 of the Reich Criminal Code is applied assumes a law which is still in existence. Paragraph 363 of the Reich Criminal Code was cancelled because particularly during the war it was no longer possible to counter all forgeries of certificates generally with the purpose of furthering one's advancement merely by light contravention punishment. The many opportunities of changing one's job frequently these days offer the temptation to facilitate this change of position through such forgeries of testimonials. Such temptation must therefore be countered by a threat of more severe penalty than was provided by the former paragraph 363.

This generally more severe measure applied to such cases does not, however, prevent from justly taking into consideration the particular circumstances of individual cases within the framework of now existing law codes, if the offense as in this instance is really a mild one. The judge sensed correctly that B.'s offense corresponded to the degree of guilt of the former paragraph 363. He could have provided for this also under existing laws.

Decree by the Court of Guardians of 21 September 1940

An 11-year-old girl is conspicuous in school through continuously refusing the German salute. She bases this on her religious convictions and cites in explanation some passages from the Bible. In matters concerning the Fuehrer she appears altogether disinterested.

The parents, who also have a 6-year-old daughter, approve of this behavior of the child and obstinately decline to influence the child to the contrary. They also refuse to give the German salute and point to the passage in the Bible, "Do nothing with an upraised hand for it displeases the Lord." They adhere to this in spite of advice by the court and the director of the school. The mother refuses altogether to discuss it with the child. The father is willing to do so, but says that the child should decide herself. The parents prove themselves to be adversaries of the National Socialist State also in other respects. They possess no swastika flag. They did not enter their child for the Hitler Youth: they were expelled from the National Socialist Public Welfare Association, because they will not support the collections, despite an adequate income of the man. Nevertheless they deny being adversaries of the movement. The juvenile board suggested that the parents should be deprived of the right to bring up the two children on account of their attitude.

The guardianship court refused to carry out this proposal and merely made an order for supervision by a probation officer.

In the explanation, the court stated that it had not been proved that the parents were adversaries of the National Socialist movement or that they really had fought against it; they were merely "not sympathetic to the movement and not willing to promote it."

It was stated furthermore that "the parents are only in so far responsible for their attitude toward the National Socialist movement as they act contrary to the relevant penal laws." The parents must realize that the children must be brought up in the National Socialist spirit and that the schools have instructions to educate them in that spirit. If the parents are not willing to bring up their children in that spirit themselves, or if they believe that their religious views do not allow them to bring up their children in that spirit, the least that must be demanded from them is not to oppose National Socialist education at school. Owing to the fact that the child is well brought up in other respects and that--judging from the court's personal impression--the parents are "of absolutely reliable character," it may be assumed that in future they will not give the school any trouble with respect to education.

The court of appeal rescinded the decision of the guardianship court and deprived the parents of the right to look after their children, as they are not fit to bring them up.

Opinion of the Reich Minister of Justice

The judge at the guardianship court in his decision misunderstood the principles of National Socialist education of youth.

Today, the education of German youth is based on the home, the school, and the Hitler Youth . They have to cooperate and each of them has to carry out that part of the educational task allotted to him by the community. The aim of this joint work consists in educating the young people in body, in mind, and morally in the National Socialist spirit for service to the nation and for the community.

This aim can be reached only by joint cooperation of the home, the school, and the Hitler Youth. Any opposition to and any deviation from this education endanger the common aim. An essential part of this education as well as a particular responsibility have been laid into the hands of the parents. They are united with the child by ties of blood. The child lives close to them and constantly looks to the habits and the example of the parents. To educate means to guide. To guide means to set an example by your way of life. The child models his way of life on the example of his parents. What the child hears and sees there, especially in early youth, it becomes accustomed to by degrees and accepts it as a rule of life. Therefore, the educational aim of the National Socialist State can only be achieved if the parents, conscientiously and aware of their responsibility, give their child in thought and deed a model example for its behavior in the community life of our nation. To this education of German man or woman belongs also the imparting of respect and awe for the symbols of the State and the movement at an early stage. Here, too, the community expects active cooperation on the part of the parents. A reserved neutral attitude is as harmful as attacking the National Socialist idea. Thus, indifference to the training of a patriotic member of the national community means neglect of duty on the part of the parents and endangers the educational aim for the child, even if this is not immediately apparent in each case. For this reason, it is not enough that in the present case the parents will not oppose the school in the future, they are supposed to cooperate actively in their children's education as a whole. Thus, the responsibility of the parents does not start where its violation becomes punishable. The child is often being endangered if the parents consciously oppose the educational work of the community. That was the case here. Who continues to refuse the German salute on account of erroneous religious beliefs, who separates himself from the great social work of construction of national socialism without any reason, and who purposely withholds his children from the Hitler Youth and never takes advice, of him it can no longer be said that he merely "does not sympathize" with the movement and does not promote it. He attacks it by his opposition and is its adversary. This is proved by his convictions and by his inner attitude.

Thus, the judge of the guardianship court ought to have deprived them of the right to look after their children simply by consideration of the fact that parents, who openly profess the ideas of the "Jehovah's Witnesses," are not fit to educate their children in the spirit of national socialism.

TRANSLATION OF DOCUMENT NG-498 PROSECUTION EXHIBIT 93

LETTER FROM THIERACK TO PRESIDENTS OF VARIOUS DISTRICT COURTS OF APPEAL, 17 NOVEMBER 1942, CONCERNING MANNER OF ACQUAINTING JUDGES AND PROSECUTORS IN ALSACE, LORRAINE, AND LUXEMBOURG WITH THE JUDGES' LETTERS

The Reich Minister of Justice m Rb./34/42

Berlin W 8 17 November 1942 Wilhelmstrasse 65 Tel. 110044 Long distance: 116516

To the Presidents of the District Courts of Appeal and the Attorneys General in Karlsruhe, Cologne, and Zweibruecken

Subject: Judges' Letters.

May I ask you to make it a habit to give the judges and prosecutors in Alsace, Lorraine, and Luxembourg, too, an opportunity to acquaint themselves with the Judges' Letters. In cases where judges and prosecutors are suspected of political unreliability, they are to be excluded in a suitable manner from the list of subscribers to the Judges' Letters.

DR. THIERACK Certified:

BEITZ Clerk

Reich Ministry of Justice

PARTIAL TRANSLATION OF KLEMM DOCUMENT 33 KLEMM DEFENSE EXHIBIT 33

ANNOUNCEMENT OF MARTIN BORMANN, PARTY CHANCELLERY CHIEF, 2 DECEMBER 1942, REQUESTING GAULEITER TO INFORM THE PARTY CHANCELLERY OF THEIR OPINIONS ON THE JUDGES' LETTERS AND OF GOOD AND BAD VERDICTS

p. 377 ff. Judges' Letters

R. 187/42 2 December 1942

Party Comrade Dr. Thierack, in his capacity as Reich Minister of Justice, appeals to all German judges and public prosecutors, by way of confidential Judges' Letters, to bring German justice in line particularly with the political exigencies of justice. I will see to it that the Judges' Letters are passed on to the Gauleiter, and I request them to give their opinions, where necessary, on all proposals and suggestions made by the Reich Minister of Justice in these Judges' Letters.

Furthermore, I request the Gauleiter to inform the Party Chancellery of good and bad verdicts, as far as they come to their knowledge, and as far as they may be used in the Judges' Letters. We will then discuss the relevant parts with the Reich Minister of Justice.

TRANSLATION OF DOCUMENT NG-676 PROSECUTION EXHIBIT 178

LETTER FROM DEFENDANT KLEMM TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE STUTTGART COURT OF APPEAL, 5 JULY 1944, STATING SENTENCES IN THAT AREA WERE TOO LENIENT, PARTICULARLY IN CASES IN WHICH DEFENDANT CUHORST PRESIDED

COPY

To the President of the District Court of Appeal and to the Attorney General in Stuttgart

Subject: Practice of the District Court of Appeal Stuttgart in cases of defeatism

For some time now the practice of the criminal senate of the District Court of Appeal Stuttgart has given me cause for grave thoughts with regard to matters of defeatism. In the majority of cases the sentences are considerably too mild, they do not sufficiently bear in mind the thought of the protection of the people which must govern the punishment of defeatism, and are in an incompatible disproportion to the sentences which are in similar cases passed by the People's Court and by other district courts of appeal. I would refer especially to the following sentences which lately attracted my attention:

The defendant is an old active Communist who apparently remained an activist also after the assumption of power and who has not given up his former opinions. His age and the illness, to which you refer in your statement of 17 May 1944, did not prevent him again to make malicious Communistic oral propaganda at an especially dangerous time. I must, in these circumstances, consider the sentence passed of 2 years' penal servitude, as being much too mild. I have therefore directed this case also to the Reich Chief Prosecutor at the People's Court.

The foul defeatist statements made to the French civilian worker were dangerous to such a degree that even the mentally deficient defendant must have known about the consequences, and they show a frightening measure of lack of national dignity. The sentence passed of 2 years' penal servitude must in these circumstances be described as inadequate.

The reasons aggravating the punishment which were appropriately stated in the sentence should have resulted in sentencing the defendant, an old Marxist, to a considerably higher sentence than 3 years' penal servitude.

The defendant spoke in an especially critical period, in favor of a capitulation after the Italian example. I cannot accept the sentence of 1 year's prison term as a sufficient punishment.

The sentence passed of 1 year's prison term is not in proportion with the particularly dangerous remarks made, even taking into account the mitigating reasons of the personality of the defendant.

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