Special Courts were set up to try political offenders. These Courts had judges specially appointed from the National Socialist Juristenbund (Association of Jurists), but this was not enough, since persons convicted by these Courts could get off on an appeal to other Courts.

On the 2nd May 1934, Hitler had the "Peoples' Courts" set up to try anyone "suspected of a treasonable act against the Reich". These courts had the sole right to try treasonable cases, and once convicted, an accused person had no right of appeal.

The People's Court was also to be the Reich's Supreme Criminal Court. It could only issue a guilty or not guilty verdict. If guilty, the sentence was death by hanging, although the guillotine was often used. Death sentences were carried out within hours of the verdict. If found not guilty (which was usually because of a lack of evidence), the discharged offender was likely to be re-arrested by the Gestapo, and then held in custody until they DID get the evidence, then there would be another trial!

A number of Nazi lawyers had risen to high office after January 1933. One was Hitler's own personal lawyer, Dr. Hans Frank, a member of the Bavarian State Legislature who was later to become the General-Governor in occupied Poland. Another was a close colleague of Frank's, one Dr. Roland Freisler, a former WW1 Army Lieutenant, and one-time Communist Party sympathiser and turn-coat who had joined the Nazi Party, and who had in 1933, been appointed as the State Secretary of the Reich Ministry of Justice.

The Peoples' Courts system was Freisler's chance to climb the ladder of success.

Hitler had appointed Freisler to be the Chief Judge of this new Court system, and, after handing his former position over to Curt Rothenburger, he took up his position as the Chief of 257 Peoples' Courts judges, who were also prepared to do Hitler's bidding. Among these were Engert, Barnickel, Lautz, Neblung, Joel, Alstötter, Cuhorst and Huppenkothen.

Hitler had appointed Freisler to the position despite public comments of the Gauleiter for Heesen-Nassau-Nord, Karl Weinrich, had said of Freisler on the 16th April 1927, "....he (Freisler) is unsuited for any position of authorrity, since he is too subject to sudden shifts of mood...".

From the beginning, Freisler's court system was to include professional judges and laymen who had to be Nazi Party members. (Jewish lawyers had been banned from German legal practise). The laymen had also to include members of the SD (SS Security Police) and Wehrmacht. All sessions had to be held in camera, and procedures were clearly designed to put the fear of death into anyone, military or civilian, should they harbor any treasonable thoughts!

Most of the cases handled by the Peoples' Courts went virtually unoticed in the pre-war years, mainly because of the fear of any unfavorable comments a person might make and thereby running the risk of a one-way ticket to a KZ!

Freisler had travelled to Munich on 20th February 1943, to sit in judgement on Hans & Sophie Scholl, who had been arrested for having been reported by the caretaker at Munich University for distributing anti-Hitler leaflets. Hans, 25, was on leave from the Army, and Sophie, 21, was a student at the Uni. The Gestapo had established that both were members of the "White Rose" group, an anti-Nazi organisation. The Court found them guilty of a traitorous act and sentenced them both to death. They were both guillotined within hours of the verdict!

As late as mid 1942, some judges and prosecutors in Courts other than the Peoples' Courts, were still thwarting Hitler's proposed legal changes by still upholding pre-1933 laws, and in particular, the pre-1938 Nuremburg Laws, and what was known as the "Judicial Crisis" developed, causing Hitler to make an address to the Reichstag, to a specially convened meeting on 26th April 1943, at which he mainly spoke about the progress of the war.

Then he talked about the 1942 judges crisis, and put a proposal to the members, asking them to give him "specific confirmation" of his authority to dismiss any judge, and to reform the judicial system without regard to existing laws and codes. The Reichstag members simply "rubber-stamped" his request! This strengthened the powers of Freisler's Court system. His moment of glory came with the attempt on Hitler's life on July 20th 1944.

Hitler ordered Freisler and his colleagues to deal with the plotters mercilessly. As early as the 7th August 1944, Freisler was ready to show just how ruthless he could be. He had the accused paraded in front of him in the People's Courtroom of the Berlin Kammergericht, deliberately dressed in rags, unwashed, unshaven, without braces and belts, and without their false teeth which added to their humiliation by making them appear undignified.

Many of these accused men and women had been the cream of German society. There were Field Marshals, Generals, learned professionals and other highly decorated officers. People of education, culture and of high standing within the community were belittled before him. TAs alreadt said they were deliberately made to appear like "worthless individuals" and looked like scarecrows after having been beaten and tortured with the utmost brutality.

The accused had been shackled day and night and fed just enough so that they could withstand constant interrogation. They had been forbidden to send or to receive letters. In many cases their nearest and dearest were also arrested by the Gestapo and their property confiscated by the State.

Many had been imprisoned in the heavily fortified Floßenburg KZ, and bussed to Berlin for their Court appearances.

The military officers had first been dragged before a "Military Court of Honor", pesided over by none other than Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt, and then expelled from the military simply on the evidence of the Gestapo officer present, and without any defence argument permitted!

These treason trials continued until the last days of the war, but Freisler had got his just deserts when on the morning of 2nd February 1945, during a 1000 US bomber (B17) raid on Berlin, a bomb went straight through the roof of Freisler's Court* in which he was presiding. A heavy wooden beam fell on him crushing his skull.

* Located in the imposing Kammergericht (Chamber Courts of Justice), on the western edge of the Kleistpark, near the U-Bahn station. It was used by the Allied Control Council for their sittings from 1945 to 1990. The Berlin Constitutional Court now uses part of the building.

(To get there: Catch U-Bahn and walk up Pottsdammer Straße).

By this time however, Freisler and his colleagues had tried and sentenced nearly five thousand men and women to death for acts of treason. Many of these people had no direct involvement in the attempt on Hitler's life.

1800 individuals had been executed in Berlin's Plötzensee Prison on the Hüttig-Pfad, including 89 of those accused of direct involvement in the July 20th plot.

All had been executed within hours of sentencing. The room where the sentences were carried out is now a memorial called the "Gedenkstatte Plötzensee", and is now part of an institution for young offenders. (To
visit catch bus number 23, 65 or 89 from Central Berlin, or, catch the U9 train to the Hansaplatz and then bus 123 direct to the Plötzensee stop.This bus goes over the River Spree-up Levvetzowstrasße, along Beusselstraße, over the canal and Seestraße. The memorial is on the left. When the new S-Bahn is finished construction-go direct to Beusselstrasse.Pick up English language brochure on way in for free.
Admission also free.Open daily 0830-1800 hours.

Soon after the war, Freisler's wife Marion, allowed her husbands body to be buried in her family grave, Russegger, in Berlin's Dahlem Cemetery, provided that his name was not inscribed on the headstone. It's still there today!

NOTES:

1. After his death, Freisler was replaced by Dr. Kröhne as the Chief Judge.

2. Notwithstanding the low depths to which the Wehrmacht had been made to sink by the actions of the "Military Court of Honor" mentioned above, Colonel-General Jodl proposed to Hitler that the Wehrmacht from then on be made to give the Hitler salute in place of the normal military salute., as the SS had done from the beginning. Hitler approved and it was made compulsory. From then on it was made a Courts Martial offence not to use this form of salute. At the end of the war Allied officers were greeted with both forms of the salute by surrendering German troops.

3. A trial was held in Nuremburg between 4th January & 4th December 1947, which was known as the "United States versus Josef Altsötter, et al Justice Case". (In German- Prozeß gegen Justizbeamte-Prozeß), Case No.3. In it, 16 defendents were charged with war crimes & crimes against humanity through the abuse of the judicial process and the administration of justice. Four defendents were acquitted, two were released through a lack of evidence, and the other ten were sentenced as follows:

Franz Schlegelberger - Life Imprisonment. Later paroled on medical
grounds.
Herbert Klemm - " " " reduced to 20 years.
Curt Rothenburger - 7 years " Without parole.
Ernst Lautz - 10 " "
Wolfgang Mettenberg - 10 " "
Wilhelm von Ammon - 10 " "
Günther Joel - 10 " "
Oswald Rothaug - Life Imprisonment. Later reduced to 20 years.
Rudolf Öschey - " " " " " " "
Josef Altstötter - 5 years " Without parole.

See pictures of Plotzensee Prison.

PEOPLES'S COURT JUSTICE IN BERLIN IN JULY 1942.
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Near the Lustgarten in Berlin, which had for many decades been the parade ground for the reviewing of Germany's armies, stands the Berliner Dom cathederal, with its ornate ecclesiactical facade which, since 1905, has dominated the eastern side of the square. There stands a small cube of stone, which is a memorial to Herbert Baum and his friends who were mainly Jewish Communists.

On 18th May 1942, they had set fire to an exhibition entitled "The Soviet Paradise", which had been erected in the Lustgarten by the Propaganda Ministry at the direction of its head, Berlin Gauleiter Joseph Goebels.

Goebels had ordered the arrest of Baum and his friends soon after the fire had quickly been put out. The Gestapo arrested 12 women and five men, and charged them with arson.

All were brought before the People's Court, presided over by Roland Freisler. All were sentenced to death, and were beheaded by axe on 18th August.

As a warning to others who may have similar ideas to sabotage future exhibitions, Goebels then ordered that five hundred Berlin Jews be arrested and executed. The 500 were taken to the SS "Liebstandarte" barracks in Berlin-Lichterfelde and from there to the Sachsenhausen KZ, where they were immediately shot.