NMT Case 1

Summary

The Medical Case, U.S.A. vs. Karl Brandt, et al. (also known as the Doctors' Trial), was prosecuted in 1946-47 against twenty-three doctors and administrators accused of organizing and participating in war crimes and crimes against humanity in the form of medical experiments and medical procedures inflicted on prisoners and civilians.

Karl Brandt, the lead defendant, was the senior medical official of the German government during World War II; other defendants included senior doctors and administrators in the armed forces and SS. They were indicted on four counts: 1. conspiracy to commit war crimes and crimes against humanity; 2. war crimes (i.e., crimes against persons protected by the laws of war, such as prisoners of war); 3. crimes against humanity (including persons not protected by the laws of war); and 4. membership in a criminal organization (the SS).

The specific crimes charged included more than twelve series of medical experiments concerning the effects of and treatments for high altitude conditions, freezing, malaria, poison gas, sulfanilamide, bone, muscle, and nerve regeneration, bone transplantation, saltwater consumption, epidemic jaundice, sterilization, typhus, poisons, and incendiary bombs.

These experiments were conducted on concentration camp inmates. Other crimes involved the killing of Jews for anatomical research, the killing of tubercular Poles, and the euthanasia of sick and disabled civilians in Germany and occupied territories. The defendants were charged with ordering, supervising, or coordinating criminal activities, as well as participating in them directly. The fourth count concerned membership in the SS (Schuttzstaffeln) of the Nazi regime.

Karl Brandt and six other defendants were convicted, sentenced to death, and executed; nine defendants were convicted and sentenced to terms in prison; and seven defendants were acquitted.

The material presented in this project includes case file documents (the briefs and document books created and used in the course of the trial), evidence file documents (the evidentiary documents from which the prosecution, and occasionally the defendants, derived their exhibits), and the trial transcript.

The trial documents and evidence file documents related to Case 1 amount to approximately 2800 documents and 13,000 pages of material.

Indictments

(25 Oct. 1946)

Four counts:

1. Conspiracy to commit war crimes against humanity: The ordering, planning, and organization of the war crimes and crimes against humanity charged in counts two and three. Charged against all of the defendants. The tribunal decided not to convict on this charge.
2. War crimes: Charged against all defendants. 15 guilty, 8 acquitted.
3. Crimes against humanity: Charged against all defendants. 15 guilty, 8 acquitted.
4. Membership in a criminal organization:  Membership in the SS. Charged against K. Brandt, Genzken, Gebhardt, R. Brandt, Mrugowsky, Poppendick, Sievers, Brack, Hoven, and Fischer. All found guilty.

Experiments and other "medical" crimes itemized in counts 2 and 3:

1. High-altitude experiments. March - August 1942. Conducted for the German air force to investigate the effect of high-altitude flying; experiments were conducted at the Dachau camp using a low-pressure chamber. Charged against Becker-Freyseng, K. Brandt, R. Brandt, Gebhardt, Handloser, Mrugowsky, Poppendick, Romberg, Ruff, Schroeder, Sievers, and Weltz. Charges against K. Brandt, Handloser, Mrugowsky, and Poppendick were withdrawn. R. Brandt and Sievers were convicted.
2. Freezing experiments. August 1942 - May 1943. Conducted primarily for the German air force to investigate treatments for persons who had been severely chilled, using prisoners at the Dachau camp. Charged against Becker-Freyseng, K. Brandt, R. Brandt, Gebhardt, Handloser, Mrugowsky, Poppendick, Schroeder, Sievers, and Weltz. Becker-Freyseng, K. Brandt, Gebhardt, Mrugowsky, Poppendick, and Weltz were acquitted; R. Brandt, Handloser, Schroeder, and Sievers were convicted.
3. Malaria experiments. February 1942 - April 1945. Conducted to test immunization for and treatment of malaria; experiments were conducted on more than 1000 prisoners at Dachau. Charged against Blome, K. Brandt, R. Brandt, Gebhardt, Handloser, Mrugowsky, Poppendick, Rostock, and Sievers. (Evidence was also presented against Rose, but no judgment was reached.) No judgment was made concerning Mrugowsky. Blome, K. Brandt, R. Brandt, Gebhardt, Handloser, Poppendick, and Rostock were acquitted; Sievers was convicted.
4. Mustard ("lost") gas experiments. September 1939 - April 1945. Conducted for the benefit of the German armed forces to investigate treatment of injuries caused by Lost (mustard) gas; experiments were conducted at Sachsenhausen, Natzweiler, and other camps. Charged against Blome, K. Brandt, R. Brandt, Gebhardt, Handloser, Rostock, and Sievers. Blome, Gebhardt, Handloser, and Rostock were acquitted; K. Brandt, R. Brandt, and Sievers were convicted.
5. Sulfanilamide experiments. July 1942 - September 1943. Conducted for the benefit of the German armed forces to test the effectiveness of sulfanilamide and other drugs as treatments for infected wounds; experiments were conducted at Ravensbrueck. Charged against Becker-Freyseng, Blome, K. Brandt, R. Brandt, Fischer, Gebhardt, Genzken, Handloser, Mrugowsky, Oberheuser, Poppendick, Rostock, and Schroeder. Charges against Becker-Freyseng, Blome, and Schroeder were withdrawn. No judgment was reached concerning R. Brandt. Genzken, Poppendick, and Rostock were acquitted; K. Brandt, Fischer, Gebhardt, Handloser, Mrugowsky, and Oberheuser were convicted.
6. Bone, muscle, and nerve regeneration, and bone transplant experiments. September 1942 - December 1943. Conducted for benefit of German armed forces, using Polish inmates at the Ravensbrueck camp. Charged against K. Brandt, R. Brandt, Fischer, Gebhardt, Handloser, Oberheuser, and Rostock. Charge against R. Brandt withdrawn. K. Brandt, Handloser, and Rostock were acquitted; Fischer, Gebhardt, and Oberheuser were convicted.
7. Seawater experiments. July - September 1944. Conducted for the German air force and navy to test methods of making seawater drinkable; experiments were conducted at Dachau. Charged against Becker-Freyseng, Beiglboeck, K. Brandt, R. Brandt, Gebhardt, Handloser, Mrugowsky, Poppendick, Rostock, Schaefer, Schroeder, and Sievers. The charge against Mrugowsky was withdrawn. K. Brandt, R. Brandt, Handloser, Poppendick, Rostock, and Schaefer were acquitted; Becker-Freyseng, Beiglboeck, Gebhardt, Schroeder, and Sievers were convicted.
8. Epidemic jaundice experiments. June 1943 - January 1945. Conducted for the benefit of the German armed forces to investigate causes of and inoculations against epidemic jaundice; experiments were conducted on Polish prisoners at Sachsenhausen and Natzweiler camps. Charged against Becker-Freyseng, K. Brandt, R. Brandt, Gebhardt, Handloser, Mrugowsky, Poppendick, Rose, Rostock, Schroeder, and Sievers. Charges against Becker-Freyseng, Rose, and Sievers were withdrawn. R. Brandt, Gebhardt, Handloser, Mrugowsky, Poppendick, Rostock, and Schroeder were acquitted; K. Brandt was convicted.
9. Typhus ("spotted fever") and other vaccine experiments. December 1941 - February 1945. Conducted for the benefit of the German armed forces to test the effectiveness of vaccines against typhus, smallpox, cholera, and other diseases; experiments were conducted at Buchenwald and Natzweiler. Charged against Becker-Freyseng, K. Brandt, R. Brandt, Gebhardt, Genzken, Handloser, Hoven, Mrugowsky, Poppendick, Rose, Rostock, Schroeder, and Sievers. Becker-Freyseng, K. Brandt, Gebhardt, Poppendick, and Rostock were acquitted; R. Brandt, Genzken, Handloser, Hoven, Mrugowsky, Rose, Schroeder, and Sievers were convicted.
10. Poison experiments. December 1943 and September - October 1944. Conducted to investigate the effect of various poisons, including poison in food and poisoned bullets; experiments were conducted at Buchenwald (food) and Sachsenhausen (bullets). Charged against Gebhardt, Genzken, Mrugowsky, and Poppendick. Gebhardt, Genzken, and Poppendick were acquitted; Mrugowsky was convicted.
11. Incendiary bomb experiments. November 1943 - January 1944. Conducted to test pharmaceutical treatments for phosphorus burns; experiments were conducted at Buchenwald, involving the infliction of burns by materials from incendiary bombs. Charged against Gebhardt, Genzken, Mrugowsky, and Poppendick. All were acquitted.
12. Sterilization experiments. March 1941 - January 1945. Conducted to develop methods of rapid, large scale sterilization in order to ensure the eventual elimination of "enemy" populations while keeping captive workers as a labor force during the war. Experiments were planned and/or conducted at Auschwitz, Ravensbrueck, and elsewhere employing drugs, x-rays, and surgery. Charged against Brack, K. Brandt, R. Brandt, Gebhardt, Mrugowsky, Oberheuser, Pokorny, and Poppendick. The charges against Mrugowsky and Oberheuser were withdrawn. K. Brandt, Pokorny, and Poppendick were acquitted; Brack, R. Brandt, and Gebhardt were convicted.
13. Skeleton collection. June 1943 - September 1944. Conducted to complete a skeleton collection for an anatomical research project at the Reich University of Strasbourg; one hundred twelve Jews at Auschwitz were killed for the purpose. Charged against R. Brandt and Sievers; both were convicted.
14. Tubercular Polish nationals. May 1942 - January 1944. Polish nationals alleged to have incurable tuberculosis were imprisoned or killed on the pretext of protecting the health of Germans in Poland. Charged against Blome and R. Brandt; both were acquitted.
15. Euthanasia. September 1939 - April 1945. Involved the secret killing of the aged, insane, incurably ill, deformed children, and others, beginning at asylums in Germany and later in the camps and occupied territories. Charged against Blome, Brack, K. Brandt, and Hoven. Blome was acquitted; Brack, K. Brandt, and Hoven were convicted.

Other charges:

16. Phenol (gas oedema) experiments. 1942 - 1944. Conducted to investigate whether levels of phenol in gas oedema serum caused fatalities among wounded soldiers; experiments were conducted on prisoners at Buchenwald. Charged against Handloser, Hoven, and Mrugowsky. Handloser was acquitted; Hoven and Mrugowsky were convicted.
17. Phlegmon experiments. 1942. Conducted to test treatments for sepsis and related diseases, in coordination with sulfanilamide experiments at Ravensbrueck; experiments were conducted at Dachau and Auschwitz. Charged against Fischer, Oberheuser, and Poppendick; all were acquitted.
18. Polygal experiments. 1943 - 1944. Conducted to test the effectiveness of polygal, a blood coagulant, for the treatment of wounds. Charged against Blome, Handloser, Poppendick, and Sievers. Blome, Handloser, and Poppendick were acquitted; Sievers was convicted.
19. Planning, organization, and administration (of 1-15 above)
20. Conspiracy: Count 1.
21. Membership: Count 4.

List of 1-15 taken from Indictment in Trials of War Criminals; 16-18 charged during trial although not specified in indictment.

Persons Involved in the Medical Case

Defendants

(With counts charged and verdicts.)

Becker-Freyseng, Hermann (Medical Inspectorate, Luftwaffe; counts 1, 2, 3; guilty, 20 year prison term)
Beiglboeck, Wilhelm (Dr., Luftwaffe Medical Service; counts 1, 2, 3; guilty, 15 year prison tem)
Blome, Kurt (Dr., Office for Public Health; Reich Research Council; counts 1, 2, 3; acquitted)
Brack, Viktor (Oberdienstleiter, Chancellery; counts 1, 2, 3, 4; guilty, executed 1948)
Brandt, Karl (Dr., Commissioner for Public Health; Waffen-SS; counts 1, 2, 3, 4; guilty, executed 1948)
Brandt, Rudolf (SS Obersturmbannfuehrer, Himmler’s personal staff; counts 1, 2, 3, 4; guilty, executed 1948)
Fischer, Fritz (Dr., assistant to Karl Gebhardt; counts 1, 2, 3, 4; guilty, life in prison)
Gebhardt, Karl (Prof. Dr.; officer in SS and Waffen-SS; counts 1, 2, 3, 4; guilty, executed 1948)
Genzken, Karl (Dr. surgeon-general, Waffen SS; counts 1, 2, 3, 4; guilty, life in prison)
Handloser, Siegfried (Prof. Dr., Chief of Armed Forces Medical Service; counts 1, 2, 3; guilty, life in prison)
Hoven, Waldemar (Dr., physician at Buchenwald; Waffen SS; counts 1, 2, 3, 4; guilty, executed 1948)
Mrugowsky, Joachim (Dr., Chief of Hygiene Institute, Waffen SS; counts 1, 2, 3, 4; guilty, executed 1948)
Oberheuser, Herta (Dr., assistant to Karl Gebhardt; counts 1, 2, 3; guilty, 20 year prison term)
Pokorny, Adolf (Dr.; counts 1, 2, 3; acquitted)
Poppendick, Helmut (Dr., Race and Settlement Office; SS officer; counts 1, 2, 3, 4; guilty, 10 year prison term)
Romberg, Hans (Dr., Institute for Aviation Medicine at DVL; counts 1, 2, 3; acquitted)
Rose, Gerhard (Prof. Dr., Robert Koch Institute; Luftwaffe Medical Service; counts 1, 2, 3; guilty, life in prison)
Rostock, Paul (Prof., Office for Medical Science and Research; counts 1, 2, 3; acquitted)
Ruff, Siegfried (Dr., Institute for Aviation Medicine at DVL; counts 1, 2, 3; acquitted)
Schaefer, Konrad (Dr., Schering AG; Institute for Aviation Medicine; counts 1, 2, 3; acquitted)
Schroeder, Oskar (Dr., Luftwaffe Medical Service; counts 1, 2, 3; guilty, life in prison)
Sievers, Wolfram Wolfram (Ahnenerbe Society; Reich Research Council; counts 1, 2, 3, 4; guilty, executed 1948)
Weltz, Georg (Dr., Institute for Aviation Medicine; counts 1, 2, 3; acquitted)

Defense Counsel

Bergler, Dr. Erich (for Sievers)
Boehm, Dr. Georg (for Poppendick)
Brenner, Dr. Alfred (for Genzken)
Dehner, Dr. Walter (for Becker-Freyseng and Schroeder)
Duerr, Dr. Helmut (for Poppendick)
Flemming, Dr. Fritz (for Mrugowsky)
Fritz, Dr. Hans (for Rose)
Froeschmann, Dr. Georg (for Brack)
Gawlik, Dr. Hans (for Hoven)
Gierl, Dr. Georg (for Fischer, Gebhardt, and Oberheuser)
Hoffmann, Dr. Karl (for Pokorny)
Kauffmann, Dr. Kurt (for R. Brandt)
Klinnert, Dr. Gerhard (for Hoven)
Marx, Dr. Hans (for Becker-Freyseng and Schroeder)
Merkel, Dr. Rudolf (for Genzken)
Nelte, Dr. Otto (for Handloser)
Pelckmann, Dr. Horst (for Schaefer)
Pribilla, Dr. Hans (for Rostock)
Sauter, Dr. Fritz (for Blome and Ruff)
Schmidt, Dr. Rudolf (for K. Brandt)
Seidl, Dr. Alfred (for Fischer, Gebhardt, and Oberheuser)
Seraphim, Dr. H. (for Pokorny)
Servatius, Dr. Robert (for K. Brandt)
Steinbauer, Dr. Gustav (for Beiglboeck)
Vorwerk, Dr. Bernd (for Romberg)
Weissgerber, Dr. Josef (for Sievers)
Wille, Dr. Siegfried (for Weltz)

Prosecution Counsel

Taylor, Telford (Chief of Counsel for War Crimes for all NMT trials)
McHaney, James (Chief Prosecutor for Case 1)
Hardy, Alexander (Associate Counsel)
Horlik-Hochwald, Arnost (Associate Counsel)
Brown, Glen (Assistant Counsel)
Johnson, Esther (Assistant Counsel)
Robbins, Jack (Assistant Counsel)
Shiller, Daniel (Assistant Counsel)

Judges

Beals, Walter, Presiding Judge (Chief Justice of Supreme Court of State of Washington)
Crawford, Johnson, Member (former District Court Judge, Oklahoma)
Sebring, Harold, Member (Associate Justice of Supreme Court of Florida)
Swearingen, Victor, Alternate Member (former Special Assistant to U.S. Attorney General)

Other Persons and Organizations Often Mentioned in the Trial

Gluecks, Richard: SS administrator in charge of concentration camp system.
Grawitz, Dr. Ernst: Chief physician of the SS.
Himmler, Heinrich: Chief of the SS; ultimate sponsor of the medical experiments.
Rascher, Dr. Sigmund: Conducted high-altitude experiments at Dachau.

Ahnenerbe ("ancestral heritage") Society: Office in SS, conducted quasi-scientific studies.
SS (Schutzstaffel): Security force in Nazi party; then police and security authority in Germany; controlled concentration camps and other coercive programs.

Witnesses

Eighty-four witnesses testified at the trial. They are listed, with dates and trial transcript references, in the table of contents of the transcript portion of this project and in the published trial report, Trials of War Criminals, vol. 2, pp. 332-35.

Detailed Chronology