Doctor's Trial: Case One
The Indictment that was presented in Case Number One of the Nuremberg Trials exposes the horrors of the scientific experiments and the men who were behind it all. The disintegration of government and the dishonesty of lawful leaders completely demoralized Germany and left the nation in ruins. The purpose of this case was intended for society to acknowledge that barbaric criminalized atrocities were inflicted upon millions of innocent civilians, and to assure that these crimes will not destroy civil societal norms. The indictment charged twenty-three eminent physicians for conspiracy and a common design to eliminate mass populations from society by using their scientific knowledge to manipulate civil medical experiments into Nazi pseudo-science. These doctors were government trusted, educated leaders who took advantage of their powers and carried out crimes against humanity by willingly and knowingly participating in euthanasia programs and performing scientific experiments on those who were deemed as “unworthy of life” without their consent. This trial was able to give historians a broader definition about the holocaust during post World War 2 Germany. In order to understand these groups of doctors and what constituted crimes against humanity; Brig. Telford Taylor’s indictment on the Nuremberg Trials offers insight into who these physicians were, the importance of the scientific experiments performed, and how these actions were influenced by political corruption.
Humanity is the quality of being human and treating others with equal compassion, dignity and respect. Although it is not written in the Indictment, this was the first time in history that a group of eminent men, who were deemed as trustworthy, were held accountable for acts so wicked that the law “crime against humanity” had never formerly been a codified law until now. Through careful examination of the text, one would be able to conclude that according to the doctors high ranking position held in their profession and in the SS group, the assumption that these men were well aware of the dangers these scientific experiments were capable of producing reveals that their intentions were for mass exterminations that were strategically organized and meticulously planned out. In this indictment, one can see that these “experiments” were an act of unnecessary evilness that did not contribute to any medical innovations but solely resulted in deaths. These groups of doctors willingly and knowingly formed a common design to create euthanasia programs, which was a direct against core humanity values, and their participation in such programs distinguished them from all civilized humans (Luban). What constitutes a crime against humanity, according to Mr. Taylor, is an act that is universally vile and strips a whole population from everything that was once humanness. These systematic euthanasia programs were targeted not only at the “aged, insane, incurably ill, of deformed children, and other persons, by gas, lethal injections” (NMT), but as well as nationals of German-occupied countries. Mr. Taylor wants to assure that these crimes are noticed all throughout humanity in hopes for preventing anything similar to this ever reoccurring throughout history. The brief expository information on the physicians gives historian’s insight into the mindset of these doctors and their roles in society. For example, Karl Brandt, as the head medical authority in the Reich, was Hitler’s personal physician and a major general in the SS-Gruppenfuhrer, amongst him were several other elite doctors who graduated from the top most notable medical schools. Meanwhile, other doctors such as Blome solely decided to become a doctor because he wanted to be a “master over life and death” (Luban). This tells the court that the entire science agency was composed of callous leaders who took advantage of defenseless victims. Taking these eminent doctors and placing them into a larger context tells us that these actions were a result of Nazi Regime influence. The doctor’s were only pursuing the German way of life, and following the Nazi philosophy, that individuals were worthless in comparison to the nations needs (Taylor).
These doctors manipulated the system by using their knowledge for harm instead of good. They used their powers to form a common design for “thanatology” which was known as the science of producing death. From the organized list of experiments presented in the indictment, one can foresee that these experiments such as injecting victims with incurable tuberculosis can be assumed that no good was going to come out of it. By comparing the doctor’s areas of expertise to the scientific experiments, it is clear that much time and organization had been placed into the assessment of who would be assigned to design which task. These experiments were of importance during the holocaust because it showed a collaborative effort by “willfully, and knowingly targeting German civilians and nationals of other countries” (NMT). The fact that these experiments were also used internationally is what classifies this as a crime against humanity, “international crimes committed by politically organized groups acting under color of policy, consisting of the most severe and abominable acts of violence and persecution” (Luban). In the indictment, these doctors did not discriminate against individual characteristics but against group membership characteristics that affected everyone worldwide. From this document, the Euthanasia program murdered not only domestic civilians, but also eliminated Polish, Jews and other international groups. From the description of the medical experiments, Mr. Taylor reasons that these tests served no purpose towards the medicine field.
During the holocaust, the line between what was considered immoral and moral became a blur and crimes against humanity became nothing more than just murderous crimes. These doctors carried out scientific experiments designed to systematically kill humans in the most torturous ways, “Brandt's role, therefore, was to coordinate the requirements of the military and civilian agencies in the field of medicine and public health” (Taylor). From the information stated in Brandt’s description, it is evident that not only did he have authoritative power over the medical department, but as well as the public and health sectors. The Nazi Regime was able to manipulate Germanys perception of what a civilized society truly meant and convince the people that despite their cruel experiments, their intentions were solely for scientific purposes. The charges these defendants are being accused with show a pattern in the indictment in which all of the physicians “willfully, unlawfully and knowingly were principles in, accessories to, ordered, abetted, took a consenting part in” (NMT). Count Four, the last charge imposed on the defendants, was added to the indictment to show that the entire political government, from which it was based off, was condemned as a criminal organization. The fact that the “Final Solution” was a government policy created by the Nazi regime is what differentiated a crime against humanity versus a war crime and crimes against peace. Since the last count accused the SS group as an illegal organization, the Article 6 of the Medical Case “crimes against humanity” was supported, because it stated that any crime committed “within the jurisdiction of the Tribunal, whether or not in violation of the domestic law of the country where perpetrated” (Taylor), was guilty. The SS-members had superior power over state law and were able to change societal ideologies and manipulate what was assumed to be right from wrong, which was why these doctors did not consider these experiments to be a crime against humanity.
By reading the Medical Case Indictment and closely examining the physicians who participated in the holocaust, the importance of the scientific experiments performed, and how these eminent men were influenced by a government which was condemned as illegal; one can understand what constituted crimes against humanity and who these doctors were when times were so dark in history. In a broader outlook, these atrocities completely demoralized and shattered German traditions and hopes, leaving behind an agony that will be felt infinitely throughout the nation. Doctors who were deemed as loyal, lawful and trustworthy stripped everything that was humane from society. The grand issue in Europe was that, in the eyes of the doctors, these subjected human beings were not even categorized as human beings or possessed any qualities that made them worthy of living. These doctors were neither warlord’s nor held any supreme power in Germany; they were a group of intellectual men who were following the doctrines that Germany once embraced. The United States intervened this Tribunal to rest assure that these beliefs are exterminated from all societies, and act as an example to the world that crimes against humanity have been committed.
Humanity is the quality of being human and treating others with equal compassion, dignity and respect. Although it is not written in the Indictment, this was the first time in history that a group of eminent men, who were deemed as trustworthy, were held accountable for acts so wicked that the law “crime against humanity” had never formerly been a codified law until now. Through careful examination of the text, one would be able to conclude that according to the doctors high ranking position held in their profession and in the SS group, the assumption that these men were well aware of the dangers these scientific experiments were capable of producing reveals that their intentions were for mass exterminations that were strategically organized and meticulously planned out. In this indictment, one can see that these “experiments” were an act of unnecessary evilness that did not contribute to any medical innovations but solely resulted in deaths. These groups of doctors willingly and knowingly formed a common design to create euthanasia programs, which was a direct against core humanity values, and their participation in such programs distinguished them from all civilized humans (Luban). What constitutes a crime against humanity, according to Mr. Taylor, is an act that is universally vile and strips a whole population from everything that was once humanness. These systematic euthanasia programs were targeted not only at the “aged, insane, incurably ill, of deformed children, and other persons, by gas, lethal injections” (NMT), but as well as nationals of German-occupied countries. Mr. Taylor wants to assure that these crimes are noticed all throughout humanity in hopes for preventing anything similar to this ever reoccurring throughout history. The brief expository information on the physicians gives historian’s insight into the mindset of these doctors and their roles in society. For example, Karl Brandt, as the head medical authority in the Reich, was Hitler’s personal physician and a major general in the SS-Gruppenfuhrer, amongst him were several other elite doctors who graduated from the top most notable medical schools. Meanwhile, other doctors such as Blome solely decided to become a doctor because he wanted to be a “master over life and death” (Luban). This tells the court that the entire science agency was composed of callous leaders who took advantage of defenseless victims. Taking these eminent doctors and placing them into a larger context tells us that these actions were a result of Nazi Regime influence. The doctor’s were only pursuing the German way of life, and following the Nazi philosophy, that individuals were worthless in comparison to the nations needs (Taylor).
These doctors manipulated the system by using their knowledge for harm instead of good. They used their powers to form a common design for “thanatology” which was known as the science of producing death. From the organized list of experiments presented in the indictment, one can foresee that these experiments such as injecting victims with incurable tuberculosis can be assumed that no good was going to come out of it. By comparing the doctor’s areas of expertise to the scientific experiments, it is clear that much time and organization had been placed into the assessment of who would be assigned to design which task. These experiments were of importance during the holocaust because it showed a collaborative effort by “willfully, and knowingly targeting German civilians and nationals of other countries” (NMT). The fact that these experiments were also used internationally is what classifies this as a crime against humanity, “international crimes committed by politically organized groups acting under color of policy, consisting of the most severe and abominable acts of violence and persecution” (Luban). In the indictment, these doctors did not discriminate against individual characteristics but against group membership characteristics that affected everyone worldwide. From this document, the Euthanasia program murdered not only domestic civilians, but also eliminated Polish, Jews and other international groups. From the description of the medical experiments, Mr. Taylor reasons that these tests served no purpose towards the medicine field.
During the holocaust, the line between what was considered immoral and moral became a blur and crimes against humanity became nothing more than just murderous crimes. These doctors carried out scientific experiments designed to systematically kill humans in the most torturous ways, “Brandt's role, therefore, was to coordinate the requirements of the military and civilian agencies in the field of medicine and public health” (Taylor). From the information stated in Brandt’s description, it is evident that not only did he have authoritative power over the medical department, but as well as the public and health sectors. The Nazi Regime was able to manipulate Germanys perception of what a civilized society truly meant and convince the people that despite their cruel experiments, their intentions were solely for scientific purposes. The charges these defendants are being accused with show a pattern in the indictment in which all of the physicians “willfully, unlawfully and knowingly were principles in, accessories to, ordered, abetted, took a consenting part in” (NMT). Count Four, the last charge imposed on the defendants, was added to the indictment to show that the entire political government, from which it was based off, was condemned as a criminal organization. The fact that the “Final Solution” was a government policy created by the Nazi regime is what differentiated a crime against humanity versus a war crime and crimes against peace. Since the last count accused the SS group as an illegal organization, the Article 6 of the Medical Case “crimes against humanity” was supported, because it stated that any crime committed “within the jurisdiction of the Tribunal, whether or not in violation of the domestic law of the country where perpetrated” (Taylor), was guilty. The SS-members had superior power over state law and were able to change societal ideologies and manipulate what was assumed to be right from wrong, which was why these doctors did not consider these experiments to be a crime against humanity.
By reading the Medical Case Indictment and closely examining the physicians who participated in the holocaust, the importance of the scientific experiments performed, and how these eminent men were influenced by a government which was condemned as illegal; one can understand what constituted crimes against humanity and who these doctors were when times were so dark in history. In a broader outlook, these atrocities completely demoralized and shattered German traditions and hopes, leaving behind an agony that will be felt infinitely throughout the nation. Doctors who were deemed as loyal, lawful and trustworthy stripped everything that was humane from society. The grand issue in Europe was that, in the eyes of the doctors, these subjected human beings were not even categorized as human beings or possessed any qualities that made them worthy of living. These doctors were neither warlord’s nor held any supreme power in Germany; they were a group of intellectual men who were following the doctrines that Germany once embraced. The United States intervened this Tribunal to rest assure that these beliefs are exterminated from all societies, and act as an example to the world that crimes against humanity have been committed.
Bibliography
Primary Source
NMT 01. Medical Case - USA v. Karl Brandt. 18. Palace of Justice, Nuremberg. 25 Oct. 1946.
Harvard Law School, n.d. Web. <http://nuremberg.law.harvard.edu/php/search.php?
DI=1&FieldFlag=1&PAuthors=336>.
Secondary Source
Luban, David. A Theory of Crimes Against Humanity. Georgetown
University Law Center, Jan. 2010. Web.
Taylor, Telford. "Opening Statement for the United States of America." Georgia Law, 14 Apr.
2014. Web. <http://digitalcommons.law.uga.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&
context=nmt1>.
NMT 01. Medical Case - USA v. Karl Brandt. 18. Palace of Justice, Nuremberg. 25 Oct. 1946.
Harvard Law School, n.d. Web. <http://nuremberg.law.harvard.edu/php/search.php?
DI=1&FieldFlag=1&PAuthors=336>.
Secondary Source
Luban, David. A Theory of Crimes Against Humanity. Georgetown
University Law Center, Jan. 2010. Web.
Taylor, Telford. "Opening Statement for the United States of America." Georgia Law, 14 Apr.
2014. Web. <http://digitalcommons.law.uga.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&
context=nmt1>.
"NMT 01. Medical Case- USA v. Karl Brandt et. alt" Primary Source
This document is an indictment against the twenty-three doctors presented in case number one of the Nuremberg Trials at the Palace of Justice in Nuremberg on October 25, 1946. The main author was Telford Taylor, Chief of Counsel for War Crimes, and the group/ institutional author was the NMT Prosecution (Nuremberg Military Tribunals). The excerpt below was written to inform the judges, witnesses, prosecutors, and defendants the barbaric atrocious medical experiments that were used on several innocent people designed by intellectual “lawful” doctors. It lays out the charges the defendants are being faced with and the scientific experiments that were specifically designed to harm and murder the lives of healthy citizens in the most agonizing tests. The assumption that these tests had no actual scientific purpose is shown throughout the entire document, and instead, these experiments were aimed for mass exterminations. Mr. Taylor gives the court some background information about all the twenty-three doctors and what roles they played during the holocaust. Telford’s indictment is trying to convince the court that they are guilty for crimes against humanity and gives substantial evidence as to how they carried out such wicked acts.
This short excerpt from the Opening Statement for the United States of America informed the court the importance of this trial and why it was of vital importance to all nations. This brief statement was relevant to my project because it mentioned that these crimes do not go unheard, and that the doctors are being punished for organizing mass exterminations and Mr. Taylor wants to assure that such actions shall never reoccur.
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This is the symbol of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court which enacted the law "crimes against humanity", after heinous crimes were committed during World War 2. The enactment of this law allowed the International Criminal Court to prosecute the doctors who participated in the scientific experiments used during the Holocaust.
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This short video was filmed at the Palace of Justice in Nuremberg where Karl Brandt was found guilty by the International Military tribunal for committing war crimes, crimes against humanity and was sentenced to death by hanging. Karl Brandt was relevant to my topic because he was Hitler's personal physician and headed the administration of the Nazi euthanasia program.
The Nuremberg Code legitimized what was considered illegal and legal in medical research. Even though this was not used during the trial, it marked as a landmark document on medical ethics.