Judgment at Nuremberg

I didn't know it was so bad.

A couple of incendiaries, these old buildings go up like Cellophane.

A wall separates the old section of Nuremberg from the new.

It goes back to... How far does it go back, Schmidt?

- 1219, sir. - 1219.

This is where the Nazi party held their rallies, isn't it?

They all came here. Hitler, Goebbels, the whole crew.

Thousands of them, from all over Germany.

Does he have to blow that damn horn so much?

It's not necessary to blow the horn so much, Schmidt.

- You both know your duties? - Ja.

Well, here we are. A little bit of old Germany.

- Senator Burkette. - Captain Byers, this is Judge Haywood.

- Byers here will be your aide. - My what?

Clerk, general guide, liaison. Any capacity you wish to use me.

This will be your staff, Mr and Mrs Halbestadt.

- Hello. - Good afternoon.

Good afternoon, Your Honour.

- Welcome. - You've met your driver, Schmidt.

I'm at your service any time you need me. Day or night.

Thanks.

Let's show him around the rest of the place. Dan.

We're in the reception room.

Living room. The study is in there.

There are two bedrooms on this floor, three upstairs.

The furniture is part antique, part US army.

The piano is showing signs of wear and tear, but it's a genuine Bechstein.

- Quite a view, isn't it, sir? - Yes.

Uh...

Senator, I really, really don't need all this.

When the US government does something, it does it right.

- Who used to live here? - An important Nazi general and his wife.

Is there anything else Judge Haywood ought to know?

- Sir, any questions? - Yes, yes.

- You're West Point, aren't you? - Yes.

- What's your first name? - Harrison. Harry.

Well, Harry, look. I'm not West Point, and all this formality kind of gets me down.

It puts me ill at ease. You think it would be too much of an infraction of the rules

if you were to call me Judge or Dan or something?

OK, Judge. We do all our shopping at the army commissary.

There isn't enough food at the local markets. The driver knows where it is.

Here's a copy of the indictment of the case.

- Thanks. - I hope you'll be comfortable here, sir.

Captain, I think the whole state of Maine would be comfortable here.

My office is next to yours, if you need anything.

- Thank you. - Senator.

Do you think I need the three servants? It kind of makes me feel like a damn fool.

Well, it helps them out as well as you. You see, here they eat.

Oh.

Well, I need three servants.

It's good to have a man of your stature here, Dan.

Sure. Sure. I was the only man in America qualified for this job.

You know I wasn't the first choice, nor even the tenth.

- You know it, I know it. - What do you mean?

Let's face it. Hitler is gone, Goebbels is gone, Göring is gone - committed suicide.

Now we're down to judging the doctors, businessmen and judges.

- Some think they shouldn't be judged. - So?

It makes for a lack of candidates for the job.

You had to beat the backwoods of Maine to come up with a hick like me.

- I hope you're not sorry you came. - No, I'm not sorry I came.

I just wanted you to know I know where the body is buried.

No, I think the trials should go on.

Especially the trials of the German judges. I hope I'm up to it.

You're up to it.

Well, relax. Enjoy this place while you can.

- You're gonna be a pretty busy fellow. - Thanks, Senator.

See you tomorrow, Judge.

Shall we, uh, take these upstairs?

Oh, yes, thank you.

- Here, I can take that one. - No, let me take it. Please.

Here they come.

The tribunal is now in session.

God bless the United States and this honourable tribunal.

The tribunal will now arraign the defendants.

A microphone will be placed in front of the defendant Emil Hahn.

Emil Hahn, are you represented by counsel before this tribunal?

Not guilty.

The question was are you represented by counsel?

I am represented.

How do you plead to the charges and specifications in the indictment,

guilty or not guilty?

Not guilty on all counts.

Friedrich Hofstetter.

Are you represented by counsel before this tribunal?

- I am represented. - How do you plead, guilty or not guilty?

Nicht schuldig.

You may be seated.

Werner Lampe.

Are you represented by counsel before this tribunal?

Counsel?

Yes, yes, of course, I am represented.

How do you plead to the charges, guilty or not guilty?

Nicht schuldig.

You may be seated.

Ernst Janning.

Ernst Janning, are you represented by counsel before this tribunal?

Ernst Janning, are you represented by counsel before this tribunal?

I represent the defendant, Your Honour.

How do you plead to the charges and specifications

set forth in the indictment against you, guilty or not guilty?

Your Honour, may I address the court?

The defendant does not recognise the authority of this tribunal

and wishes to lodge a formal protest.

A plea of not guilty will be entered.

The prosecution will begin its opening address.

Slow and easy, Junior.

The case is unusual, in that the defendants are charged with crimes

committed in the name of the law.

These men, together with their deceased or fugitive colleagues,

are the embodiment of what passed for justice during the Third Reich.

The defendants served as judges during the period of the Third Reich.

Therefore you, Your Honours, as judges on the bench,

will be sitting in judgment of judges in the dock.

And this is as it should be.

For only a judge knows how much more a court is than a courtroom.

It is a process and a spirit.

It is the house of law.

The defendants knew this too. They knew courtrooms well.

They sat in their black robes and they distorted, they perverted,

they destroyed justice and law in Germany.

The prosecution will please watch the light.

- The interpreter cannot follow you. - I'm sorry, Your Honour.

They distorted, they perverted,

they destroyed justice and law in Germany.

This in itself is undoubtedly a great crime.

But the prosecution is not calling the defendants to account

for violating constitutional guaranties or withholding due process of law.

The prosecution is calling them to account for murder,

brutalities,

torture,

atrocities!

They share, with all the leaders of the Third Reich,

responsibility for the most malignant, the most calculated,

the most devastating crimes in the history of all mankind.

They are perhaps more guilty than some of the others,

for they had attained maturity long before Hitler's rise to power.

Their minds weren't warped at an early age by Nazi teachings.

They embraced the ideologies of the Third Reich as educated adults,

when they, most of all, should have valued justice.

Here they'll receive the justice they denied others.

They'll be judged according to the evidence presented in this courtroom.

The prosecution asks nothing more.

Herr Rolfe will make the opening statement for the defence.

May it please the tribunal.

It is not only a great honour...

but also a great challenge...

for an advocate...

to aid this tribunal in its task.

The entire civilised world

will follow closely what we do here.

For this is not an ordinary trial,

by any means of the accepted parochial sense.

The avowed purpose of this tribunal

is broader than the visiting of retribution on a few men.

It is dedicated to the reconsecration of the temple of justice.

It is dedicated to finding a code of justice the whole world will be responsible to.

How will this code be established?

It will be established

in a clear, honest evaluation of the responsibility for the crimes

in the indictment stated by the prosecution.

In the words of the great American jurist Oliver Wendell Holmes,

"This responsibility will not be found only in documents

that no one contests or denies."

"it will be found in considerations of a political or social nature."

"it will be found, most of all, in the character of men."

What is the character of Ernst Janning?

Let us examine his life for a moment.

He was born in 1885.

Received the degree of Doctor of Law in 1907.

Became a judge in East Prussia in 1914.

Following World War I, he became one of the Weimar Republic leaders

and one of the framers of its democratic constitution.

In subsequent years, he achieved international fame

not only for his work as a great jurist, but also as the author of legal textbooks

which are still used in universities all over the world.

He became Minister of Justice in Germany in 1935.

If Ernst Janning is to be found guilty,

certain implications must arise.

A judge does not make the laws.

He carries out the laws of his country.

The statement "My country, right or wrong"

was expressed by a great American patriot.

It is no less true for a German patriot.

Should Ernst Janning have carried out the laws of his country?

Or should he have refused to carry them out and become a traitor?

This is the crux of the issue at the bottom of this trial.

The defence is as dedicated to finding responsibility

as is the prosecution.

For it is not only Ernst Janning who is on trial here.

It is the German people.

The tribunal will recess until further notification.

Yeah.

If it's all right with you, Byers can file these briefs later.

It was quite a damning speech by Colonel Lawson, wasn't it?

I wonder if those men in the dock can really be responsible

for the things he listed in the indictment.

I've been here two years, and after that long

you find that responsibility is not a cut-and-dried thing.

What are you fellows up to this weekend?

My wife and I are going to Liége.