| Abstract |
This letter from Robert Jackson to the Chairman of the United Nations War Crimes Commission, The Lord Wright, is an "informal outline" (p.1) of the author's prospective intentions concerning the prosecution of the major Nazi war criminals and their accomplices. Jackson states the case broadly, referring to a common criminal plan, atrocities, aggressive war, war crimes, and political, racial, and religious persecutions. He pre-empts the defendants' most obvious argument by stating, "Defenses of sovereign immunity and superior orders would not be entertained" (p.2). This point leads to Jackson's expanding the scope of the prosecution to include Nazi organizations and groups that planned and executed the aforementioned offenses, the members of which would be tried on a representative basis (pp.2-3). If an organization or group were to be judged criminal by the International Military Tribunal, any nation adhering to the agreement that established the latter would be able to indict other individuals on the basis of their involvement in the criminal activities of the former; in such trials, the IMT's finding of criminality would be binding on the presiding court or tribunal. Jackson goes on to describe his general strategy for demonstrating the defendants' participation in the common plan "by establishing the common pattern of the defendants' conduct at different times, in different places, and against a variety of victims" (p.3). He enumerates the elements of this pattern, beginning with "Pre-war infiltration" and culminating with the Nazi's many depredations against occupied countries. Jackson concludes by asking each victimized nation to document "its experiences at the hands of the German aggressor and make that documentation available for use in the preparation of the main case" (p.4). He also seeks "orders or other evidence" that would illustrate the responsibility of higher-ranking Nazis. This document is a typewritten carbon copy of excellent quality on thin, browning paper. |