They Have Broken Our System
A study of contrasts -- Swift justice for Nazis and interminable delay for jihadists.
Many of the constituent parts of our government, economy and culture are broken. But this is not an accident; it is by design. This article discusses the breakdown in just one key segment that is illustrated by the contrast between the trial of war criminals when we were at war and immediately afterwards, and the current system of systematic and indefinite delay.
When we knew we were at war, justice was swift.
On December 16, 1944, Hitler launched his last desperate offensive on the western front that became known as the Battle of the Bulge. As part of that attack, in Operation Greif, English-speaking German commandos infiltrated behind Allied lines. They wore American uniforms and carried American arms and equipment. One of their objectives was to cause as much disruption as possible. The rumor spread that they sought to attempt to kidnap or kill General Eisenhower.
American troops captured three of these commandos on December 18, 1944. As related by the World War II museum, they were Oberfähnrich (Acting Lieutenant) Günther Billing; Obergefreiter (Corporal) Wilhelm Schmidt; and Unteroffizier (Sergeant) Manfred Pernass.
Three days later on December 21, a military commission tried and convicted all three of violating Article 23 of the Hague convention concerning land warfare which provides, “It’s especially forbidden […], to make improper use of the military insignia and uniform of the enemy.”
The commission recommended the death penalty for all three captives. One day later on December 22, the sentences were reviewed by the First Army Staff Judge Advocate and were confirmed by Lieutenant General Courtney Hodges.
The death sentences were promptly carried out and the three men were executed on December 23, less than a week after they were captured.
When our leaders knew that we were in a war, it took six days from the capture of war criminals until they were executed by firing squad.
And under less exigent circumstances, the time from the surrender of Germany until the trial and conviction of Herman Goering was less than seventeen months. Goering’s death sentence was to be carried out two weeks after the conviction, but he cheated the hangman by swallowing a cyanide pill the night before his scheduled execution.