German trial is new twist in Demjanjuk saga
John Demjanjuk once was the focus of the world's attention for the bloodcurdling crimes of which he stood accused. Today, he's attracting notice for being the lowest-ranking person to go on trial for **** crimes in World War II.
The latest chapter in a 32-year legal saga brings the retired Ohio autoworker to a court in Munich in a case opening Monday that breaks new ground in Germany's pursuit of alleged Holocaust perpetrators.
If successful, it could significantly lower the bar for who is considered important enough to go to jail for being part of the **** apparatus.
In the 1980s, Demjanjuk stood trial in Israel accused of being the notoriously ****** guard "Ivan the Terrible" at the Treblinka extermination camp. He was convicted, sentenced to death - then freed when an Israeli court overturned the ruling saying the evidence showed he was the victim of mistaken identity.
