Hauptamt SS Gericht

[Phil Nix]

Chef;
Dr Ernst Bach ?? - 12.6.33
Paul Scharfe 12.6.33 - 29.7.42
Franz Breithaupt 29.7.42 - 28.4.45
Dr Gunther Reinecke 28.4.45 - 5.45
Amt I Dr Gunther Reinecke
Amt II Erberhardt Hinderfeld
Amt III Bruno Kegel 1.6.39 - 1943
Gunther Burmeister 1943 - 1945
Amt IV Martin Tondock 1.6.39 - 31.3.44
Dr Hans Brausse 31.3.44 - 5.45
Phil Nix

[Marcus]

Thanks Phil.

/Marcus

[steve248]

The following comes from a 1945 interrogation of SS-Hstuf Richard Neun, employed by Hauptamt SS-Gericht Munich from 1 June 1943 to 20 March 1945 when transferred to Norway.

Hauptamt SS-Gericht
Location: 1) until outbreak of war at Wagmüllerstr 16, Munich
2) Sept 1939 to summer 1944 at Karlstr 10, Munich
3) due to air-raid damage,moved in summer 1944 to Hotel zum Kronprinzen and Hotel Chiemsee
at Prien am Chiemsee

Chain of command: Hauptamt SS-Gericht was directly under Himmler whose nominee as "SS-Richter beim Reichsführer-SS" was SS-Staf Bender.

Organisation:
Head of Hauptamt SS-Gericht: SS-Ogruf Breithaupt
Deputy: SS-Obf Dr Reinecke

Amt I: SS-Obf Dr Reinecke
this Amt was divided into six Departments (Abteilungen)
Abt Ia - SS-Stubaf Prof Dr Hans Bruns
Assistant - SS-Hstuf Dr Hans Küttner
Admin Officer - SS-Hstuf Hans Saller
Abt Ib - SS-Stubaf Dr Karl Braun
Assistant - SS-Hstuf Richard Neun (informant)
Librarian - SS-Oschaf Niedermayr
Abt Ic - 1) SS-Ostubaf Pape (later with Abt Id)
2) SS-Ostubaf Dr Klahre (June 1943-Oct 1944 when transferred to SS- u. Pol.gericht Pressburg)
3) SS-Ostubaf Dr Greinder (from Oct 1944)
Abt Id - SS-Ostubaf Pape
Assistant - SS-Ostuf Robert Weber
Abt Ie - SS-Ostubaf Dr Heger
Assistants - SS-Stubaf Dr Anton and SS-Hstuf Dr Fischer
Abt If - SS-Ostubaf Mittelstädt
SS-Richters - SS-Stubaf Alexander and SS-Hstuf Winkler-Thiede

Amt II: SS-Ostubaf Hinderfeld (until early 1945 when transferred at his own request to Waffen-SS as SS-Ostuf)
successor not known to Neun (informant)
Assisants: SS-Ostubaf Klebensberger
SS-Hstuf Mühling
SS-Ostuf Müller (temporary)

Amt III: SS-Staf Burmeister
Assistants: SS-Stubaf Walter
SS-Stubaf Meder
SS-Stubaf Langbehn
Staff: SS-Hstuf Kurt Aichele
SS-Hstuf Zolly
SS-Hstuf Dr Hauswirt
SS-Ostuf Albert Schreiber
Admin Officers: SS-Ustuf Müller and SS-Hschaf Stecher

Amt IV: SS-Ostubaf Dr Krause
Assistant: SS-Ostuf Mayer
Staff: SS-Ostuf Schäftlein
SS-Ustuf Hermann
Admin Officer: SS-Stubaf Andelmann
Admin staff: SS-Hstuf Georg Schmidt, SS-Ustuf Meyer, SS-Hschaf Schweitzer

Areas of responsibilities:
Amt I/Abt Ia - policy regarding general legal questions affecting civil penal law and military penal law. All decisions in matters of legal policy and procedure both within the Hauptamt and from outside SS and police courts were made here. Official manuals on procedure were published by Abt Ia, in particular:
(i) Grey book "Mitteilungen des Hauptamtes SS-Gericht";
(ii) Field grey book "Erlass-Sammlung des Hauptamt SS-Gerichtes";
(iii) Unbound "Sammel-Erlasse des Hauptamtes SS-Gericht", published in sections during 1943-1945.

Amt I/Abt Ib - only dealt with cases relating to civil law. Information on legal points was given to families of police and SS personnel. The department was only attached to the SS-Gericht and was not part of the SS legal machinery.

Amt I/Abt Ic - administration of SS judges (postings, transfers, etc.). From 1944 onwards this department also organised courses for judges of several days' duration, at which legal problems either of a principal nature or of particular interest were discussed.

Amt I/Abt Id - administration of clerical staff of SS-Gerichte. Also kept Wehrpässe of all persons coming under Hauptamt SS-Gericht, and made necessary entries in their Soldbücher.

Amt I/Abt Ie - all important decisions by SS-Gerichte were checked by this department and were either confirmed, altered or cancelled. Dependent on subsequent legal decisions the case could be forwarded to the appropriate "Gerichtsherr" for confirmation, alteration or cancellation, or possibly re-trial. The Gerichtsherr for cases of SS leaders was HIMMLER, who also dealt with all death sentences. In all other cases the "Gerichtsherren" were either the [SS] army corps commanders or the HSSPF.

Amt I/Abt If - only commenced activities in 1944. Made preliminary investigations and enquiries into particularly important cases irrespective of whether any of the SS Gerichte would normally deal with the case. As these investigations were carried out at the residence of the witnesses, members of this department were generally away on duty journeys. On completion of the investigations of this department, cases were handed over to the appropriate SS Gericht.

Amt II: Disziplinaramt.
Special cases which had been dealt with under disciplinary rules and regulations were investigated and, if necessary, altered or a re-trial was ordered.

Amt III: Gnadenamt.
This department (i) commented on the carrying out of punishments inflicted by SS-Gerichts; (ii) to keep an eye on prisoners in SS prison camps; and (iii) to submit to HIMMLER suggestions for reduction of sentences. Members of SS or police who received sentences of severe imprisonment ("Zuchthaus") were sent to a punishment camp at DACHAU. Men with ordinary prison sentences ("Gefängnis") were sent to a punishment camp at DANZIG-MATZKAU.

Amt IV: was in the process of being dissolved at the end of 1944. Its activities being transferred to Abt Ic. Tasks of this department were of a statistical nature.

General administration: this department was responsible for feeding, issue of ration cards, pay, maintenance of clothing, etc. of all personnel of the Hauptamt.

Training: this was carried out under the supervision of SS-Hstuf Geike, who also received monthly progress reports from the heads of all SS- u. Pol.Gerichte.

Representative in Munich after the move to Prien: after the transfer in summer 1944 due to air-raid damage, SS-Hstuf d.R. Dr Otto Nüssle remained in Munich to forward incoming mail to Prien and to deal with minor matters on the spot. At the same time he continued his civil occupation as barrister.

[Phil Nix]

Thanks Steve
Phil Nix

[Marcus]

Thanks Steve, excellent.

/Marcus

[radevich]

Abt Ic - 1) SS-Ostubaf Pape (later with Abt Id)

Robert PAPE SS-Nr.7 266 geb. 31.01.1902. NSDAP-Nr.231 356
Stubaf.: 09.11.1942; SS-Obersturmbannführer d.R. Waffen-SS: 21.06.1944

[radevich]

Abt If - SS-Ostubaf Mittelstädt

Kurt MITTELSTÄDT SS-Nr.312 493 geb.09.08.1909 NSDAP-Nr.4 157 659
Stubaf.: 30.01.1943; SS-Obersturmbannführer der Waffen-SS: 21.06.1944

[Rob - wssob2]

Has a history of the SS Legal Office ever been written? It would be an interesting topic for scholars to research.

[smetanin albert]

About Mittelstädt

[smetanin albert]

about Pape