Philip Auerbach, former head of the Bavarian Restitution Office whose case has aroused world-wide interest, was sentenced here today to two-and-a-half years imprisonment on the charge that while holding office he “misappropriated” funds for Nazi victims.
Rabbi Aaron Orenstein of Bavaria was convicted for participating in the affair and was sentenced to one year’s imprisonment. Both the rabbi and the former Restitution Commissioner, insisted throughout the trial that they were innocent of the charges. Pleas made by defense attorney Joseph Klibansky for a new trial for his clients were rejected by the court which had three former members of the Nazi Party as judges.
The judges were accused of prejudice by Mr. Klibansky because of their membership in the Nazi Party. The fact that ex-Nazis were appointed as judges for this trial was severely criticized by some German newspapers, while anti-Semitic elements sought to utilize the charges against the two Jewish defendants for anti-Jewish propaganda.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
