Crime in Germany dropped 25 per cent in 1938 according to official statistics published today. Convictions numbered 381,818, compared with 504,093 for 1937. Of those convicted, 3,485 were Jews — about one per cent.
The figures on convictions for degeneracy were still strikingly high — 22,107 in 1936 compared with 23,069 the previous year. Of these criminals, 195 were condemned to castration in 1938. The law on “protection of German blood and German honor,” which forbids relations between Jews and “Aryans,” resulted in 434 convictions, of which 282 were of Jews.
Abortion crimes jumped considerably in 1938, going up to 6,583 from 5,737 the previous year. Twenty-one of those convicted were Jews. Theft also increased, the number of convictions recorded climbing from 475 in 1937 to 502 in 1938.
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