A protest meeting against the four-year imprisonment sentence imposed upon Philip Halsman, Jewish student, on the charge of patricide, has been arranged by the Austrian League for Human Rights. Christians who join in the general Jewish sentiment here in insisting upon Philip Halsmann’s innocence, will address the meeting.
The youth, facing four years in prison, emphatically declined his mother’s plea that he ask pardon of President Hainisch. “I do not want to be pardoned, even if I have to serve 20 years in prison. I would not want the world to see a patricide pardoned. I did not kill my father-I loved him,” he declared.
Dedication of the Beth David Synagogue, Outremont, Canada, took place on Sunday, Mayor Joseh Beaubien, Joseph Cohen, K. C., Peter Bercovitch, K.C., Rev. J. R. Dobson, pastor of the St. Giles’ Presbyterian Church, were the speakers.
Rabbi Israel Weintraub died in Bufialo. He was the founder of Beth Israel Congregation in Buffalo. (Continued from Page 1)
A dramatic scene was enacted in the court room when the verdict was announced. The mother and sister of Philip Halsmann burst into tears, crying out, “A terrible miscarriage of justice has occurred.” Young Halsmann himself exclaimed: “I am innocent. I have been sentenced only because of the agitation which is going on all around me.” Admonished by the court that he would be led back to his cell if he did not remain quiet, he retorted: “I don’t wish to look on at such a miscarriage of justice,” and was led back to his cell by court attendants.
Counsel for the defendant, convinced of the innocence of the young Jewish student, will make an effort to have the verdict set aside. Pending this effort, steps will be taken to have Halsmann released on bail.
The announcement of the verdict has been received with great astonishment in the Jewish and general press, which expresses the opinion that the evidence against Halsmann is very slight and that the sentence is due to anti-Semitism in Innsbruck. The lightness of the sentence for the crime with which he is charged, the punishment for which is ordinarily life imprisonment, is further regarded as an indication of the insufficiency of the evidence against Halsmann.
Help ensure Jewish news remains accessible to all. Your donation to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency powers the trusted journalism that has connected Jewish communities worldwide for more than 100 years. With your help, JTA can continue to deliver vital news and insights. Donate today.
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.
