Dr. Fritz Schaffer, West German Minister of Justice, has disclosed that the West German Government is studying proposals to prolong the period under which Criminal charges can be brought against former Nazi officials, it was learned today.
Under the existing statute of limitations, charges based on crimes committed during the war or during the Nazi regime cannot be filed after next month, except in cases where murder or manslaughter is charged. Dr. Schaffer disclosed the Government’s consideration of the extension in a letter to the Anti-Nazi Documentation Center at Haifa. He said that final decision would rest with the legislatures of the various West German states.
The Minister’s letter came in response to a message from the public council of the documentation center to German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer pointing out that evidence was being collected against thousands of Nazi malefactors but that it would be impossible to initiate legal action in the few weeks remaining before the statute of limitations took effect. The council proposed extension of the deadline for a further ten years.
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