A doctor who may have participated in the Nazis’ so-called “euthanasia” program will go on trial in Hildesheim, in northern West Germany, if he is found physically fit.
The prosecution announced Tuesday that it would press charges against Dr. Klaus Endruweit, 76, who is accused of complicity in the murders of 2,250 people during World War II.
Chief Prosecutor Hans-Helmut Kehr said Endruweit would have to undergo a medical examination to find out if he is fit to stand trial.
A Frankfurt court cleared him and two other doctors in 1967 on grounds that it was impossible to prove that they knowingly committed wrongful acts or violated existing law.
But a higher court reversed the Frankfurt decision in 1971.
The Third Reich inaugurated a policy before World War II to eliminate from society persons considered “unfit to live.” That included the mentally ill, the disabled and persons suffering from incurable diseases.
According to experts, about 70,000 people were killed, including preschool children.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
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.
