The three-judge panel trying John Demjanjuk granted the suspected Nazi war criminal a one-month postponement Monday at the request of his American attorney, Mark O’Connor, to allow him additional time to study prosecution documents.
The trial of the Ukrainian-born former resident of Cleveland, Ohio, opened formally in a Jerusalem District Court on November 26 but was adjourned until January 19 after a 40-minute preliminary hearing. It is now scheduled to resume February 15.
The accused was represented at Monday’s postponement hearing by an Israeli lawyer, Yoram Schechtel, who agreed to assist O’Connor in preparing the defense. Schechtel will not take an active part in the trial but will be available for consultation by O’Connor on points of Israeli law.
The judges were critical of the American lawyer for what they saw as undue delay in preparing his case. O’Connor had asked for several postponements on grounds that he had been unable to find an Israeli colleague willing to participate in Demjanjuk’s defense. The court noted Monday that Schechtel’s presence indicated that he has solved that problem.
Demjanjuk, the first suspected war criminal ever extradited to Israel for trial, has been charged with war crimes, crimes against humanity and crimes against persecuted people. He is alleged to be the Treblinka death camp guard known by inmates as “Ivan the Terrible” for his brutality, and directly responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of Jews and others. “Ivan” allegedly operated the gas chambers.
Demjanjuk’s defense hinges on mistaken identity. The panel hearing the case consists of Supreme Court Justice Dov Levin and District Court judges Dalia Lerner and Zvi Tal.
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