Rabbi Schapiro of Plotzk, who was shot by court martial order in 1920 on the suspion of being a Bolshevik spy, will have a retrial of the charges against him for the third time.
Rabbi Schapiro, a pious Chassidic Rabbi, was praying at the Minchah service, on his balcony, and swaying to and fro in the devotional manner, while the Bolshevik Army was being driven out of the town by the invading Polish Army. His movements were interpreted by the Polish Army officials as signals to the retiring Bolshevik Army, and on this charge he was court martialed. Although no evidence to substantiate the preposterous charge was given, the Rabbi was condemned to death.
Two years after his death, the Jewish members of the Sejm induced the Plotzk District Court to review the case in the hope of rehabilitating the Rabbi’s reputation and thus clear the name of Polish Jewry. The Court, however, under anti-Semitic pressure, confirmed the verdict of guilty.
Now the highest military tribunal has decided to grant a third trial and to refer the case to another judiciary body.
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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.
