Suspended Chief Rabbi of Bavaria Dr. Aron Ohrenstein was again sentenced to a one-year prison term yesterday at the conclusion of his second trial here on charges of fraud in connection with certification of claims of victims of Nazism. It is expected that Dr. Ohrenstein, who was granted a second trial after he appealed his first conviction, will file a new appeal.
On his original appeal, the German Supreme Court at Karlsruhe upheld his first conviction, in 1952, but ordered a new trial because it did not agree with the sentence meted out to him. That sentence was one year in prison and a fine. Yesterday the court here changed the earlier sentence only to the extent of omitting the fine.
The court also refused to include Dr. Ohrenstein in the general amnesty in effect in Germany since early this year, asserting that the refusal was based on his “abuse of the rabbinical office.” A number of other charges still hang over Dr. Chrenstein.
Dr. Ohrenstein, a 45-year-old native of Poland, lived in Berlin before and during the early years of the Nazi regime. He has long been active in Jewish affairs. He has strenuously, and thus far successfully, fought off efforts by some communal quarters to separate him from his rabbinical post.
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.
