Justice as Witness: Jews Facing Polish Courts During the German Occupation (1939-1942)

Abstract

In Poland, during the German occupation (1939-1945), the Polish courts were one of the few institutions left in the hands of the Poles. Furthermore, they remained one of the rare physical areas where Poles and Jews could legally meet each other after the closure of ghettos. Because of the lack of involvement of Germans in this administrative sphere, the courts were a rare domain where Poles and Jews could continue to interact without any overt interference and control by the occupier. This dissertation aims to be an exploration of a new kind of document, namely the court records from the district of Warsaw (the Municipal Court of Otwock, the District Court of Siedlce and the Appellate court of Warsaw). This micro-analysis, made from a sample of cases from the above-mentioned courtrooms, seeks to give a new perspective to the study of relations between Jews and Poles during the war. Since people from different backgrounds found themselves at court and transacted with the Jews – police officers, judges, members of the court, to name but a few – the documents allow us to see different types of relations grouped here under three categories: administrative, legal and social. It highlights the communication channels between different levels of administration in Poland (members of the courts, lawyers, police officers, prison officials), and their influence regarding the Jewish lives. Using official Polish documents from the pre-war period – the March Constitution, the Criminal code and the code of procedure, criminal statistics, to name a few – and court documents for the first years of the war, this research seeks to demonstrate that prejudices, bias and anti-Semitic actions taken against the Jews were deeply rooted in Polish customs and identity, and were not, as the nationalistic historiography said, a consequence of the German occupation. In addition to the examination of relations between Poles and Jews, this research sheds new light on the issue of Jewish life and death during the 1939-1942 period. It highlights the difficulties experienced by Jews due to the evolution of German regulations. Since the court was open to everyone, the documents provide important information about Jews that do not appear in traditional historical sources. It is thus possible to trace the journey of these people remained until now in anonymity. The research helps to better understand the fate of the Jews before the onset of the “Final Solution” and, in many cases, it enables us to rethink the choices and challenges faced by the victims.