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Introduction: Tom Teicholz's The Trial of Ivan the Terrible
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19740 |
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BOOK WORLD
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3 / 1991 |
384 Words |
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In The Trial of Ivan the Terrible: The State of Israel vs. John Demjanjuk, Tom Teicholz chronicles the controversial trial of the retired autoworker from Cleveland, who is accused of being "Ivan the Terrible," a brutal Nazi guard from the Treblinka death camp. Controversy surrounds the case because of the debate as to whether Demjanjuk is really Ivan the Terrible and whether he has received a fair trial. Demjanjuk's ordeal began in 1977 when he was charged with being "Ivan" and his naturalization status was challenged. He lost his battle against extradition to Israel in 1985. In the spring of 1988 he was convicted of war crimes by an Israeli court and now awaits a ruling from Israel's Supreme Court on his appeal of the death sentence.
Teicholz, a New York attorney-turned-journalist whose parents survived the Holocaust, gives an accurate, though somewhat biased, account of the proceedings. Besides recording the trial Teicholz feels an obligation to preserve the memory of the Holocaust victims and survivors.
Demjanjuk's trial is a fascinating puzzle because of its bizarre twists and turns in addition to the courtroom drama. One defense lawyer committed suicide, a defense expert unsuccessfully attempted it, and another lawyer had acid thrown in his face by an irate Holocaust survivor--delaying the trial by two years. Besides these events, surprise documents were released by the Soviet government and delivered to Israeli officials by Armand Hammer.
The accompanying commentaries deal with the various pieces of the puzzle and look at some of the broader questions raised by the trial. Many countries are currently debating whether suspected war
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