offences, the SS legal officials tried the accused by normal German criminal procedure. The jurisdiction of the DBO extended right across Germany and the occupied territories, and the scale of punishment which might be imposed ranged from simple disciplinary measures and expulsion from the SS to penal servitude and death by hanging, shooting or beheading. Himmler was given the same powers of pardon and commutation of sentences as those held by the Reich Supreme Judge and the commanders of the three branches of the Wehrmacht, and the only course of appeal, and then in very special circumstances, was to the Führer himself.
Only one general exception to this policy of bringing all members of the SS under the stringent penalties of independent SS jurisdiction was ever allowed. By agreement with the Reichsführer-SS, a Wehrmacht regulation published in June 1940 laid down that individual members of the SS and police would become liable to normal military law if they were serving in the armed forces. This exception applied solely to Allgemeine-SS and police men conscripted for regular service in the Wehrmacht, and did not affect independent units and formations of the Waffen-SS, SD and police serving alongside the armed forces. With the advent of the DBO, however, the Wehrmacht regulation ceased to be valid and from 1943 the SS included under its jurisdiction even those of its members temporarily serving in the armed forces.
While in practice most disciplinary matters were disposed of by the competent senior SS disciplinary officers by direct action or courts martial, and most criminal matters by the duly appointed SS courts, full disciplinary powers were attached to Himmler personally, as Reichsführer-SS. He was competent to impose all disciplinary penalties allowed by the DBO, although Hitler usually took a personal interest in rare cases of the punishment of officers from Gruppenführer upwards. In particular, the Reichsführer reserved to himself the rights of:
1. dismissal from the SS, together with demotion or reduction to the ranks, of any SS officer
2. dismissal from the SS of any SS personnel with membership numbers below 10,000 (i.e. the Old Guard)
3. prescribing disciplinary punishments in addition to penal sentences passed by the SS courts
In order to exercise these powers and also for the purpose of considering appeals against disciplinary sentences passed by the heads of the SS Hauptämter, Himmler could order the setting up of a special court, or Disziplinarhof, to hear any particular case and report back to him. In times of absence, he could delegate his disciplinary authority to the Chief of the Hauptamt SS Gericht. In addition, a special legal officer was permanently attached to the Persönlicher Stab RfSS to assist Himmler in dealing with legal matters which came to him for disposal.
The ordinary SS courts were of two types:
1. the Feldgerichte, or Courts-Martial, convened in the normal way by the divisions and higher formations of the Waffen-SS
2. the SS und Polizei Gerichte, or SS and Police Courts, established in Germany and the occupied territories
By 1943 there were over forty of these SS und Polizei Gerichte. Outside the Reich they were set up in the capitals and larger towns of conquered countries. Inside Germany there was one in every Oberabschnitt, normally but not invariably at the seat of the Oberabschnitt HQ. They were numbered in Roman figures which, unlike the Oberabschnitte, did not follow Wehrkreis numbering but corresponded to the chronological order in which they were set up. Each SS and Police Court was competent to try all cases which occurred within its area. In addition, there were two other special courts, both based in Munich, which deserve mention. The first of these was the Oberstes SS und Polizei Gericht, the Supreme SS and Police Court, presided over by SS-Oberführer Dr Günther Reinecke. It tried cases of particular gravity, for example treason, crimes
Only one general exception to this policy of bringing all members of the SS under the stringent penalties of independent SS jurisdiction was ever allowed. By agreement with the Reichsführer-SS, a Wehrmacht regulation published in June 1940 laid down that individual members of the SS and police would become liable to normal military law if they were serving in the armed forces. This exception applied solely to Allgemeine-SS and police men conscripted for regular service in the Wehrmacht, and did not affect independent units and formations of the Waffen-SS, SD and police serving alongside the armed forces. With the advent of the DBO, however, the Wehrmacht regulation ceased to be valid and from 1943 the SS included under its jurisdiction even those of its members temporarily serving in the armed forces.
While in practice most disciplinary matters were disposed of by the competent senior SS disciplinary officers by direct action or courts martial, and most criminal matters by the duly appointed SS courts, full disciplinary powers were attached to Himmler personally, as Reichsführer-SS. He was competent to impose all disciplinary penalties allowed by the DBO, although Hitler usually took a personal interest in rare cases of the punishment of officers from Gruppenführer upwards. In particular, the Reichsführer reserved to himself the rights of:
1. dismissal from the SS, together with demotion or reduction to the ranks, of any SS officer
2. dismissal from the SS of any SS personnel with membership numbers below 10,000 (i.e. the Old Guard)
3. prescribing disciplinary punishments in addition to penal sentences passed by the SS courts
In order to exercise these powers and also for the purpose of considering appeals against disciplinary sentences passed by the heads of the SS Hauptämter, Himmler could order the setting up of a special court, or Disziplinarhof, to hear any particular case and report back to him. In times of absence, he could delegate his disciplinary authority to the Chief of the Hauptamt SS Gericht. In addition, a special legal officer was permanently attached to the Persönlicher Stab RfSS to assist Himmler in dealing with legal matters which came to him for disposal.
The ordinary SS courts were of two types:
1. the Feldgerichte, or Courts-Martial, convened in the normal way by the divisions and higher formations of the Waffen-SS
2. the SS und Polizei Gerichte, or SS and Police Courts, established in Germany and the occupied territories
By 1943 there were over forty of these SS und Polizei Gerichte. Outside the Reich they were set up in the capitals and larger towns of conquered countries. Inside Germany there was one in every Oberabschnitt, normally but not invariably at the seat of the Oberabschnitt HQ. They were numbered in Roman figures which, unlike the Oberabschnitte, did not follow Wehrkreis numbering but corresponded to the chronological order in which they were set up. Each SS and Police Court was competent to try all cases which occurred within its area. In addition, there were two other special courts, both based in Munich, which deserve mention. The first of these was the Oberstes SS und Polizei Gericht, the Supreme SS and Police Court, presided over by SS-Oberführer Dr Günther Reinecke. It tried cases of particular gravity, for example treason, crimes
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