sentencing should not be vested in the court; but the
discretion should be within fixed limits appropriate to the nature of
the crime.
2. Law No. 10, to which reference has already been made, leaves
punishment entirely in the discretion of the trial court even to the
extent of inflicting the death penalty.
The De-Nazification Law of 5 March 1946, however, passed for
Bavaria, Greater-Hesse, and Württemberg-Baden, provides definite
sentences for punishment in each type of offense. The Tribunal
recommends that in no case should punishment imposed under Law No. 10
upon any members of an organization or group declared by the Tribunal
to be criminal exceed the punishment fixed by the De-Nazification
Law. No person should be punished under both laws.
3. The Tribunal recommends to the Control Council that Law No. 10
be amended to prescribe limitations on the punishment which may be
imposed for membership in a criminal group or organization so that
such punishment shall not exceed the punishment prescribed by the
De-Nazification Law.
The Indictment asks that the Tribunal declare to be criminal the
following organizations: The Leadership Corps of the Nazi Party; the
Gestapo; the SD; the SS; the SA; the Reich Cabinet, and the General
Staff and High Command of the German Armed Forces.
THE LEADERSHIP CORPS OF THE NAZI
PARTY
Structure and Component Parts
: The Indictment has named the Leadership Corps
of the Nazi Party as a group or organization which should be declared
criminal. The Leadership Corps of the Nazi Party consisted, in
effect, of the official organization of the Nazi Party, with Hitler
as Führer at its head. The actual work of running the Leadership
Corps was carried out by the Chief of the Party Chancellery (Hess,
succeeded by Bormann) assisted by the Party Reich Directorate, or
Reichsleitung, which was composed of the Reichsleiters, the heads of
the functional organizations of the Party, as well as of the heads of
the various main departments and offices which were attached to the
Party Reich Directorate. Under the Chief of the Party Chancellery
were the Gauleiters, with territorial jurisdiction over the major
administrative regions of the Party, the Gaue. The Gauleiters were
assisted by a Party Gau Directorate or Gauleitung, similar in
composition and in function to the Party Reich Directorate. Under the
Gauleiters in the Party hierarchy were the Kreisleiters with
territorial jurisdiction over a Kreis, usually consisting of a single
county, and assisted by a Party Kreis Directorate, or Kreisleitung.
The Kreisleiters were the lowest members of the Party hierarchy who
were full-time paid employees. Directly under the Kreisleiters were
the Ortsgruppenleiters, then the Zellenleiters