Frank Walus
Encyclopedia
Frank Walus was born in Poland
, worked in Germany during the war and emigrated to the USA in the mid 1940s. He finally settled in Chicago, where he worked in an auto factory until his retirement in 1972. Two years later Walus was accused by Simon Wiesenthal
of having collaborated with the Gestapo
during the war. The ensuing court battle was presided over by Julius Hoffman
and was relatively complex. During the case more than a dozen witnesses had implicated Walus in the murders of nearly two dozen Polish civilians, including young children, and the deaths of Jews in the Polish towns of Częstochowa
and Kielce
. Walus lost the first round of the case and was subsequently stripped of his U.S. citizenship and was ordered to be deported.
There were, though, said to be discrepancies in the case, for example Walus did not fit the description of a tall, educated man, while some of the witness testimony was deemed to be inconsistent. Walus presented documentary evidence to dispute Wiesenthal's claim, which the court found to be compelling. As a consequence, the U.S. Justice Department reversed its decision, dropped its suit and paid Walus $34,000 in legal costs.
The Walus case is seen as important for two main reasons. Firstly it has been used as evidence to discredit the work of Simon Wiesenthal and the use of uncorroborated
witness testimony
in such cases. Indeed, it has sometimes been a cause célèbre
for Holocaust deniers, with exaggerated claims that Walus was accused by Wiesenthal of being a Gestapo officer or even of being the Beast of Kielce, although this latter association is also to be found in the mainstream press.
Alternatively, others claim that rather than discredit Wiesenthal, the case illustrates that the US Department of Justice has not been willing to hunt out suspected Nazis and that the case was closed too early for political reasons. For example, Israel's chief investigator of Nazi war crimes, Menachem Russek, criticized the Department of Justice for its decision not to retry the case.
Whatever the merits of the case or the controversy, the trial had a negative impact on Walus, who claimed to have been physically attacked on numerous occasions.
Walus died on August 17, 1994 after several massive heart attacks.
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, worked in Germany during the war and emigrated to the USA in the mid 1940s. He finally settled in Chicago, where he worked in an auto factory until his retirement in 1972. Two years later Walus was accused by Simon Wiesenthal
Simon Wiesenthal
Simon Wiesenthal KBE was an Austrian Holocaust survivor who became famous after World War II for his work as a Nazi hunter....
of having collaborated with the Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
during the war. The ensuing court battle was presided over by Julius Hoffman
Julius Hoffman
Julius J. Hoffman was a Chicago, Illinois, attorney and judge and former law partner of Richard J. Daley who achieved notoriety for his role in the Chicago Seven trial.-Early life:...
and was relatively complex. During the case more than a dozen witnesses had implicated Walus in the murders of nearly two dozen Polish civilians, including young children, and the deaths of Jews in the Polish towns of Częstochowa
Czestochowa
Częstochowa is a city in south Poland on the Warta River with 240,027 inhabitants . It has been situated in the Silesian Voivodeship since 1999, and was previously the capital of Częstochowa Voivodeship...
and Kielce
Kielce
Kielce ) is a city in central Poland with 204,891 inhabitants . It is also the capital city of the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship since 1999, previously in Kielce Voivodeship...
. Walus lost the first round of the case and was subsequently stripped of his U.S. citizenship and was ordered to be deported.
There were, though, said to be discrepancies in the case, for example Walus did not fit the description of a tall, educated man, while some of the witness testimony was deemed to be inconsistent. Walus presented documentary evidence to dispute Wiesenthal's claim, which the court found to be compelling. As a consequence, the U.S. Justice Department reversed its decision, dropped its suit and paid Walus $34,000 in legal costs.
The Walus case is seen as important for two main reasons. Firstly it has been used as evidence to discredit the work of Simon Wiesenthal and the use of uncorroborated
Corroborating evidence
Corroborating evidence is evidence that tends to support a proposition that is already supported by some evidence, therefore confirming the proposition. For example, W, a witness, testifies that she saw X drive his automobile into a green car...
witness testimony
Eyewitness identification
Eyewitness identification, in criminal law, is evidence received from a witness "who has actually seen an event and can so testify in court"....
in such cases. Indeed, it has sometimes been a cause célèbre
Cause célèbre
A is an issue or incident arousing widespread controversy, outside campaigning and heated public debate. The term is particularly used in connection with celebrated legal cases. It is a French phrase in common English use...
for Holocaust deniers, with exaggerated claims that Walus was accused by Wiesenthal of being a Gestapo officer or even of being the Beast of Kielce, although this latter association is also to be found in the mainstream press.
Alternatively, others claim that rather than discredit Wiesenthal, the case illustrates that the US Department of Justice has not been willing to hunt out suspected Nazis and that the case was closed too early for political reasons. For example, Israel's chief investigator of Nazi war crimes, Menachem Russek, criticized the Department of Justice for its decision not to retry the case.
Whatever the merits of the case or the controversy, the trial had a negative impact on Walus, who claimed to have been physically attacked on numerous occasions.
Walus died on August 17, 1994 after several massive heart attacks.