Imre Finta
Encyclopedia
Imre Finta was the first person prosecuted under Canada's war crimes legislation. He was charged in 1987 and acquitted in 1990.
Imre Finta was a commander of the Gendarmerie in Szeged
, Hungary during the Second World War. He immigrated to Canada in 1948 and settled in Toronto in 1953 where he bought a restaurant. He later operated a catering business. Finta became a Canadian citizen in 1956.
He was accused of committing manslaughter, kidnapping, unlawful confinement and robbery in relation to his alleged activities as a police officer assisting the Nazis in the forced deportation of 8,617 Jews from Szeged during the Holocaust.
Finta was defended by lawyers Doug Christie
and Barbara Kulaszka
and was supported by far-right figures such as Ernst Zündel
. His defence was based on the argument that he had only been following orders and was only responsible for transporting Jews.
Finta was acquitted after a six month jury trial. The acquittal was upheld by the Ontario Court of Appeal in 1992 and the Supreme Court of Canada in 1994. Justice Peter Cory, writing on behalf of the Supreme Court, said "Even where the orders are manifestly unlawful, the defence of obedience to superior orders and the peace-officer defence will be available in those circumstances where the accused had no moral choice as to whether to follow the order." The Supreme Court also ruled that the use of the Criminal Code to prosecute Finta was unconstitutional.
The decision brought to an end prosecutions under Canada's nascent war crimes legislation. Thereafter, the government attempted to deal with alleged war criminals by stripping them of their Canadian citizenship and deporting them to the country in which the alleged crime occurred.
Imre Finta was a commander of the Gendarmerie in Szeged
Szeged
' is the third largest city of Hungary, the largest city and regional centre of the Southern Great Plain and the county town of Csongrád county. The University of Szeged is one of the most distinguished universities in Hungary....
, Hungary during the Second World War. He immigrated to Canada in 1948 and settled in Toronto in 1953 where he bought a restaurant. He later operated a catering business. Finta became a Canadian citizen in 1956.
He was accused of committing manslaughter, kidnapping, unlawful confinement and robbery in relation to his alleged activities as a police officer assisting the Nazis in the forced deportation of 8,617 Jews from Szeged during the Holocaust.
Finta was defended by lawyers Doug Christie
Doug Christie (lawyer)
Douglas Hewson "Doug" Christie, Jr. is a Canadian lawyer and far-right political activist based in Victoria, British Columbia.-Career:...
and Barbara Kulaszka
Barbara Kulaszka
Barbara Kulaszka is a Canadian lawyer known especially for her role in defending far-right figures.Kulaszka has been a member of the Law Society of Upper Canada since 1980 and has practiced law since 1987. She acted with Doug Christie as co-counsel to Holocaust denier Ernst Zündel in the 1980s and...
and was supported by far-right figures such as Ernst Zündel
Ernst Zündel
Ernst Christof Friedrich Zündel is a German Holocaust denier and pamphleteer who was jailed several times in Canada for publishing literature which "is likely to incite hatred against an identifiable group" and for being a threat to national security, in the United States for overstaying his visa,...
. His defence was based on the argument that he had only been following orders and was only responsible for transporting Jews.
Finta was acquitted after a six month jury trial. The acquittal was upheld by the Ontario Court of Appeal in 1992 and the Supreme Court of Canada in 1994. Justice Peter Cory, writing on behalf of the Supreme Court, said "Even where the orders are manifestly unlawful, the defence of obedience to superior orders and the peace-officer defence will be available in those circumstances where the accused had no moral choice as to whether to follow the order." The Supreme Court also ruled that the use of the Criminal Code to prosecute Finta was unconstitutional.
The decision brought to an end prosecutions under Canada's nascent war crimes legislation. Thereafter, the government attempted to deal with alleged war criminals by stripping them of their Canadian citizenship and deporting them to the country in which the alleged crime occurred.
Source
- Imre Finta: Not guilty CBC News archives