Mel Mermelstein
Encyclopedia
Mel Mermelstein is a Hungarian-born Jew, sole-survivor of his family's extermination at Auschwitz concentration camp
who defeated the Institute for Historical Review
in an American court and had the occurrence of gassings in Auschwitz during the Holocaust
declared a legally incontestable fact.
Before World War II
broke out, Mermelstein lived in Munkacs, then part of Czechoslovakia
(occupied by Hungary
in 1938). On May 19, 1944 he was deported to Auschwitz along with the rest of the Jewish community.
(IHR) promised a $50,000 reward to anyone who could prove that Jews were gassed at Auschwitz.
Mermelstein wrote a letter to the editor
s of the LA Times and others including The Jerusalem Post
. The Institute for Historical Review wrote back, offering him $50,000 for proof that Jews were, in fact, gassed in the gas chambers at Auschwitz. Mermelstein, in turn, submitted a notarized account of his internment at Auschwitz and how he witnessed Nazi guards ushering his mother and two sisters and others towards (as he learned later) gas chamber number five.
Despite this, the IHR refused to pay the reward. Represented by public interest attorney William John Cox
, Mermelstein subsequently sued the IHR in the Superior Court of Los Angeles County
for breach of contract
, anticipatory repudiation
, libel, injurious denial of established fact, intentional infliction of emotional distress
, and declaratory relief
(see case no. C 356 542). On October 9, 1981, both parties in the Mermelstein case filed motions for summary judgment
in consideration of which Judge Thomas T. Johnson of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County
took "judicial notice
of the fact that Jews were gassed to death at the Auschwitz Concentration Camp in Poland during the summer of 1944." On August 5, 1985, Judge Robert A. Wenke entered a judgment based upon the Stipulation
for Entry of Judgment agreed upon by the parties on July 22, 1985. The judgment required IHR and other defendants to pay $90,000 to Mermelstein and to issue a letter of apology to "Mr. Mel Mermelstein, a survivor of Auschwitz-Birkenau and Buchenwald, and all other survivors of Auschwitz" for "pain, anguish and suffering" caused to them.
Holocaust deniers
have subsequently claimed that the proof offered by Mermelstein was "never released to the public", implying that it had been sealed by the court or otherwise kept secret. In a pre-trial determination, Judge Thomas T. Johnson declared:
In California, the Evidence Code permits the Court to take judicial notice of "facts and propositions of generalized knowledge that are so universally known that they cannot reasonably be the subject of dispute." This was the first time that any court in the United States
took judicial notice of the Holocaust.
In 1986, the IHR, along with its founder Willis Carto, sued Mermelstein for allegedly libelling them during an interview with a New York
radio station, but dropped the charges in 1988. Mermelstein also sued the IHR in 1988 for an article in the IHR Newsletter that examined flaws and inconsistencies in his 1981 lawsuit testimony. This suit was dropped in 1991.
Mermelstein was portrayed by Leonard Nimoy
and Cox was played by Dabney Coleman
in a 1991 TV movie about the 1981 lawsuit. The movie is called Never Forget
. He wrote of the court battle in his autobiography, entitled By Bread Alone.
Auschwitz concentration camp
Concentration camp Auschwitz was a network of Nazi concentration and extermination camps built and operated by the Third Reich in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany during World War II...
who defeated the Institute for Historical Review
Institute for Historical Review
The Institute for Historical Review , founded in 1978, is an American organization that describes itself as a "public-interest educational, research and publishing center dedicated to promoting greater public awareness of history." Critics have accused it of being an antisemitic "pseudo-scholarly...
in an American court and had the occurrence of gassings in Auschwitz during the Holocaust
The Holocaust
The Holocaust , also known as the Shoah , was the genocide of approximately six million European Jews and millions of others during World War II, a programme of systematic state-sponsored murder by Nazi...
declared a legally incontestable fact.
Biography
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
broke out, Mermelstein lived in Munkacs, then part of Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
(occupied by Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
in 1938). On May 19, 1944 he was deported to Auschwitz along with the rest of the Jewish community.
The Institute for Historical Review
In 1980, the Institute for Historical ReviewInstitute for Historical Review
The Institute for Historical Review , founded in 1978, is an American organization that describes itself as a "public-interest educational, research and publishing center dedicated to promoting greater public awareness of history." Critics have accused it of being an antisemitic "pseudo-scholarly...
(IHR) promised a $50,000 reward to anyone who could prove that Jews were gassed at Auschwitz.
Mermelstein wrote a letter to the editor
Letter to the editor
A letter to the editor is a letter sent to a publication about issues of concern from its readers. Usually, letters are intended for publication...
s of the LA Times and others including The Jerusalem Post
The Jerusalem Post
The Jerusalem Post is an Israeli daily English-language broadsheet newspaper, founded on December 1, 1932 by Gershon Agron as The Palestine Post. The daily readership numbers do not approach those of the major Hebrew newspapers....
. The Institute for Historical Review wrote back, offering him $50,000 for proof that Jews were, in fact, gassed in the gas chambers at Auschwitz. Mermelstein, in turn, submitted a notarized account of his internment at Auschwitz and how he witnessed Nazi guards ushering his mother and two sisters and others towards (as he learned later) gas chamber number five.
Despite this, the IHR refused to pay the reward. Represented by public interest attorney William John Cox
William John Cox
William John Cox is an American public interest lawyer, retired prosecutor, author and political activist.- Background :...
, Mermelstein subsequently sued the IHR in the Superior Court of Los Angeles County
Superior Court of Los Angeles County
The Superior Court of Los Angeles County is the Superior Court located in Los Angeles County. It is the largest single unified trial court in the United States....
for breach of contract
Breach of contract
Breach of contract is a legal cause of action in which a binding agreement or bargained-for exchange is not honored by one or more of the parties to the contract by non-performance or interference with the other party's performance....
, anticipatory repudiation
Anticipatory repudiation
Anticipatory repudiation, also called an anticipatory breach, is a term in the law of contracts that describes a declaration by the promising party to a contract, that he or she does not intend to live up to his or her obligations under the contract....
, libel, injurious denial of established fact, intentional infliction of emotional distress
Intentional infliction of emotional distress
Intentional infliction of emotional distress is a tort claim of recent origin for intentional conduct that results in extreme emotional distress. Some courts and commentators have substituted mental for emotional, but the tort is the same...
, and declaratory relief
Declaratory relief
Declaratory relief is a judge's determination of the parties' rights under a contract or a statute, often requested in a lawsuit over a contract. In theory, an early resolution of legal rights will resolve some or all of the other issues in the matter....
(see case no. C 356 542). On October 9, 1981, both parties in the Mermelstein case filed motions for summary judgment
Summary judgment
In law, a summary judgment is a determination made by a court without a full trial. Such a judgment may be issued as to the merits of an entire case, or of specific issues in that case....
in consideration of which Judge Thomas T. Johnson of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County
Superior Court of Los Angeles County
The Superior Court of Los Angeles County is the Superior Court located in Los Angeles County. It is the largest single unified trial court in the United States....
took "judicial notice
Judicial notice
Judicial notice is a rule in the law of evidence that allows a fact to be introduced into evidence if the truth of that fact is so notorious or well known that it cannot be refuted. This is done upon the request of the party seeking to have the fact at issue determined by the court...
of the fact that Jews were gassed to death at the Auschwitz Concentration Camp in Poland during the summer of 1944." On August 5, 1985, Judge Robert A. Wenke entered a judgment based upon the Stipulation
Stipulation
In the law of the United States, a stipulation is an agreement made between opposing parties prior to a pending hearing or trial. For example, both parties might stipulate to certain facts, and therefore not have to argue those facts in court. After the stipulation is entered into, it is...
for Entry of Judgment agreed upon by the parties on July 22, 1985. The judgment required IHR and other defendants to pay $90,000 to Mermelstein and to issue a letter of apology to "Mr. Mel Mermelstein, a survivor of Auschwitz-Birkenau and Buchenwald, and all other survivors of Auschwitz" for "pain, anguish and suffering" caused to them.
Holocaust deniers
Holocaust denial
Holocaust denial is the act of denying the genocide of Jews in World War II, usually referred to as the Holocaust. The key claims of Holocaust denial are: the German Nazi government had no official policy or intention of exterminating Jews, Nazi authorities did not use extermination camps and gas...
have subsequently claimed that the proof offered by Mermelstein was "never released to the public", implying that it had been sealed by the court or otherwise kept secret. In a pre-trial determination, Judge Thomas T. Johnson declared:
"This court does take judicial notice of the fact that Jews were gassed to death at Auschwitz Concentration Camp in PolandPolandPoland , 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...
during the summer of 1944. It is not reasonably subject to dispute. And it is capable of immediate and accurate determination by resort to sources of reasonably indisputable accuracy. It is simply a fact."
In California, the Evidence Code permits the Court to take judicial notice of "facts and propositions of generalized knowledge that are so universally known that they cannot reasonably be the subject of dispute." This was the first time that any court in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
took judicial notice of the Holocaust.
In 1986, the IHR, along with its founder Willis Carto, sued Mermelstein for allegedly libelling them during an interview with a New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
radio station, but dropped the charges in 1988. Mermelstein also sued the IHR in 1988 for an article in the IHR Newsletter that examined flaws and inconsistencies in his 1981 lawsuit testimony. This suit was dropped in 1991.
Mermelstein was portrayed by Leonard Nimoy
Leonard Nimoy
Leonard Simon Nimoy is an American actor, film director, poet, musician and photographer. Nimoy's most famous role is that of Spock in the original Star Trek series , multiple films, television and video game sequels....
and Cox was played by Dabney Coleman
Dabney Coleman
Dabney Wharton Coleman is an American actor, best known for his roles in 9 to 5, WarGames, You've Got Mail, Sworn to Silence, The Beverly Hillbillies and as the voice of Principal Peter Prickly in Recess and Recess: School's Out.-Early life:Coleman was born in Austin, Texas, the son of Mary...
in a 1991 TV movie about the 1981 lawsuit. The movie is called Never Forget
Never Forget (1991 film)
Never Forget is a TNT Drama movie, starring Leonard Nimoy and directed by Joseph Sargent-Plot:Mr. Mermelstein and Mrs. Mermelstein a true-life California couple, thrown into the spotlight of judicial history in the 1980s...
. He wrote of the court battle in his autobiography, entitled By Bread Alone.
"About these so-called deniers of The Holocaust, and who they really are, see my letter to the editors dated August 1980 in my book By Bread Alone, The Story of A-4685."- Mel Mermelstein
External links
- Deniers in Revisionists Clothing - Information about the Institute for Historical Review and Mermelstein settlement.
- Mel Mermelstein files (Nizkor Archive Directory, Shofar FTP)
- Mel Mermelsteins non-profit organization