Irmgard Furchner, a former secretary at a Nazi concentration camp, died at 99. Her 2022 conviction for being an accessory to over 10,000 murders symbolizes a changing approach in German judicial efforts to hold lower-level camp workers accountable, moving beyond just seeking specific evidence of individual murders. Furchner started her work at Stutthof in 1943, carrying out typical secretarial jobs, but also handled crucial tasks like typing deportation lists. Legal experts view her prosecution as a significant milestone in the fight for justice and accountability for war crimes.
The prosecution of Ms. Furchner reflected a shift over the past decade by German authorities, who now pursue cases against lower-level workers like guards as accessories to murders.
It's a real milestone in judicial accountability. The fact that a secretary in this system, a bureaucratic cog, can be brought to justice is something new.
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