EXTRACTS FROM THE FINAL PLEA FOR DEFENDANT
KARL BRANDT[[144]]
To what extent is the defendant Karl Brandt implicated in the medical experiments?
The prosecution says he is implicated in almost all of them and refers to his position and his connections. They state that he was the highest Reich authority in the medical sphere; there, however, they are misled by an error of the translator, for Karl Brandt only had the powers, regulated in a general way, of an “Oberste Reichsbehoerde” [highest Reich agency], but the execution of these powers was restricted to special cases.
This appears from the three known decrees and from the explanation thereof given by the witnesses. Moreover Karl Brandt was not given these functions until 1944, when these experiments were practically finished, as is shown by the time schedule submitted to the Tribunal for comparison.
It has been proved that the defendant Karl Brandt himself in a broadcast publicly called his position as Reich Commissioner that of a “differential” (coordinator). In fact, Karl Brandt’s task was not to order but to adjust; it was a task designed to fit his character.
We have also learned from the presentation of evidence that the defendant Karl Brandt did not have the machinery at his disposal for issuing orders which was necessary for a supreme Reich authority; he lacked the staff and the means. No one who is acquainted with a government administration will think it possible under these circumstances that the defendant Karl Brandt might have been able to enforce his point of view against the resistance of the old agencies; no one will even think it probable that anything would have been done to facilitate such an attempt of the “new master.”
Consequently, Karl Brandt’s position was not such as to justify the conclusion drawn by the prosecution about his general knowledge. There was no official channel by which everything had to come to his knowledge, for he was not the superior of other authorities.
It is true that the defendant Karl Brandt was supposed to be informed about fundamental matters, that he had the right to intervene, etc. But these were only possibilities, not in conformity with conditions in practice. We have seen that Conti opposed him and that Himmler prohibited direct contact with Karl Brandt within his sphere.
Therefore, Karl Brandt can be brought into connection only with the events in which he participated directly.