a. The other Attorneys General
b. Supreme Command of the Armed Forces
Referring to the letter of 10 November 1943
14 n 16.18 WR (I/3)—129/43 g
c. Reich Leader SS and Chief of the German Police at the Reich Ministry of the Interior
—Chief of the Security Police and of the SD—
Referring to the letter of 17 December 1943
IV D 4-103/42 g
As supplement to my circular decree dated 28 October 1942—IV a 1668/42 g—I order the following concerning the treatment of NN prisoners who were acquitted by a general court, against whom such proceedings were quashed, or who served their sentence imposed on them by a general court:
1. If during the trial of an NN proceeding it appears that the defendant is innocent or that his guilt has not been sufficiently established, he will be handed over to the Secret State Police; the public prosecutor will inform the Secret State Police of his opinion whether the defendant can be released and return to the occupied territories, or whether he will continue to remain under detention. The Secret State Police will decide what further actions are to be taken.
2. Defendants who were acquitted, or against whom proceedings were quashed during the trial, or who served a sentence during the war, will be handed over to the Secret State Police for detention for the duration of the war. The Reich Leader SS and Chief of the German Police at the Reich Ministry of the Interior has ordered that these defendants will always be given the mildest grade of protective custody, i.e., grade I.