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Hitler's Judges: Ideological Commitment and the Death Penalty in Nazi Germany

Author

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  • Wayne Geerling
  • Gary Magee
  • Vinod Mishra
  • Russell Smyth

Abstract

We examine the role of judicial policy preferences in influencing whether judges in Nazi Germany sentenced defendants charged with serious political offences to death. We find that judicial policy preferences, measured by the depth of the ideological commitment of the judge to the Nazi Party worldview, were an important determinant of whether judges imposed the death sentence. Judges more committed to the Nazi Party were more likely to impose the death sentence on defendants belonging to organised political opposition groups, those accused of violent resistance and those with characteristics to which Nazism was intolerant.

Suggested Citation

  • Wayne Geerling & Gary Magee & Vinod Mishra & Russell Smyth, 2018. "Hitler's Judges: Ideological Commitment and the Death Penalty in Nazi Germany," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 128(614), pages 2414-2449, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:econjl:v:128:y:2018:i:614:p:2414-2449
    DOI: 10.1111/ecoj.12497
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    Cited by:

    1. Peiyuan Li & Wei Li, 2024. "Wrongful convictions with Chinese characteristics," Economics of Transition and Institutional Change, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 32(1), pages 143-163, January.
    2. Geerling, Wayne & Magee, Gary & Raschky, Paul & Smyth, Russell, 2017. "Legally Irrelevant Factors in Judicial Decision-making: Battle Deaths and the Imposition of the Death Penalty in Nazi Germany," MPRA Paper 77159, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    3. Wayne Geerling & Gary Magee & Russell Smyth, 2021. "The evolution of democratic tradition and regional variation in resistance in Nazi Germany," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 87(4), pages 1320-1344, April.
    4. Wayne Geerling & Gary Magee & Paul A. Raschky & Russell Smyth, 2020. "Bad News From The Front And From Above: Bombing Raids, Military Fatalities And The Death Penalty In Nazi Germany," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 58(3), pages 1450-1468, July.

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