Robert H. Jackson

The Nuremberg Trial was so long and complex, the attorneys from the four powers divided up the work. The chief counsel of the United States was given the task of summarizing the evidence that the defendants had been part of a conspiracy to commit war crimes. This was perhaps the most difficult charge to prove because it required evidence that all of the defendants knew of the crimes and made decisions that directly or indirectly resulted in their commission. One reason this charge was necessary was to prevent high German officials from escaping responsibility by claiming they did not personally commit all the crimes. The defendants would have liked, for example, to have only the men who pulled the triggers be tried for murder while those who ordered the killings be immune. Jackson also addressed the larger issue...