Germany prosecutors investigating East German Stasi order to shoot defectors News
Germany prosecutors investigating East German Stasi order to shoot defectors

[JURIST] German Federal Commissioner Marianne Birthler [official profile] said Monday that a written order instructing border guards in the former German Democratic Republic [Wikipedia backgrounder] to shoot defectors is being scrutinized by prosecutors to determine whether the document, dated October 1, 1973, could lead to the prosecution of former East German officials. The order, issued by the East German Ministry for State Security [Wikipedia backgrounder], infamously known as the Stasi, encouraged border guards to "not hesitate with the use of a firearm" to prevent East German citizens from defecting to the West. German Federal Ministry of Justice [official website] spokesperson Henning Ploeger confirmed that prosecutors were studying the document.

The Office of the Federal Commissioner [official website] is tasked with recovering and preserving documents from the so-called "Stasi Archives." AP has more.

THIS DAY @ LAW

International Day Against Fascism and Anti-Semitism

November 9 is the International Day Against Fascism and Anti-Semitism [UNITED factsheet]. On November 9, 1924, American gay activist Henry Gerber and several associates formed the Society for Human Rights, the first gay rights organization in the United States. The Society received a charter from the State of Illinois in December but was disbanded in July 1925 after a police raid which led to Gerber's arrest and trial (albeit not conviction). Pay a virtual visit to Henry Gerber House, now a registered Chicago landmark.

Supreme Court strikes down Massachusetts anti-draft law

On November 9, 1970, the Supreme Court voted 6-3 in Massachusetts v. Laird not to hear the case of the state's anti-draft law. Massachusetts had passed a law, which allowed its citizens to decline to fight in any undeclared war, even if the person was drafted. The law was passed in opposition to the draft and the war in Vietnam. The First Circuit found the war constitutional and thus struck down the law.