R & A No. 3113.7 / Principal Nazi Organizations Involved in the ...

SECRET
war. V.hen its new powers were conferred upon it the SS
Gericht was elevated to the status of an SS Hauptamt and
given its present title. The Hauptamt SS Gericht was in­
tended to deal with questions of discipline with complaints,
and with matters concerning the "personal honor" of SS
members, but its powers were steadily expanded until it
came to hnve complete jurisdiction over the SS, including
tho Waffen SS, and the Police. By decrees of 17 October
1939 and 17 April 1940 the leadership of the Allgemeine SS
an( i V^iffen SS was exempted from the military jurisdiction of
the German Army, and SS courts composed of SS men with SS
prosecutors were established, £/
There were a few exceptions to the general
practice of submitting SS personnel to independent SS legal
Jurisdiction. By an agreement between the RfSS and the
V.ehrmacht a regulation was published in 1940 which made In­
dividual members of the SS and Police subject to Armed
Forces jurisdiction in specific instances« The V.'ehrar '.it
was to exercise jurisdiction over members of tho SS and
Police if, as reservists liable lo military service, they
had committed an offence against military law or if they
had been actually inducted. Finally, if they were attached
1/ Decree of 17 October 1939 (Relchsgostzblatt, Part I,
p. 2107) Decree of 17 April 1940 (Reichsgestzblatt,
Part I, p. 659)0