U.S. v. Ciurinskas

Citation976 F.Supp. 1167
Decision Date18 June 1997
Docket NumberNo. 2:93 CV 97JM.,2:93 CV 97JM.
PartiesUNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff, v. Kazys CIURINSKAS, Defendant.
CourtU.S. District Court — Northern District of Indiana

J. Philip Klingeberger, U.S. Attorneys Office, Dyer, IN, Neal M. Sher, Ronnie L. Edelman, Robert G. Seasonwein, Denise N. Slavin, Robert J. Groner, Susan Masling, Susan L. Siegal, William H. Kenety, U.S. Dept. of Justice, Office of Special Investigations, Washington, DC, for plaintiff.

Richard F. James, Luke A. Casson, James, James and Manning, P.C., Dyer, IN, John A. Gibaitis, Algis P. Glamba, Chicago, IL, for defendant.

MEMORANDUM OPINION and ORDER, FINDINGS OF FACT and CONCLUSIONS OF LAW

MOODY, District Judge.

This matter came before the court on June 19, 1995 for a bench trial. Oversimplifying the details in the interest of providing a brief summary, the United States seeks to revoke the citizenship of defendant Kazys Ciurinskas ("Ciurinskas") because of his service in the Lithuanian Schutzmannschaft during World War II, and subsequent concealment of that service when he applied to immigrate to and become a citizen of the United States.

Ciurinskas does not deny that he served in a military battalion that eventually became known as the Lithuanian Schutzmannschaft. Neither does he deny that the Lithuanian Schutzmannschaft assisted German military and para-military police units in the execution of thousands of Jews and the commission of other atrocities. Instead, Ciurinskas defends by contending that, at the time he served, he believed that he was serving in a military organization, not controlled by the Germans, known only to him as the Lithuanian Self Defense Battalion; that during the entire period of his service he remained in the Lithuania's capital city during World War II, Kaunas, guarding a fort and warehouses containing food, clothing and other supplies; that he took no part in the commission of atrocities, and was not aware that the Lithuanian Self Defense Battalion was assisting in the commission of atrocities; and that he did not knowingly misrepresent his wartime service when applying for entry to the United States, but instead was never asked a question which dictated that he respond by disclosing that service.

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

The following discussion is intended only to provide context for the court's findings and conclusions, and is not part of the court's factual findings. This discussion is largely a summary of the parties' description of the historical events, however, supplemented by evidence introduced at trial (particularly the testimony of historical expert Dr. Richard Breitman), and consists mostly of facts the parties do not dispute. To the extent that the discussion incorporates evidence that is in dispute, however, the court will, later in this memorandum, make specific factual findings supporting this summary.

Prior to 1939, the Republic of Lithuania was an autonomous country bounded by Germany on the west and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on the east. In 1939, the U.S.S.R., apparently with Lithuanian permission, established a garrison of 25,000 troops in Lithuania. In June 1940, however, pursuant to a secret agreement between Hitler and Stalin, the USSR invaded and permanently occupied Lithuania. During the period of Soviet occupation, Lithuanian officials, intellectuals and civilians were jailed, sent to forced labor camps in the U.S.S.R., tortured and murdered. The Lithuanian National Army was subjugated to the command of the Soviets, renamed the 29th Territorial Corps, given Soviet insignia and rankings and used by the Soviets to perform menial non-combat tasks.

On June 22, 1941, Hitler breached his agreement with Stalin and Germany attacked the USSR on an 1800 mile front extending from the Baltic sea southward to the Black Sea, and began a push eastward toward Leningrad. In Lithuania (and other regions recently occupied by the Soviets) there was practically no Soviet resistance to the invasion. The German invasion was popularly viewed by the Lithuanians as liberation from the Soviets, and many members of the Lithuanian Army turned on their Soviet commanders. Eighteen German divisions advanced through Lithuania in a little more than three days.

By June 27 or 28, 1941, the bulk of the German military force had left Lithuania and moved east to invade the Soviet Union. Lithuania remained entirely occupied by Germany, however, under the control of German mobile Security Police units known as Einsatzgruppen. The Einsatzgruppen were composed of company-sized subdivisions called Einsatzkommandos. In addition, a mobile unit of the German Order Police, the 11th Reserve Police Battalion, occupied Lithuania with a contingent of 400-500 officers and men.

During the initial period of this German occupation the Lithuanian people viewed the Germans as liberators of Lithuania from the Soviet Union, and intended to re-establish Lithuania as an autonomous political state, establishing a provisional Lithuanian government toward that end. Announcements on the radio and via handbills posted in the Lithuanian capital city, Kaunas, sought volunteers for the "Tautos Darbo Apsaugos Batalijonas," which may be translated as "Battalion for the Defense of National Labor," intended to be the new Lithuanian army.

Germany had a different plan for Lithuania, however, intending to subordinate it and other occupied eastern territories to German rule. Thus, the German police units described above, as well as German civil authorities, refused to recognize the Lithuanian provisional government. It quickly disbanded, no later than August, 1941. The various companies of the Battalion for the Defense of National Labor were then reorganized to serve German purposes, under the control of the Einsatzgruppe and the Order Police. The Battalion's name was changed, in Lithuanian, to "Pagelbines Policijos Tarnylos Batalijonas," which translates as "Auxiliary Police Service Battalion." At the same time, the Germans began referring to the Battalion, as they did for all indigenous police forces in occupied eastern countries, as the "Schutzmannschaft," which roughly translates as "protective group" or "protective force."

The Germans quickly expanded the role of the Schutzmannschaft,1 implementing them to help carry out the "Final Solution," that is, Hitler's plan to "cleanse" the occupied Eastern territories by interring and/or executing all Jews, partisans (of the Soviets), Gypsies and "Bolsheviks," a term used mainly to describe Soviet Communists and Jews but loosely used as a catch-all for the groups named and anyone else the Germans considered to be an enemy or undesirable. Thus, during the fall of 1941, the winter of 1941-42, and the spring of 1942, the Schutzmannschaft participated and assisted in the killing of thousands of civilians, mainly Lithuanian Jews and Jews in other nearby German-occupied eastern areas.

CONTENTIONS OF THE UNITED STATES

This action was commenced when the United States filed a seven-count complaint on March 29, 1993, pursuant to section 340(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, as amended, (hereinafter, the "INA"), 8 U.S.C. § 1451(a), seeking to revoke the February 17, 1955, order of this court admitting Ciurinskas to United States' citizenship, and to cancel Ciurinskas's Certificate of Naturalization No. 7262096.

In Count I of its complaint, the United States contends that Ciurinskas's citizenship was illegally procured pursuant to section 316(a)(1) of the INA, 8 U.S.C. § 1427(a)(1) (as in effect at the relevant time), and must be revoked pursuant to INA section 340(a), 8 U.S.C. § 1451(a), because Ciurinskas was not lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent residence. The United States contends that Ciurinskas's admission to the United States was unlawful because he was not eligible for the visa he obtained under the Displaced Persons Act (hereinafter, "DPA"), 62 Stat. 1009, because he assisted the enemy in persecuting civilians.

Count II of the complaint contends that Ciurinskas's citizenship was illegally procured pursuant to section 316(a)(1) of the INA, 8 U.S.C. § 1427(a)(1), and must be revoked pursuant to INA section 340(a), 8 U.S.C. § 1451(a), because Ciurinskas was not lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent residence because he was not eligible for a visa under the DPA because he voluntarily assisted enemy forces during the Second World War.

Count III of the complaint contends that Ciurinskas's citizenship was illegally procured pursuant to section 316(a)(1) of the INA, 8 U.S.C. § 1427(a)(1), and must be revoked pursuant to INA section 340(a), 8 U.S.C. § 1451(a), because Ciurinskas was not lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent residence because he was not eligible for a visa under the DPA because he was a member of, or participated in, a movement hostile to the United States.

Count IV of the complaint contends that Ciurinskas's citizenship was illegally procured pursuant to section 316(a)(1) of the INA, 8 U.S.C. § 1427(a)(1), and must be revoked pursuant to INA section 340(a), 8 U.S.C. § 1451(a), because Ciurinskas was not lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent residence because he was not eligible for a visa under State Department regulations, 22 C.F.R. §§ 53.32-53.33, because he advocated or acquiesced in activities or conduct contrary to human decency on behalf of Axis countries during the Second World War or because of similar circumstances his entry was prejudicial to the interests of the United States.

Count V of the complaint contends that Ciurinskas's citizenship was illegally procured pursuant to section 316(a)(1) of the INA, 8 U.S.C. § 1427(a)(1), and must be revoked pursuant to INA section 340(a), 8 U.S.C. § 1451(a), because Ciurinskas was not lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent residence because he was not eligible for a visa under the DPA because ...

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