Crime in Post-War Germany

The two-part documentary Crime in Post-War Germany shows how strained life was between 1945 and 1949 in the four occupied zones. Using the example of individual, particularly serious criminal cases, like in Dresden where a wood collector comes across the severed legs of a person or in Hamburg, where the so-called rubble murders terrify the whole city.

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Created By
Status	Ended
Original Name	Spektakuläre Kriminalfälle der Nachkriegszeit
First Air Date	February 20, 2020
Last Air Date	February 27, 2020
Seasons	1
Episodes	2
Episode Runtime	50min
Language	English
Original Language	German
Production Countries	Germany
Production Companies	Februar Film ZDF Enterprises ZDFinfo
Networks	ZDF

S01E02

The West

Robbery, murder, rape. After the war, West Germany was the scene of a great deal of brutal crime. On the German-Belgian border, children risk their lives for something to eat. In Bavaria, a woman is abused by US soldiers. Amidst the ruins of Hamburg, inhabitants make a shocking discovery. What lengths would people go to back then? And how did criminals exploit the chaos? The documentary shows how strained life was in the West zones, and how a society in tatters struggled to find new values. The death penalty itself is put on trial. In Tübingen, the final execution takes place in February 1949 following a judgement by the West German authorities. The foundation of the Federal Republic three months later heralded the dawn of a new era.

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