Grandson of Holocaust survivor attended German trial of former Nazi prison guard

MINNEAPOLIS (KMSP) - The trial of a former Nazi prison guard is underway this week in Germany and the grandson of a Minneapolis woman, who survived that concentration camp, is attending the trial on her behalf.

“For Ben—he’s in Germany—for me to do that—is the most wonderful thing to do,” said Judy Meisel.

Meisel has been in daily contact with her grandson, Ben Cohen, while he represents her in a German courtroom. He's been interviewed across Germany about his testimony. Meisel becomes emotional thinking about what he's doing over there to tell her story of survival.

“When he called me, the first phone call, it was so wonderful—that shows that he was so wonderful and strong,” she said.

The trial for 94-year-old Johann Rehbogen started Tuesday. There is no evidence linking him to a specific crime, but over 60,000 people, including Meisel’s mother, were killed at the Stuthoff concentration camp where Rehbogen was a guard for two years. Prosecutors say the 94-year-old was an accessory to hundreds of those deaths.

“We were taken to Stutthof and there it was terrible,” said Meisel.

Meisel could be a key witness in holding even more people accountable.

“The FBI has contacted us to see if she would be willing to look at a photograph of another person who could have been at Stutthof—a woman—who had been there,” said Michael Cohen, Meisel’s son.

Michael Cohen says his mother has been through so much in her life, surviving the Holocaust and moving to America to start her life over. He says while this process has been emotional for the family, it's imperative to keep her story alive for generations to come.

“If nothing comes of this, we don’t care to be honest if this 94-year-old guard goes to prison, but the fact that her story now has been told throughout Germany—she has her picture on German newspapers—on German TV—is remarkable,” said Michael Cohen.

For Judy, it’s about remembering what life is truly about.

“This is the hatred - to me the most important thing is not what we look like, it’s how we are,” said Meisel.

Due to the ex-prison guard's health and age, the trial is being restricted to only two hours a day, two days a week. It's expected to go on through January.