Neither Apathetic nor Empathetic: Investigating and Prosecuting the Rape of German Civilians by U.S. Servicemen in 1945

In spring and early summer 1945, U.S. forces in Germany were responsible for a wave of violent rapes of local women and girls. Investigating and prosecuting these crimes proved a major challenge for the U.S. Army’s military justice system. This article examines ninety-five documented cases of rape and sexual assault from the period, involving more than two hundred uniformed culprits. Within the constraints imposed by wartime, investigators and members of courts-martial brought a surprising degree of professionalism to bear upon their task. Their efforts were, however, often frustrated by the army’s system of post-trial review which, in response to public pressure, displayed a marked preferential option for perpetrators. The record thus indicates that in contrast to a pervasive “rape culture” at all levels of command, the failure to deliver justice to victims is attributable in these cases to more specific and identifiable causes.