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Franz Kaczmarek * 1914

Lincolnstraße Einfahrt Parkplatz (Hamburg-Mitte, St. Pauli)

HIER WOHNTE
FRANZ KACZMAREK
JG. 1914
MEHRMALS VERHAFTET
1939 KZ FUHLSBÜTTEL
ERMORDET 22.10.1942
SACHSENHAUSEN

Franz Kaczmarek, born on 17 Oct. 1914, imprisoned in 1936, 1939, died on 22 Oct. 1942 in the Sachsenhausen concentration camp

Lincolnstrasse, entry to the parking lot (Lincolnstrasse 5)

Franz Kaczmarek, a native of Hötensleben in today’s German state of Sachsen-Anhalt, was dismissed from the eight-grade elementary school (Volksschule) prematurely. He made ends meet by performing as an artiste (fire-eater) at circuses, doing casual work, and working as a prostitute. In 1930/1931, at the age of 15 and 16, respectively, he was given suspended sentences of two and four days in prison, respectively, for theft and embezzlement. Between 1932 and 1935, he was sentenced five times for begging to one day up to three weeks in prison, and eventually, on 8 June 1935, he was committed to the workhouse in Glückstadt for one year.

Fifteen days after his release, on 23 June 1936, the trial for offenses according to Sec. 175 of the Reich Criminal Code (Reichsstrafgesetzbuch – RStGB) took place before the Hamburg District Court (Amtsgericht). Franz Kaczmarek was sentenced to one month in prison because he "had, in the manner of a male prostitute, sought and found the acquaintance of a man on the Reeperbahn.” Afterward, he worked sporadically in the port and took to the road. From 29 May until 2 July 1937, he was detained as a police "protective custody prisoner” ("Schutzhäftling”) in the Fuhlsbüttel concentration camp, and then, until 26 July 1937, held in the Hamburg-Stadt pretrial detention facility. Since it was impossible to substantiate the suspicion of an offense and crime in accordance with Sec. 175 and Sec. 175 a, respectively, of the Reich Criminal Code, Kaczmarek was released.

Like many other homeless people, he registered with the Kühn mass accommodation (Massenquartier Kühn) in the basement of the house at Lincolnstrasse 5. From 1 to 16 Nov. 1937, he was detained again, for reasons that can no longer be reconstructed, in the Fuhlsbüttel concentration camp. On 30 Dec. 1937, at 10:30 p.m., he and two buddies broke into the tavern called "Zum kleinen Trocadero,” located above the mass accommodation, and stole various items to sell them to acquaintances or pawn them at the pawnshop, respectively. Three days later, the offenders were put behind bars. On 13 Apr. 1938, the associate judge at the District Court (Amtsgerichtsrat) Günther Riebow sentenced the accused Franz Kaczmarek to one year in prison for grand larceny committed jointly with others.

A passage from the verdict reads, "The court made it clear categorically to Kaczmarek that he was well on his way to becoming an entirely asocial person and a habitual offender. Extenuating circumstances could be found in his case only in the fact that he does not have a criminal record for theft yet. However, the prison sentence to be imposed on him had to turn out severe. … Kaczmarek and S. … were given to understand clearly that they had to pull around the helm of their lives’ ship very hard, unless they intended to sink completely into the sphere of professional crime. "

Until 4 Jan, 1939, Franz Kaczmarek served the sentence in the Glasmoor penitentiary. Without any chance to earn a regular income, he tried to make money as a male prostitute. Doing so, he was soon caught again in the clutches of the criminal investigation department. On 2 July 1939, the Hamburg Regional Court (Landgericht) sentenced him to two years in prison for "prostitution” ("gewerbsmässige Unzucht”) in accordance with Sec. 175 a Item 4 of the Reich Criminal Code.

Starting on 15 July 1939, he served his sentence in the Wolfenbüttel penitentiary. In Mar. 1940, the Braunschweig District Court (Amtsgericht) imposed a four-month prison term for theft. An appeal hearing took place before the Wolfenbüttel Regional Court. Kaczmarek was sentenced to one year and three months in prison for aiding and abetting the escape of a prisoner. On 27 June 1942, he was handed over to the Hamburg Criminal Investigation Department and detained in the Hütten police prison. From there, he was taken to the Sachsenhausen concentration camp. The date of committal and the prisoner number are not known. On 22 Oct. 1942, Franz Kaczmarek was murdered in the Sachsenhausen concentration camp.

Translator: Erwin Fink

Kindly supported by the Hermann Reemtsma Stiftung, Hamburg.

Stand: October 2016
© Bernhard Rosenkranz/Ulf Bollmann

Quellen: StaH 213-8 Staatsanwaltschaft Oberlandesgericht – Verwaltung, Abl. 2, 451 a E 1, 1 b; StaH 213-11 Staatsanwaltschaft Landgericht – Strafsachen, 7311/38; StaH 242-1 II Gefängnisverwaltung II, Abl. 13 und 16.