Mark E. Kalmansohn
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| Mark E. Kalmansohn | |
.jpg) Kalmanson in 2004
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| Born | 1953  Los Angeles, California U.S. |
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| Occupation | Attorney, Author, Humanitarian |
| Website http://www.m-klaw.com |
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Mark E. Kalmansohn is the former prosecutor for the United States Department of Justice who hunted down and brought to trial Lucian Ludwig Kozminski, an oberkapo convicted in 1982 of swindling some 3,000 of his fellow Holocaust survivors. An oberkapo was an SS-appointed Jewish enforcer within the German death camps during World War II.[1]
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[edit] Rightful justice
Kalmansohn, a Jewish-American of Lithuanian lineage, served as a federal prosecutor from 1977 to 1983. Vowing rightful justice for the twice-victimized survivors of the Holocaust, Kalmansohn independently undertook a lengthy investigation and pro bono civil action to make Kozminski pay for his crimes against humanity. The majority of Kozminski's victims were elderly.[2]
[edit] The crime
According to court records from his 1982 trial, Kozminski posed as a reparations counselor who charged exorbitant up-front and service fees, then pocketed German restitution checks intended for Holocaust survivors. Kalmansohn estimated that Kozminski bilked his victims out of an estimated $1 million, which, with inflation and interest, would have been worth well over $10 million by 2002.[2]
[edit] The indictment
Holocaust survivors Jacob Weingarten and Modka "Max" Wolman took their complaints to federal authorities, who, in turn, assigned the criminal case to Kalmansohn in 1982. After an exhaustive investigation spanning two continents, Kalmansohn and then postal inspector Lou Kinzler obtained grand jury indictments against Kozminski. Pleading guilty to eight counts of mail and bankruptcy fraud, Kozminski was sentenced to twelve years in federal prison.[3]
[edit] The ultimate con
Bureau of Prisons records show that Kozminski was released from prison in 1989, even though he was allegedly spotted walking a street in Beverly Hills, California, in 1987. Kozminski was also reportedly seen numerous times following his supposed death in 1993.
Amid mounting evidence which led to the belief that Kozminski could have faked his death to avoid paying Holocaust survivors their blood money, Kalmansohn filed civil suits against Kozminski on behalf of Weingarten and Wolman.
In 1999, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge John W. Ouderkirk ruled that Kozminski's death certificate was false and/or fraudulent and that Kozminski may still be alive. In 2000, a second judge concurred in the earlier finding.[4] [5]
[edit] Nothing is too late
In 2007, Kalmansohn continued to be haunted by the Kozminski case. Kalmansohn dealt with it in a non-fiction titled Nothing Is Too Late: The Hunt for a Holocaust Swindler, published in 2004. The book is archived by the Library of Congress in Washington, DC, and serves as a Textbook for law and social science students worldwide. Kalmansohn's quest for ultimate justice has been broadcast by Dateline NBC, 60 Minutes, Fox' America's Most Wanted and CNN.
"I really don't know whether Kozminski, who's now [elderly], is dead or alive," said Kalmansohn. "To cite Winston Churchill's observation on Russia, the case remains 'a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an [[enigma.'"[2]
[edit] Charity
At the 2007 Trump Invitational Golf Classic in Rancho Palos Verdes, California, Kalmansohn donated a signed first edition of Nothing Is Too Late for auction; proceeds benefited the Salvation Army's educational programs for youth at risk.[6]
[edit] Career
In the late 1970's, Kalmansohn served in the United States Department of Justice as a trial attorney in the Antitrust Division, as part of the U.S. Attorney General's Employment Program for honor law graduates. Kalmansohn was appointed Executive director of the North American Anti-Piracy Operation of the Motion Picture Association of America in 1987. Kalmansohn is a member of the State Bar of California, the District of Columbia Bar and the United States Supreme Court Bar. [7]
[edit] Education
In 1974, Kalmansohn graduated summa cum laude from UCLA with a bachelor of arts degree in political science. He graduated from UCLA Law School in 1977. Kalmansohn received a diploma in international law from Darwin College, University of Cambridge at London, England in 1984.[8]
[edit] Family
Kalmansohn, a native of Los Angeles, California, was born in 1953. He is the son of Dr. Robert Kalmansohn and Dr. Katherine Kalmansohn.[9]
[edit] References
- ^ [1]
- ^ a b c “Holocaust Swindler Alive?” Jewish Telegraphic Agency, July 5, 2002, by Tom Tugend
- ^ [2]
- ^ “Nothing Is Too Late: The Hunt for a Holocaust Swindler” Library of Congress Cataloguing-in-Publication Data, HV6695.K35, 2003, by Mark E. Kalmansohn
- ^ [3]
- ^ Southern California - Home
- ^ [4]
- ^ [5]
- ^ [6]
