27. The children at the Kinderheim all experienced the same sequence of symptoms: vomiting, diarrhea, emaciation, distended bluish colored abdomens, and, finally, death. When Allied investigators exhumed some of the children's bodies, they found evidence of extreme malnutrition, and bloated and distended abdomens. One Kinderheim nurse described the children as "rotting away with each passing day."(25) Statement of Hilda Lammer. Even though illness in the nursery had reached epidemic proportions, the staff made no effort to stop the spread of infection. There were several children to a bed, yet the children's diapers, clothes and bed linens were left filthy and unchanged for hours. The odor in the nursery was reported to be sickening. The windows in the nursery were left open during the winter. Although children were constantly sick with infections and sores, no effort was made to isolate the sick children from the healthy. The nurses did not bathe the children in fresh bath water; often ten to fifteen children, both sick and healthy, were bathed in the same water and dried with the same towel. (26) Id.

28. In addition to the disease and infection caused by unsanitary conditions in the nursery, the children suffered from starvation. A Polish nurse testified the children were so skinny "you could notice the bones.(27)" Testimony of Charlotte Bass at the "Military Court held at Helmstedt [Germany] May- June 1946, for the Trial of War Criminals" on the eighth day of the trial, 5/28/46. From the British Public Records Office in Surrey, War Office Case: 235/263-277, "Ruhen Baby Farm Case," at 4. The mothers who wanted to breast feed were often thrown out by the German nurses who claimed they had "stolen" food or supplies. The supervising nurse at the Kinderheim, Ella Schmidt, reportedly beat mothers who came to visit their children after hours or without a police permit. (28) Sworn Statement of Eugenie Wirl, 6/7/45, from the War Crimes Report.

Polish and Russian children received smaller rations than others, and the milk given to the children was so spoiled and cold the children could not drink it, yet no effort was made to get fresh milk. Children less than three months old were fed a formula that was too coarse and indigestible for such young infants. One mother who was allowed to breast feed her infant in the evenings testified that the child took her breast milk, but vomited the bottled milk given by the nurses. The children were not fed between the hours of 7:00 p.m. and 4:30 a.m., and were left alone in the nursery during this time with only one nurse to care for them. A U.S. Army physician concluded that the conditions and care of the infants at the nursery fell "below the most minimum standards of the medical profession.(29)" War Crimes Report at 8; Statement of Clifford Byrum; Sworn Statement of Dr. Frederick Dann, 6/8/45, from the War Crimes Report.

29. The mothers who knew of the deplorable conditions at the Kinderheim desperately tried to rescue their babies by sneaking them out through the nursery windows or hiding them in their handbags. Often, the children were beyond saving. One healthy six week- old infant died after spending only three days in the Kinderheim. The infant's mother took the child from the Kinderheim three days after she was forced to leave it there because "it was in a dying state." The mother testified that the child was "so exhausted it did not have the strength to suck the breast" and finally died five days later "with its eyes wide open, and [with] froth at the mouth. (30)" Testimony of Czeslawa Kwiatkowska, 6/3/45, from the War Crimes Report.

30. The conditions at the Ruhen day nursery ultimately resulted in a mortality rate of nearly 100 percent. In August 1944 alone, 60 or more children died. Death records indicate that during the Kinderheims last year of operation, nearly every child that came there died. (31) Confidential letter from H.S. Barrett, Brigadier, Judicial Staff, office of the Judge Advocate General in London, 8/26/46, to the General Officer Commanding-Headquarters, in- Chief, British Army of the Rhine, on the "Proceedings" of the "MilitaryCourt held at Helmstedt [Germany] May-June 1946, for the Trial of War Criminals," from the British Public Records Office in Surrey, War Office Case: 235/263-277, "Ruhen Baby Farm Case," at 2.

Most lived only one or two months, some only days. The Kinderheim death records listed the cause of death for the children as follows: (32) List of Babies Born at Volkswagen Kinderheim, from the War Crimes Report, attached hereto as Exhibit H.

Cause of Death Number of Children
Too Weak to Live 180
Feebleness 23
Sepsis 9
Furncolusis 4
Malnutrition 3
Digestive Disturbance 3
Heart Failure 2
Lung Inflamation 1
Cramps 1
Unknown 136

No autopsies were performed to determine the actual cause of the children's death.<(33) Confidential letter from H.S. Barrett, Brigadier, Judicial Staff, office of the Judge Advocate General in London, 8/26/46, to the General Officer Commanding-Headquarters, in- Chief, British Army of the Rhine, on the "Proceedings" of the "Military Court held at Helmstedt [Germany] May-June 1946, for the Trial of War Criminals," from the British Public Records Office in Surrey, War Office Case: 235/263-277, "Ruhen Baby Farm Case," at 2. According to monthly reports submitted to managers of the Volkswagen factory by Dr. Hans Korbel, the medical director for the Wolfsburg factory and the Kinderheim, as many as 31 children died every month during the last year of the nursery's operation - which was often more than the number of new infants admitted. (34) "Monthly reports, Home for Foreign Children," from the War Crimes Report.

31. At the Kinderheim, the dead children were thinly wrapped in toilet paper and piled one atop another in the nursery's bathroom. Sometimes, the bodies of the children would lie in the bathroom for days until the undertaker arrived to take them away on his bicycle. The undertaker buried the children in shallow mass graves without coffins. Although in most cases the children were only wrapped in toilet paper, sometimes paper cartons were used. The undertaker buried the children in a haphazard manner, with as many as 14 infants in a single grave, with no marker or gravestone.(35) War Crimes Report at 9. There were no services or funerals for the children, and the mothers usually were not permitted to attend the burial. Most often, the mothers were not informed of their children's death prior to burial. The mothers generally found out their child was dead when they received their pay from which burial costs were deducted. When the grieving mothers went to the nursery to find out where their children were buried, Nurse Schmidt often refused to tell them.(36) War Crimes Report at 8; Sworn Statement of Wladyslaw Zajge, 6/5/45, from the War Crimes Report; Sworn Statement of Vera Kowlenko, 5/31/45, from the War Crimes Report; Letter from the County Administrator to the Country Sick Fund of the County of Gifhorn at Gifhorn, 2/7/45, from the War Crimes Report.

32. Volkswagen also deducted premiums from the mothers' wages for "health insurance" for themselves and their children. This insurance was supposed to pay for the general medical treatment and medicine "provided" to the children by Volkswagen. The mothers also paid for the cost of food and shelter for themselves and their children. There is no evidence that, despite the amounts deducted from their already minuscule wages, the mothers or their children received medical or other benefits commensurate with the deductions paid. Volkswagen's Medical Staff at the Kinderheim

33. The Volkswagen employees directly responsible for the inhumane treatment of these children were well-trained doctors and nurses. These employees did not use their medical knowledge and skill to care for these children, but left the children to die from chronic neglect and disease. Volkswagen was responsible for the hiring and supervision of these employees.

34. Despite the obvious neglect and disease suffered by these children, the supervising physician of the nursery, Dr. Korbel, never professionally examined or treated them. He visited the nursery only once a week for about half an hour. He did not act to improve any of the conditions in the nursery, refused to test the water for typhus or other contamination, and told a nurse who complained not to interfere. (37) War Crimes Report at 8; Statement of Hilda Lammer. One nurse reported to Allied investigators that Korbel had commented that the Russian children were not worth a great deal of effort. (38) Statement of Dr. Frederick Dann.

35. In his statement to Allied investigators, Korbel blamed the death of the Russian and Polish infants on their mothers. He claimed that the mothers purposefully "bound their breasts" to dry up their milk so they could not feed the children, and that Russian children in particular were unable to thrive unless nursed with mother's milk rather than artificial milk. Korbel also claimed the children were dying because "most of the children were not wanted, with the mothers the pleasure of the sexual intercourse exceeded the desire to have a child.(39)" Sworn Statement of Dr. Hans Korbel, 6/22/45, from the War Crimes Report. Korbel made little or no attempt to determine the medical cause of death for most of the children. Of the 350 to 400 who died, the cause of death listed for 203 children was "too weak to live" or "feebleness." For many others, the cause of death was simply listed as "unknown. (40)" List of Babies Born at Volkswagen Kinderheim (Exhibit H).

36. Volkswagen's German nursing staff also exhibited startling cruelty in its treatment of and attitude toward these children. One German nurse, Kathe Pisters, instructed another nurse that if the sick infants failed to improve, their bottles should be taken from them and they should be left to die.(41) War Crimes Report at 8; Statement of Hilda Lammer. Nurse Pisters also told staff members that feeding the children was a waste of food as they would die anyway, and that "We will take care that not so many Russian and Polish children grow up. (42)" Sworn Statement of Elfriede Meyer, 6/10/45, from the War Crimes Report. Except for one nurse, Hilda Lammer, the German nurses demonstrated complete indifference to the plight of the children entrusted to their care. Lammer's repeated complaints to Volkswagen doctors about the conditions of the nursery were ignored, and she was threatened with internment in a concentration camp if she did not keep quiet. (43) Statement of Dr. Frederick Dann.

37. In 1946, the British tried several members of the Kinderheim medical staff for war crimes in Helmstedt, Germany. (44) Documentary evidence of the Kinderheim's operations used at the trials was obtained primarily from a German man who had worked at the local health office in Wolfsburg. As the Allied troops were closing in, he disobeyed orders to destroy all documents related to the Kinderheim, and instead burned blank sheets of paper. See Sworn Statement of Gustav Gruenhage, 6/7/45, from the War Crimes Report; "Order received by Gruenhage to destroy confidential records," from the War Crimes Report. On June 24, 1946, Dr. Hans Korbel and Nurse Ella Schmidt were sentenced to death for their participation in the deaths of the Polish and Russian infants at the Kinderheim. Dr. Korbel was executed on March 7, 1947. Nurse Schmidt's death sentence was commuted and she served eight years in prison, after which she returned to Germany and worked as a social worker for Volkswagen. Volkswagen's Managers at Wolfsburg Factory

38. Volkswagen management at the Wolfsburg factory were aware of the deplorable conditions in the Kinderheim, and of the astronomical death rate of the children. Dr. Korbel submitted monthly reports to factory management which summarized the rampant infection in the nursery, and listed the number of infants admitted to the nursery each month, and provided the number of deaths. In the final year of the Kinderheim's operation, the reports indicate that for many months, the death rate for these infants exceeded new births.(45)

Monthly Reports,- Home for Foreign Children. Individual members of management had also visited the nursery and witnessed the deplorable conditions and neglect there. Factory director Hans Mayr visited the day nursery in Ruhen at least "once or twice," according to the sworn statement of George Severin, camp leader for Volkswagen in Ruhen. (46) Sworn Statement of George Severin, 6/5/45, from the War Crimes Report. Dr. Tyrolt, the plant's personnel director, also inspected the nursery and was aware of the deaths. Mayr himself admitted to Allied investigators that he was "responsible for all incidents which [took] place in the plant. (47)" Sworn Statement of Hans Mayr, 6/18/45, from the War Crimes Report.

39. During questioning by the Allies, Karl Luik, chief of the press steel building at Volkswagen?s Wolfsburg factory, admitted that it was ?a crime? to remove newborn children from their mothers as soon as two days after birth, as was often done at the maternity hospital, and that the death of these children constituted "murder. (48)" "Situation in VOLKSWAGEN-Plant at KDF Stadt," from Charles Carlat, First Lt. Infantry, to the Chief of Intelligence, P&PW, 12 Army Group, 5/21/45, at 8, from the War Crimes Report.

Ostensibly, the abortions were to be performed only for reasons of health which was one of the Nazi theories in achieving a pure, healthy race. However when this procedure was legalized for Polish and Russian women, the method adopted was merely a shrewd Nazi scheme to prevent the birth of these children under the guise that it was for reasons of health, whereas the only reasonable conclusion is that the only "reason of health" was that it was considerably unhealthy for the Nazi regime to have Polish and Russian children enter the world. (50) Id.

In his 1944 annual report on the Kinderheim, Dr. Korbel advocated abortion for pregnant Polish and Russian workers. He wrote that abortion was the correct "solution" to Volkswagen's "huge effort" at the Kinderheim. (51) "Report of the Nursery for Foreign Children of Volkswagenwerks Co.," from records of the "Military Court held at Helmstedt [Germany] May-June 1946, for the Trial of War Criminals," from the British Public Records Office in Surrey, War Office Case: 309/172, at 3.

41. This action is brought and may properly be maintained as a class action pursuant to the provisions of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23. Plaintiff brings this action on behalf of herself and all members of the Class, that is, all persons whose children died at Volkswagen?s Kinderheim whether in Wolfsburg or in Ruhen between 1943 and 1945. Excluded from the Class is the defendant, and any of defendant?s officers or directors, or the families of any such officers or directors.

42. The Class for whose benefit this action is brought is so numerous that joinder of all class members is impracticable. As an estimated 350 to 400 children died in the Volkswagen Kinderheim, plaintiff believes that there are approximately 800 members of the Class as described above, although the exact number and identities of individual class members are presently unknown, and can be ascertained only through appropriate discovery.

43. There are questions of law and fact common to the Class that predominate over any questions affecting only individual class members.

44. Among the questions of law and fact common to the Class are the following:

(a) Whether defendant was responsible for the policies and conditions at the Kinderheim which led to the deaths of 350 to 400 Polish and Russian children; and

(b) Whether defendant violated the law of nations by its conduct, namely intentionally subjecting Polish and Russian babies, solely because of their ethnicity, to grossly inadequate and inhumane treatment that ultimately led to their deaths.

45. Plaintiff's claims are typical of the claims of the other members of the Class, since all such claims arise out of defendant's actions, or the actions of its employees, which resulted in the deaths of 350 to 400 Polish and Russian children. Plaintiff has no interests antagonistic to the interests of the other members of the Class.

46. Plaintiff is committed to the vigorous prosecution of this action and has retained competent counsel experienced in the prosecution of class actions. Accordingly, plaintiff is an adequate representative of the Class and will fairly and adequately protect the interests of the Class.

47. The prosecution of separate actions by individual members of the Class would create a risk of inconsistent or varying adjudications, which would establish incompatible standards of conduct for the defendant in this action.

48. Plaintiff anticipates that there will be no difficulty in the management of this litigation. A class action is superior to other available methods for the fair and efficient adjudication of this controversy.

49. Plaintiff's legal right to seek compensation for genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity during the Second World War is preserved by the Convention on the Non- Applicability of Statutory Limitations to War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity (26 November 1968). Accordingly, there are no statutory limitations on claims of war crimes, crimes against humanity, or genocide.

50. Furthermore, plaintiff?s legal right to seek compensation for the deaths of their children during the Second World War was "deferred" by the London Debt Settlement Agreement of 1953, until the German court ruled, on November 7, 1997, that the Treaty on the Final Settlement with Germany had lifted the moratorium upon individual claims for compensation for Second World War losses. Accordingly, statutes of limitation upon claims for compensation for Second World War losses were tolled by operation of treaty from 1953 through November 7, 1997.

51. Moreover, knowing that its behavior violated the laws of humanity and international law, at no time since the end of the Second World War did Volkswagen make any reasonable attempt to compensate members of the Class for the deaths of their children. Such failure should estop defendant from interposing any time bar type of defense to these claims.

52. Additionally, any applicable statute of limitations would have been tolled by concealment of the facts underlying this claim, and by equitable principles of fairness and justice.

53. By knowingly and intentionally causing the death of Polish and Russian babies entrusted to its care, defendant Volkswagen violated customary international law and the law of nations, including the Hague Convention of 1907, the Geneva Convention, and the principles of customary international law recognized by the Nuremberg Tribunals, and committed torts under the laws of the United States, requiring defendant to pay plaintiff Anna Snopczyk and the Class members appropriate compensatory and punitive damages for the brutal deaths of their children.

WHEREFORE, plaintiff respectfully request that judgment be entered against defendant Volkswagen AG as follows:

(1) Certifying this action as a class action pursuant to Rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and designating plaintiff as the class representative and counsel for plaintiff as counsel for the Class;

(2) Ordering defendant to pay plaintiff Anna Snopczyk and members of the Class appropriate compensatory and punitive damages arising out of defendant?s knowing and intentional acts which resulted in the deaths of their children;

(3) Awarding plaintiff the costs of this action, including reasonable attorneys' fees and expert fees; and

(4) Awarding plaintiff such other relief as the Court deems equitable and just.

Plaintiff hereby demands a jury trial on all issues so triable.

Dated: May 5, 1999

Respectfully submitted,

Beth J. Kushner
Attorney for Plaintiff, Anna Snopczyk

Of Counsel:

von BRIESEN, PURTELL & ROPER
735 North Water Street
Milwaukee, WI 53202
(414) 287-1373

COHEN, MILSTEIN, HAUSFELD & TOLL, P.L.L.C.
Michael D. Hausfeld
Lyn M. Rahilly
1100 New York Avenue, N.W.
West Tower, Suite 500
Washington, DC 20005-3934
(202) 408-4600

MARTIN MENDELSOHN, ESQ.
901 15th Street, Suite 700
Washington, DC 20005
(202) 371-6000

ARTHUR N. BAILEY & ASSOCIATES
Arthur Bailey
Suite 4500
111 West Second Street
Jamestown, NY 14701
(716) 664-2967

COHEN & MALAD, P.C.
Irwin Levin
136 N. Delaware Street, Suite 300
Indianapolis, IN 46206
(317) 636-6481

LAW OFFICES OF GORDON BALL
Gordon Ball Suite 750
Nationsbank Center
550 Main Avenue
Knoxville, TN 37902
(423) 525-7028

LEVIN, FISHBEIN, SEDRAN & BERMAN
Arnold Levin
510 Walnut Street
Suite 500
Philadelphia, PA 19106

LIEFF, CABRASER, HEIMANN & BERNSTEIN, L.L.P.
Robert Lieff
10 Rockefeller Plaza, 12th Floor
New York, NY 10020-1903
(212) 218-6600

MEREDITH COHEN GREENFOGEL & SKIRNICK, P.C.
Robert A. Skirnick
63 Wall Street
32nd Floor
New York, NY 10005
(212) 482-1250

MILBERG, WEISS, BERSHAD, HYNES & LERACH
Melvyn I. Weiss
One Pennsylvania Plaza
New York, NY 10119-0165
(212) 594-5300

JOY ROTHENBERG, ESQ.
9343 Lansford Drive
Cincinnati, OH 45242

BURT NEUBORNE
Professor of Law
New York University School of Law
41 Washington Square South
New York, NY 10012