Hans Koch
Hans Koch | |
|---|---|
| File:Hans Koch small.tif Hans Koch | |
| Born | 16 August 1893 Bartenstein, East Prussia, German Empire |
| Died | 24 April 1945 (aged 51) Berlin, Germany |
| Cause of death | extrajudicial killing |
| Nationality | German |
| Alma mater | University of Königsberg |
| Occupation | lawyer |
Hans Koch (16 August 1893 – 24 April 1945) was a German lawyer, a member of the Confessional Church and a member of the German resistance against Nazism. Koch was born in Bartenstein, East Prussia (modern Bartoszyce, Poland), he graduated in law from the University of Königsberg.
During World War II, he developed contacts with Claus von Stauffenberg and the 20 July plot conspirators, including Carl Goerdeler. In the 20 July plot, once the Nazis had been routed, Koch was slated to become the presiding judge of the Reichsgericht, the highest court in the German Reich. The plot failed, however, and Koch sheltered one of the conspirators. An informer denounced him and Koch and his family were arrested. He was murdered extrajudicially in Berlin by a Sonderkommando of the SS-Reichssicherheitshauptamt on 24 April 1945.