Eddie Slovik
Eddie Slovik | |
|---|---|
| Born | Edward Donald Slovik February 18, 1920 Detroit, Michigan, U.S. |
| Died | January 31, 1945 (aged 24) |
| Cause of death | Execution by firing squad |
| Criminal status | Executed |
| Conviction | Desertion |
| Criminal penalty | Death |
| Military career | |
| Nickname(s) | "Eddie" |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Branch | United States Army |
| Years of service | 1944–1945 |
| Rank | Private |
| Service number | 36896415 |
| Unit | Company G, 109th Infantry Regiment, 28th Infantry Division |
| Battles / wars | World War II |
| Spouse(s) |
Antoinette Wisniewski
(m. 1942–1945) |
Edward Donald Slovik (February 18, 1920 – January 31, 1945) was a United States Army soldier during World War II and the only American soldier to be court-martialed and executed for desertion since the American Civil War. Although over 21,000 American soldiers were given varying sentences for desertion during World War II, including 49 death sentences, Slovik's death sentence was the only one that was carried out.
During World War II, 1.7 million courts-martial were held, representing one third of all criminal cases tried in the United States during the same period. Most of the cases were minor, as were the sentences. Nevertheless, a clemency board, appointed by Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson in the summer of 1945, reviewed all general courts-martial where the accused was still in confinement, and remitted or reduced the sentence in 85 percent of the 27,000 serious cases reviewed. The death penalty was rarely imposed, and usually only for cases involving rape or murder. Slovik was the only soldier executed who had been convicted of a "purely military" offense.