Both by testimony and argument the defense claimed that the medical experiments had generally been useful in furthering medical science, that in some cases the experiments alleged as criminal had increased the speed of the progress of medical science, and that in some cases there was no other alternative for the development of medical science except to conduct experiments on human beings. The prosecution, in addition to arguing that voluntary participation by the subject of experimentation was a prerequisite of legal experiments, argued that the experiments turned out to be entirely useless for medical science and human progress, and that in some cases it was doubtful if considerations of medical science played any controlling role in the decision to conduct the experiments. Selections from the defense argumentation have been made from the final pleas for the defendants Becker-Freyseng and Beiglboeck. Extracts from these final pleas appear below on pages 62 to 64. A part of the opening statement of the prosecution (vol. I, p. 37 ff.) was devoted to this topic. Defense evidence on the usefulness of the experiments has been selected from the direct examination of the defendants Mrugowsky and Rose. Extracts from their testimony appear below on pages 66 to 70. b. Selections from the Argumentation of the Defense _EXTRACT FROM THE FINAL PLEA FOR DEFENDANT BECKER-FREYSENG_[16] * * * * * At the moment I consider one factor above all to be material. It is the following question: Was everything done, when the sea-water experiments were being planned, to furnish all data required for establishing the necessity of the experiments? And I think I can definitely answer this question in the affirmative. The defense has proved the high sense of responsibility applied to the inquiry on the necessity of the sea-water experiments. Scientists of international reputation, like Professor Dr. Eppinger and Professor Heubner, were consulted, and they definitely answered this question in the affirmative. More cannot be expected or demanded in the way of a sense of responsibility. In my opinion, the mere fact that these scientists were asked their opinion on the issue in question shows that everything was done on the part of the Chief of the Medical Service of the Luftwaffe and his office to reach the right decision in this question. With regard to the purely objective judgment of the sea-water experiments and their necessity, I should like to refer to the statements made in my closing brief for Dr. Becker-Freyseng.