Eddie Slovik: Shot at Dawn
by From Hero or Villain: More Prisoners of Eternity.
Eddie Slovik was the only American soldier to be executed by his own side during the Second World War. Many were condemned to death for murder, rape and other heinous crimes but were reprieved. Eddie, never hurt anyone.
“They’re not shooting me for deserting the United States Army. They’re shooting me for the bread I stole when I was twelve”.
Eddie Slovik, was the only American serviceman to be executed during World War II for desertion. This was despite 21,000 other soldiers being charged with the same offence, 49 of whom were sentenced to death. So why, Eddie?
Edward Donald Slovik was born in Detroit, Michigan, on 18 February, 1920, to parents of Polish origin.Eddie was far from perfect. Indeed, he could be described as a troublesome child and would be considered by most any standards to have been a juvenile delinquent. But his story was not a unique one for a working class boy from the rough streets of Detroit. He was arrested by the Police for the first time when he was aged only 12. It was to be the first of a long string of arrests for petty crimes usually involving robbery and theft. Unable or unwilling to work, his life was aimless and there is little doubt that he fell in with a bad crowd, but he was never a leader or ever violent. Indeed he was a placid and in many respects compliant man. In October, 1937, he went to prison for the first time for breaking and entering. Soon after his release in January, 1939, he was returned to prison this time for drunk driving and car theft. He was paroled in 1942, and with the help of his parole officer secured, for the first time in his life, gainful employment at a plumbing suppliers. It was here that he met his future wife, Antoinette Wisniewski, a co-worker. At last, Eddie seemed to be settling down.
Eddie, and his wife
Originally deemed unfit for military service because of his status as a habitual criminal, the United States Army changed policy. Adopting a more management approach to recruitment their future strategy would be to keep their best troops in reserve and put the worse social elements into the front line. In November, 1943, Eddie was passed A/1 and fit for service. He was drafted.
A naturally timid, frail, and rather sickly looking young man, Eddie found basic training a nightmare. He was so afraid of firearms and loud bangs that his drill instructors had to arm him with dummy grenades to facilitate his passing through. His training finally over he was dispatched in August, 1944, to fight in France.
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