The U.S. federal appeals court in Cincinnati today hears the case of a retired Ohio autoworker accused of being a Nazi death camp guard during World War II, according to AP.
John Demjanjuk (dem-YAHN`-yuk) is now 87 and lives in suburban Cleveland. For years he`s been fighting deportation to his native Ukraine. His lawyer says today`s appeal could be his last.
A federal immigration judge ruled in 2005 that Demjanjuk should be deported to Ukraine, or to Germany or Poland if Ukraine refuses to accept him.
Demjanjuk`s lawyer contends the immigration judge didn`t have the authority to deport him but an earlier appeal concluded his Nazi past has been conclusively established.
The case goes back nearly 30 years. A court in Israel cleared him of allegations he was a sadistic concentration camp guard known as "Ivan the Terrible." But American prosecutors say war documents prove he was a Nazi guard. He was allowed into the U.S. after the war as a displaced person.
