Kriminalpolizei (Nazi Germany)

Level	Agency	Organizational subordination
Regional	Kriminalpolizei-Leitstelle criminal investigation department control center	Amt V
Regional	Kriminalpolizei-Stelle criminal investigation department center	Amt V
Local	Staatliche Kriminalabteilung state criminal investigation division	State Police Commissioner
Local	Gemeindekriminalpolizeiabteilung municipal criminal investigation division	Municipal Police Commissioner

• Source:^[13]

Towns with over 10,000 residents having a municipal police department were obliged to have a municipal criminal investigation division (Gemeindekriminalpolizeiabteilung). It was supervised by the nearest Kripo-Stelle.^[13]

From 1943 all municipal criminal investigation divisions with over ten detectives, i.e. mainly in towns with over 50,000 inhabitants, were transferred to the state criminal police. Local state criminal investigations divisions were henceforth not subordinated to the local state police commissioner.^[13]

Level	Agency	Organizational subordination
Regional	Kriminalpolizei-Leitstelle criminal investigation department control center	Amt V
Regional	Kriminalpolizei-Stelle criminal investigation department center	Amt V
Local	Kriminalpolizei-Aussendiensstelle criminal investigation department field office	nearest Kripo-Leitstelle or Kripo-Stelle
Local	Kriminalpolizei-Aussenposten criminal investigation department outposts	nearest Kripo-Leitstelle, Kripo-Stelle or Kripo-Aussendienststelle

• Source:^[13]

In 1944 there were 22 Kripo-Leitstellen with 150-250 detectives under an Oberregierungs- und Kriminalrat; 44 Kripo-Stellen with 80-120 detectives under a Regierungs- und Kriminalrat or Kriminaldirektor; and 698 Kripo-Aussendienstellen and Kripo-Aussenpost, of which the latter per definition had less than ten detectives.^[13]

There were two separate criminal investigation officer careers: the junior criminal investigation career (einfacher Vollzugsdienst) and the executive criminal investigation career (leitender Vollzugsdienst).^[14][15] There were also a female criminal investigation career (weibliche Kriminalpolizei).^[16] In addition there were criminal investigation employees, who were salaried public employees but not civil servants.^[17]

A detective trainee had to be a policeman in the Ordnungspolizei or a soldier in the Waffen-SS with the rank of SS-Unterscharführer or above, having served at least 4 ½ years, and not be older than 24 years. The Kriminalassistentanwärter (detective trainee) began his training as an intern for 12 months, followed by a 12 months course at the Kriminalfachschule (Criminal investigation college) in Berlin-Charlottenburg. After the college came a 12 months period as probationary detective (Kriminalassistent aus Probe). First employment was as apl. Kriminalassistent (supernumerary detective) until a billet was free and he could be appointed to a permanent position as Kriminalassistent.^[14]

Externally recruited senior detective trainees (Kriminalkommissaranwärter) must have taken the general university entrance exam (Abitur) and been selected through a special selection procedure (Ausleselager).^[14] Internally recruited senior detective trainees came from the lower ranks of the Ordnungspolizei or from the junior criminal investigation career. They were selected through a civil service exam. The training began with a 12 months internship, followed by a 9 months course at the Führerschule der Sicherheitspolizei in Berlin-Charlottenburg. The trainee was then promoted to Hilfskriminalkommissar; normally he was within a few days given a six months probationary appointment as Kriminalkommissar auf Probe, before being promoted to außerplanmäßigen Kriminalkommissar as a supernumerary.^[18]

According to regulations issued by the Reich Security Main Office in 1940, women that had been trained in social work or having a similar education could be hired as female detectives. Female youth leaders, lawyers, business administrators with experience in social work, female leaders in the Reichsarbeitsdienst and personnel administrators in the Bund Deutscher Mädel were hired as detectives after a one-year course if they had several years professional experience. Later also nurses, kindergarten teachers and trained female commercial employees with an aptitude for police work were hired as female detectives after a two-year course. After two years as Kriminaloberassistentin promotion to Kriminalsekretärin could take place, after another two or three years in that grade the female detective could be promoted to Kriminalobersekretärin. Further promotions to Kriminalkommissarin and Kriminalrätin was also possible.^[16]

Criminal Investigation Aids, from 1935 Criminal Investigation Employees, were salaried public employees but not civil servants.^[19] There were three kinds of Criminal Investigation Employees, Kriminalangesteller (A) in outer service, Kriminalangesteller (K) were drivers, Kriminalangesteller (F) were telex operators.^[20] The fact that Criminal Investigation Employees were not civil servants made it possible to recruit reliable members of the Nazi Party, irrespective of civil service regulations concerning employment requirements and regardless of budget plans.^[21] The only requirements that were made beyond the normal conditions for public employment in Nazi Germany was that the applicant were physically and mentally fit for police duties.^[17] Not all Criminal Investigation Employees were volunteers; members of the Nazi Party and the Allgemeine SS could, after the beginning of the war in 1939, be conscripted into criminal police service.^[22] During the German occupation of Denmark, Danish citizens would also be employed as Kriminalangestellter, but with the Gestapo.^[23]

Criminal Investigation Officers' Rank and Pay

Pay Grade[24]	Annual Pay Reichsmark (RM)[24]	Grade in the einfachen Vollzugsdienst [24]	Grade in the leitenden Vollzugsdienst [24]	Corresponding rank in the SS (Wehrmacht-Heer)[24][25]
A8c2	2,160–2,340	Kriminalassistent		SS-Oberscharführer (Feldwebel)
A7c A8a	2,000–3,000	Kriminaloberassistent		SS-Hauptscharführer (Oberfeldwebel)
A7a	2,350–3,500	Kriminalsekretär		SS-Untersturmführer (Leutnant)
A5b	2,300–4,200	Kriminalobersekretär
A4c2	2,800–5,000	Kriminalinspektor		SS-Obersturmführer (Oberleutnant)
A4c1	2,800–5,300		Kriminalkommissar
			Kriminalkommissar with more than three years in the grade	SS-Hauptsturmführer (Hauptmann)
A3b	4,800–7,000		Kriminalrat
			Kriminalrat with more than three years in the grade	SS-Sturmbannführer (Major)
A2d	4,800–7,800		Kriminaldirektor
A2c2	4,800–8,400		Regierungs- und Kriminalrat
A2b	7,000–9,700		Oberregierungs- und Kriminalrat	SS-Obersturmbannführer (Oberstleutnant)
A1b	6,200–10,600		Regierungs- und Kriminaldirektor	SS-Standartenführer (Oberst)
			Reichskriminaldirektor

Mean annual pay for an industrial worker was 1,459 Reichsmark in 1939, and for a privately employed white-collar worker 2,772 Reichsmark.

Criminal Investigation Employees' Pay

The Criminal Investigation Employees were not paid according to the Civil Service pay scale, but in accordance with the salary scale for public employees.^[17] They were later paid according to a special pay scale (see below):^[26]

Pay Grade	Annual pay (Reichsmark)	Equivalent Rank Level
1	6,000	Hauptsturmführer
2	5,400
3	4,800	Obersturmführer
4	4,500
5	4,200
6	3,900
7	3,600	Untersturmführer
8	3,300
9	3,000	Sturmscharführer Hauptscharführer
10	2,700
11	2,520
12	2,250	Oberscharführer
13	2,000	Scharführer
Source:	[26]

Male personnel

Criminal Investigation Officers	Rank insignia	Criminal Investigation Employees
n/a		SS-Scharführer
Kriminalassistent		SS-Oberscharführer
Kriminaloberassistent		SS-Hauptscharführer
Kriminalsekretär		SS-Untersturmführer
Kriminalobersekretär
Kriminalinspektor		SS-Obersturmführer
Kriminalkommissar
Kriminalkommissar with more than three years in the grade		SS-Hauptsturmführer
Kriminalrat
Kriminalrat with more than three years in the grade		n/a
Kriminaldirektor
Regierungs- und Kriminalrat
Oberregierungs- und Kriminalrat		n/a
Regierungs- und Kriminaldirektor Reichskriminaldirektor		n/a
		n/a
Source:	[27]

• Friedlander, Henry (1995). The Origins of Nazi Genocide: From Euthanasia to the Final Solution. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press. ISBN 978-0807822081.
• Gerwarth, Robert (2011). Hitler's Hangman: The Life of Heydrich. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-11575-8.
• Longerich, Peter (2010). Holocaust: The Nazi Persecution and Murder of the Jews. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-280436-5.
• McNab, Chris (2009). The SS: 1923–1945. London: Amber Books. ISBN 978-1-906626-49-5.
• Weale, Adrian (2010). The SS: A New History. London: Little, Brown. ISBN 978-1408703045.
• Weale, Adrian (2012). Army of Evil: A History of the SS. New York: Caliber Printing. ISBN 978-0-451-23791-0.
• Williams, Max (2001). Reinhard Heydrich: The Biography, Volume 1—Road To War. Church Stretton: Ulric Publishing. ISBN 978-0-9537577-5-6.