 In 1935 his son immigrated to the United States in order to avoid service in the Wehrmacht, Hitler's army.During the November pogrom of 1938, known as Kristallnacht ("Night of the Broken Glass"), Friedrich and Pauline Kellner tried to stop the rioting.When Kellner approached the presiding judge to bring charges against the leaders of the riot, Judge Schmitt instead opened an investigation into the Kellners' religious heritage.