A former Nazi SS guard dubbed the Bookkeeper of Auschwitz has filed an appeal against his four-year prison sentence, his lawyer said on Tuesday, arguing that imprisonment at such a high age would violate his client's basic rights, according to media reports.
Gröning's defenders appealed to Germany's Constitutional Court after a court ruled last month that the former Nazi officer's health condition was sufficient for him to endure the punishment.
"In terms of constitutional law, it should be examined if the health condition of Mr Gröning allows for his basic right to life and physical integrity to be guaranteed," his lawyer Hans Holtermann told the DPA news agency.
Gröning was employed as an accountant at Auschwitz. He was responsible for collecting and counting the money taken from murdered prisoners, and sending it back to his Nazi chiefs in the German capital.
He also repeatedly fulfilled a routine duty of monitoring and processing detainees upon their arrival in the camp.
