Others were subject to after-war spontaneous retaliation committed by populations within occupied countries, which in some areas led to "witch hunts" for those suspected of having been collaborators, where vigilantism and "summary justice", were common. After a first period of spontaneous pursuit, provisional governments took the matter into their own hands and brought suspected criminals to court. The Nuremberg Trial in Germany judged only the highest German Nazi authorities, and each country prosecuted and sentenced their own collaborationists. Pierre Laval in France was judged and sentenced to death, while Philippe Pétain was also sentenced to death, but Charles de Gaulle later commuted his sentence into a life condemnation. Government action took the form of investigation and interrogation of people suspected of collaboration. An example of such action was the U.S. DOJ Office of Special Investigations.