[HPforGrownups] Veritaserum

[Susan Hall]

No: HPFGUIDX 25504

>I have always felt this way, and have had complicated legalistic
discussions
with susan hall about this.
>I really think that since veritasserum still only allows you to tell truth
from your perspective, and therefore what you tell is not objective truth,
combined with what I would presume to be "newness" {i.e. Past 75 years or
>so} make it impermissible in wizarding courts or even investigations.

I believe Heidi is right about objective truth - therefore, if one of the
wizards whose memory had been modified by Lockhart were then questioned
under Veritaserum about whether they, or Lockhart had, for example,
performed the werewolf task then they would be likely to say "Lockhart"
because, once their memories are modified, that would be the truth to them.
This would be pretty frightening, because it would then add the accused's
confession to the impact of the truth drug concerned.

However, I think you could devise guidelines to make the use of veritaserum
safer (which would have to involve the preparation of the stuff under
controlled guidelines) but that the wizarding take on justice is so
haphazard they simply aren't used to bothering - witness Fudge's treatment
of Hagrid in CoS.
Susan