Clearing Sirius's Name

[xp39c]

No: HPFGUIDX 41832

Ali wrote:
 
> Going back to my Law Student days...
> 
> I wonder about the role of evidence in Sirius' case. Whilst the 
> circumstantial evidence points to his guilt, his wand might help 
> prove his innocence:
> 
> If we assume that when Sirius was arrested that his wand was taken -
 
> and retained, then it should be possible to carry out "Prior 
> Incantato" to see which were the last spells that Sirius performed. 
> Obviously, the "Avada Kedarva" spell which resulted in 13 deaths 
will 
> not be there. It's also possible that Pettigrew's wand was found - 
> with his finger, which should show that he carried out the spell. 
We 
> know that they both had their wands at that moment -in POA UK 
edition 
> p 154 Fudge says:-  "he (ie Pettigrew) went for his wand. Well, of 
> course, Black was quicker..." This hopefully means that Sirius was 
> captured still holding his wand. Whilst they could argue that 
Sirius 
> had swapped wands, their argument would appear to be getting weaker.
 
But the ministry officials didn't show up until much later, which 
would have given Sirius more than enough time to switch wands.  And 
if anyone would have had a second wand (much like a fake I.D.), it 
would be a spy.

> I still find the issue of Sirius' imprisonment without trial 
> problematic, and wonder whether he was ever formerly convicted. The 
> Right to "Habeas Corpus" - to have a fair trial dates back to the 
> 13th Century in England, and to a time when the 2 communities 
(Muggle 
> and Wizard) were still closely related. From Sirius' attitude and 
> Ron's shock at Sirius's imprisonment without trial in Azkaban (see 
p 
> 456 GoF UK edition - Padfoot Returns) this was unusual.

The Ministry probably justified the lack of a trial as extraordinary 
circumstances, much like how Lincoln did the same during the Civil 
War.  I seem to remember, though, that the Supreme Court ruled after 
the war that what Lincoln did was illegal, so similar situations 
might apply here.

> Perhaps then 
> a formal trial could be demanded which would include the new 
> evidence - wand spells coupled with the eye witness accounts 
relating 
> to Pettigrew.

That's pretty unlikely.  For that to happen, someone would probably 
have to come up with conclusive evidence that Sirius was innocent.  
The only evidence that exists (besides Pettigew) are the words 
Dumbledore, Lupin, and HRH.  Lupin, to the Ministry, is not reliable 
at all, and Sirius could have use something like Memory Charms to 
influence the trio.  And the fact that Sirius escaped from prison 
doesn't help his cause either.

Don't know about the British, but American prosecutors are very 
reluctant to re-open cases, even when there is a lot of evidence the 
other way.

 Even if the eye witnesses (a werewolf, a Parselmouth 
> and 2 of his teenage friends) don't count for much, they would 
surely 
> mean that Sirius' guilt could not be proved "Beyond all reasonable 
> doubt" - the English Standard for Criminal Cases - and he should 
> therefore be formerly released and pardoned.

The ministry don't exactly go by "beyond a reasonable doubt" 
or "better that ten guilty men go free than one innocent man 
imprisoned" creeds, as evidence by what they did to some potential 
DEs and Hagrid in CoS.

--Hei Lun