Sometimes justice is slow. Sometimes it plods along, so anxious not to take any wrong steps that it takes no steps at all. In the case against Xenophilius Lovegood, that wasn't the case. It was swift. Newspaper articles came out condemning his actions. They sympathized with his plight, with his anger, but they deplored his actions.
Hermione Granger was a naïve girl taken in by a Malfoy. The whole of the magical community had been in the same position not so very long ago. She could not be blamed for falling for Draco Malfoy's charisma.
And while they understood Lovegood's anger, they could not condone his actions. Foolish child though she may be, Hermione Granger was still a hero of the war. She had helped defeat Voldemort. She deserved protection and respect, and perhaps some gentle education as to the dangers of trusting a Malfoy. She did not, it was universally agreed, deserve attack, and neither did her parents.
Xenophilius Lovegood's trial came approximately a month after the attack. Hermione was expected to appear as a witness for the prosecution, and was released from school to travel to London. Draco petitioned to go as well, as moral support. Professor McGonagall agreed with little hesitation.
They sat, now, in the same chamber Harry had stood in for his hearing. The Boy Who Lived sat on the other side of the room, among the aurors expected to give evidence. Hermione still could not understand why they needed a trial. He had confessed and agreed to accept whatever punishment deemed appropriate. Luna was terrified it would be a lifetime in Azkaban.
They listened as the charges were read out, and the accused asked if he understood them all. He said he did, and volunteered another confession, and a tearful apology, directed largely at Luna. The head of the Wizengamot, a spindly little wizard Hermione had never seen before, thanked him for his cooperation and explained that the goal of the hearing was to determine his sentence. They then called Hermione to the stand.
She walked calmly to the center of the room. Before anyone could ask any question, she asked to be given leave to make a statement.
"I understand that this hearing is about the punishment to be given out for Mr. Lovegood's confessed crime, and I would like to say something in that regard." She glanced at Draco, who gave her a nod and an encouraging half-smile. "I would like to ask you, in determining his sentence, to focus not on punishing Mr. Lovegood for actions, but instead ensuring the safety of society as a whole."
"What he endured, over the course of the war," she continued, "was unspeakable. Unless we have experienced it ourselves, we cannot hope to understand the horror it must have been, to have his daughter taken from him as she was. To have her held hostage. To have the threat of her death, her torture, her suffering loom over him at all times. The damage was clear then. He, who had been one of the few clear, brave voices in support of The Boy Who Lived, was willing to hand him over to Voldemort.
And, though it could have meant the destruction of the magical world as we know it, though it could have ensured victory for Voldemort, I cannot blame him. Who among us could do nothing and watch our loved ones murdered, tortured, held prisoner? Voldemort knew how to govern by fear. I ask you to choose a different method.
To punish him for this crime is to punish madness. If you read the Quibbler, if you stood in his house, if you held a conversation with him, you know as well as I do that Xenophilius Lovegood was never entirely sane. Or if he was, it was long before I knew of him. He was left to his own devices, and though there was danger in that, it was clear he never meant anyone any harm.
In attacking my family, it is clear he did mean harm, and the consequences must reflect that truth. He cannot be allowed to go on, free to assault anyone he blames for his suffering, just as we cannot, as a community, seek to heal the damages of the war through further bloodshed.
I suggest, instead, that we focus not on punishment, but on safety. He cannot be left to roam free, if he is a danger, but neither should he be made to suffer for the madness inflicted on him by the war. I submit, most humbly, that the best course of action would be to place him securely in St. Mungos, where he can be monitored, and kept from harming anyone else. Where he can be treated for the scars of war, rather than punished for their effects."
Having reached the end of her speech, Hermione became uncertain what steps to take next. "I hope you'll consider my suggestion," she said quietly, and then turned to wait for questioning.
The room at large seemed not to know what to do with the speech. They looked around at each other uncertainly.
"Well," the head of the Wizengamot said. "Thank you for your input."
Then he set about asking her the questions everyone had expected. She gave crisp answers, without editorializing, and was dismissed to her seat. Dean, Luna, Harry, Ron, and Neville all testified as well.
A ruling of a life sentence in Azkaban was suggested, but had too few votes to pass. A ruling of a life sentence in St. Mungos was suggested instead, and it passed with a large majority.
Draco and Hermione looked over at Luna, who sat with Dean, weeping quietly into her hands.
