BREAKING! Merrow Found Guilty

1 Mar 1922

Merrow Found Guilty,
Sentenced to Twenty Years in Azkaban

By Beatrix Ventnor, Reporter

The highly anticipated trial of Minister of Magic Wylder Merrow began this morning and ended with a verdict and sentencing that has left the Wizarding World in a rather unstable position.
The trial was the final of four in regards to the dark events that happened in March 1921 on the grounds of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. That night saw the capture and torture of three students by Arthur Thayer, astronomy professor, which resulted in his death.
Among the witnesses, besides the three students, were former Headmistress Ruby Haswell, Deputy Headmaster Gideon Blackwood, Professor Maddox Barlowe, and Minister Merrow. Blackwood and Barlowe were found not guilty of all charges brought against them by the Wizengamot.
Haswell was found guilty of Child Endangerment and sentenced to two years in Azkaban for the role she played in not protecting the students at the school. It was a verdict that drew considerable debate among readers of the Daily Prophet.
Upon her sentencing, Galen MacLean was appointed the new Headmaster of Hogwarts.

Merrow was accused of Manslaughter, Child Endangerment, Treason, and Conspiracy. The Prosecution introduced evidence of collusion with Thayer that involved the previous Minister’s Gringotts account receiving payments from the now deceased professor.
Merrow was found not guilty of Manslaughter, but guilty on all other charges.
He was sentenced to twenty years at Azkaban.
Undersecretary Gerald Nunn has taken the position of Interim Minister of Magic. An election for Merrow’s successor will begin in late 1922 or early 1923.
What the events of the past year have made clear, if nothing else, is that the structures Wizarding Britain has long relied upon are not immune to corruption. A professor. A Minister. The halls of Hogwarts itself. Whether the verdicts delivered today restore any measure of public confidence remains, at best, uncertain. An unstable world awaits whoever steps into the role next.