During the events of the Chamber of Secrets, Hagrid was arrested and put in Azkaban, as you all know.

However, what if Lucius Malfoy, who basically orchestrated this whole thing, convinces Fudge to order the Dementors to Kiss Hagrid.

Now, whether or not you think that this is plausible is one thing.
But assuming it DOES happen, what would be the consequences of this?

Would Fudge be less likely to trust Malfoy after it's revealed Hagrid was innocent all along?
And what things could change dramatically due to the lack of Hagrid's presence?

 

You've been here since April?

 

I've always found it difficult to believe Fudge is as inept and gullible as he is often portrayed.

However, if he truly was, then I doubt having Hagrid's soul removed would be an issue for him. First of all, Hagrid is only technically a wizard - he isn't allowed to own or use a wand. Secondly, Hagrid isn't human. He means well, but he is uneducated, scary, and not a well looked upon member of society. He's known for going and getting drunk, and being uncouth. Yes, he's friends with Harry, but that really doesn't help much, especially once Harry becomes an attention seeking mad-man.

On top of that, remember Buckbeak. The year after Fudge puts Hagrid into prison, for several months, and the attacks continue during that time; Malfoy calls for Hagrid's pet to be executed. And it happens.
Buckbeak was a dangerous animal, and the Ministry didn't push too hard to find it again. But they still tried to execute it.

Hagrid doesn't matter to the people in charge, and likely, to the public, too.


Without Hagrid, Sirius wouldn't be able to fly away, Harry would be eaten by a dragon because he didn't know about it`, and had no reason to investigate; and then everything would go to hell once Voldemort comes back.

 

Pfft, if Diary!Riddle found out he'd just let the attacks die down and make the general public actually believe it was Hagrid, fully possess Ginny and quietly build his second empire from the ground up. Actually that could have happened anyway, if Ginny let slip to the diary that Hagrid had been arrested which I'm sure she would have done; now that could be an interesting plot twist.

 

And there's no chance that Crouch Jr. would let Harry die during one of the Triwizard Tasks. He'd just find another way to tell Harry about the dragon. Remember, Voldemort wanted Harry to win the tournament.

 

I suspect that there were a similar number of letters telling Dumbledore that Hagrid should be put down, though. That said, if Hagrid were to be killed in the Second book, it might have given Harry the kick up the arse he needed to really get going.

Also, would it affect Lupin's subsequent hiring in the Third book? At that point, part-human discrimination would presumably be either at an all-time high or low, depending on how the public perceived the situation.

 

Hagrid, while I like his character, is too insignificant. The only possible change his death would cause is the escape of Sirius Black. Who needs a hippogriff when one can fly on a broom. Harry would possibly give Sirius his firebolt to escape

And maybe, Dumbledore would finally get his head out of his wrinkled arse and actively try bring down Lucius Malfoy and the Fudge administration.

 

Er, no. Multiple people have been executed in the United States in recent history for crimes which later evidence revealed they were probably innocent of, and on the whole no one gives a fuck.

 

There's bound to be more than just 3000 in the UK, right?

 

If I remember right there a huge debate about the population of Magical Britain on here a while ago. Or maybe it wasn't really a debate and Taure just posted a lot.

Anyone remember the thread I'm talking about?

 

I think I do...

And the consensus was that Rowling couldn't count. And shouldn't be allowed to ever use numbers, because she doesn't understand them.


EDIT

THIS thread, although I haven't read through it since the last post.

 

"Happen to me? No... I mean, he was a half-giant, right? They're big and scary... and hairy. I'd be surprised if he even bathed that much. Stupid, too, right? Probably couldn't make a case for himself like you or I could. Practically a vagrant living off Dumbledore's kindness, from what I hear.

"I mean, I'm wizard, a human, you know? They wouldn't let that happen to a proper witch or wizard. No... no, that wouldn't happen to me."

 

Which, I gotta say, doesn't speak well for the collective intelligence of Wizarding Britain.

No, surely it's a pituitary disorder...

I think the subject would have been disclosed in whatever newspaper article covered his execution.

 

Anyways, wasn't the comment Ron's and not Malfoys?
Cause I remember something like "Blimey, I though he got in a way of a stray spell, or a potion accident." Not a quote, don't have patience to look for such detail at this time.

Also, they might have held Hagrid as stupid/criminal/semi_wizard(for he had no wand), and no one simply had an idea that a wizard would bed a giantess.



On Fudge and getting away with things - didn't he get away with killing Barty without any trials or anything? Would killing or imprisoning Hagrid for life be as hard, really?

Maybe Harry would get the laziness go and started trying more because of it. "I'll fix the wizarding world" and all that.

 

Barty Crouch was an Azkaban escapee though, and there was at least circumstantial evidence that he'd killed his dad and done something to the Cup, whether he was accepted as working with Voldemort or not. Assuming that the truth about the Heir ever came out, then it would be obvious that Hagrid was innocent, and had been falsely imprisoned not once but twice.

True, the half-giant thing, if known, might have worked in Fudge's favour, but life would certainly have been a little more difficult for him.

 

Plus Crouch Jr had the added benefit of already being oficially "dead"...