One important role of a criminal justice system is rehabilitation. Another, according to some, is retribution. Those in Azkaban suffer from perhaps the most of awful forms of retribution: dementation. Dementation renders a person incapable of rehabilitation. Consider this if-then argument:
If:
Justice is served without error*
The only purpose for criminal justice is retribution
Then: Azkabanian punishment is rational.
Otherwise, assuming there are other ways to protect society from the person, it is irrational to dement people.
Speaking broadly, putting aside the fictional word of Azkaban, there is an argument that suggests retribution for its own sake is wrong. It is simple: inflicting suffering is wrong, all other things equal. Retribution makes sense only to the extent it serves as a deterrent.
*: which is not the case
2025-12-15 Updates:
First, my comment above neglected to mention another intended function of criminal justice and incarceration: separation from society to mitigate harm.
Second, in the world of Harry Potter or HPMOR, I would like to say this: from the point of view of the incarcerated, I don’t know if dementation is the worst form of retribution. In a sense, it is, because it slowly strips away the sanity and humanity of the incarcerated. In another sense, it probably isn’t the most painful physical punishment possible, though if I recall correctly, dementation often leads to horrific levels of psychological trauma (e.g. self-loathing) which certainly are extremely painful.
One important role of a criminal justice system is rehabilitation. Another, according to some, is retribution. Those in Azkaban suffer from perhaps the most of awful forms of retribution: dementation. Dementation renders a person incapable of rehabilitation. Consider this if-then argument:
If:
Justice is served without error*
The only purpose for criminal justice is retribution
Then: Azkabanian punishment is rational.
Otherwise, assuming there are other ways to protect society from the person, it is irrational to dement people.
Speaking broadly, putting aside the fictional word of Azkaban, there is an argument that suggests retribution for its own sake is wrong. It is simple: inflicting suffering is wrong, all other things equal. Retribution makes sense only to the extent it serves as a deterrent.
*: which is not the case
2025-12-15 Updates:
First, my comment above neglected to mention another intended function of criminal justice and incarceration: separation from society to mitigate harm.
Second, in the world of Harry Potter or HPMOR, I would like to say this: from the point of view of the incarcerated, I don’t know if dementation is the worst form of retribution. In a sense, it is, because it slowly strips away the sanity and humanity of the incarcerated. In another sense, it probably isn’t the most painful physical punishment possible, though if I recall correctly, dementation often leads to horrific levels of psychological trauma (e.g. self-loathing) which certainly are extremely painful.