Opening Statement: Prosecutor May it please the court, counsel, members of the jury: this is a case of murder, involuntary murder. We are all here today to bring justice to the state of Massachusetts. What you are about to hear may stun you. We are gathered here today to charge Abigail Williams with involuntary manslaughter. Involuntary manslaughter is the crime of killing another human being unlawfully but unintentionally. At the end of 1692 the Salem Court convicted and executed men and women following the Salem witch trials. What were the Salem witch trials? The Salem witch trials were a series of hearings and prosecutions of people accused of witchcraft in colonial Massachusetts. The trials resulted in the executions of twenty people, …show more content…
In this case Abigail had an affair with John proctor, and later rejected by him. Some of you may know what rejection feels like, rejection is never a good feeling. Rejection has three emotions all followed by one another. Rejection causes you to be upset, but then leads to anger and consequently leads to revenger. Abigail’s emotion took over and instead of choosing with her mind she followed her emotions instead. Witchcraft is another factor in this case. The practice of magic, especially black magic. It is the use of spells, charms, and the invocation of spirits. Abigail was dancing in the woods, drinking blood and using charms to murder John Proctor’s wife. Abigail seeked out venges against John Proctor therefore targeting his wife. In her head she decided that if she couldn’t be with John then no one else could. Abigail saw that the people were afraid, vulnerable and took advantage of the situation to try and save herself. She was afraid that the public will find about her affair with John Proctor, and about the witchcraft that happened that night in the forest. Therefore she did everything in her power to draw attention away from