Why did the Salem Witch Trials Happen

When I develop characters in a story. I strive to give them a relatable motivation for their words, their actions, and even for their thoughts (if those thoughts are revealed to the reader). This means I am constantly asking why. Why do people do the things they do? Why do the behave in certain ways? Why do they say what they say? And so on. It's helpful to look at actual historical events as a means of discovering why. In the Salem Witch Trials, nineteen people were hanged for practicing witchcraft and inflicting harm on others. Five others died in jail during that same time. Making for a total of twenty four innocent people murdered by well meaning people and government officials. These people, although they were from a time we consider more barbaric than today (personally I think that is highly debatable), were still civilized. They had a system of government, a system of laws, and a judicial system (all very much like we have today). They prosecuted those they found guilty of murdering or otherwise harming innocent people. History does not tell us that these people were so barbaric or uncivilized that they were just itching for a reason to kill someone. It was the opposite of that. They had already been through bloody wars with the French, and the indigenous tribes of the area. They were experienced with harsh weather, diseases, accidents, and more that killed so many around them. These people were not looking to find someone to kill. They weren't looking for an excuse to kill anyone. And yet, that is exactly what they did. It started with the daughter and the niece of a respected pastor. They screamed and made strange noises in public. It was reported they contorted their bodies in strange positions. Their behavior disrupted church meetings, official meetings, and any household they were in. Doctors could not find any explanation for their behavior. No one could find any reason for them to behave like this when their father/uncle was such a respected member of the community. A respected doctor who could find no other explanation, determined that they must have been bewitched. He was respected enough that people believed him and that scared them. The idea that a witch using supernatural forces could be harming children like this became very unsettling. The girls named who must have bewitched them. The magistrate questioned the three women named until one of them confessed and named other witches. Arrest warrants were issued against those newly accused and they were brought in for questioning. More confessions, more accusations followed. A special court had to be convened to handle the rapid influx of people (mostly women) being arrested and charged with witchcraft. Even at the time, it seemed unbelievable, but too many people had witnessed the 'bewitched' behavior. Too many people had heard the confessions. It had to be true. Numerous people worked to do their best to make sure the trials were fair and that they were not prosecuting innocent people. They had come to believe that people had sold their souls to the devil and were committing acts of witchcraft, they still wanted to insure they were not harming wrongly accused people. We know the end result is that they were wrong. They did hand nineteen innocent people and they let five more die in jail and the lives of so many others were irreparably harmed by their actions. Families were torn apart. In some cases, businesses or farms were effectively boycotted and forced to close or shut down. Some people became unemployable because they were accused or supported someone accused. The biggest question in my mind is why. How can we as a people discard seeking the truth? How can we as a people fail to follow due process with people accused of a crime? In this case, it was a mistaken diagnosis by a respected doctor. It was fear and the believe that they were doing the right thing in accordance with their beliefs. That is the why. Can we still behave in this manner in today's society? The answer is not only a resounding yes, but it is happening. Guilty people are being accused of crimes, but they are being prosecuted without benefit of an investigation and a trial where they can be given a chance to defend themselves. There are innocent people also being accused of crimes and their lives are being destroyed (loss of jobs or business) by those accusations. They are not being given a fair investigation into their guilt or innocence. They are not being given a fair trail. They are simply accused and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the emotional anger felt against them. I can see the why. I can see it still happening today. If it becomes part of a character or group of characters. I can write about it.