General Notes

Sirius was best friends with James Potter, Harry's father, and was also friends with Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew. When the group discovered that Lupin was a werewolf, they studied secretly to become Animagi in solidarity with Lupin, to keep him company during his transformations. When the Potters went into hiding from Voldemort, they wanted to make Sirius their Secret-Keeper, but at the last minute he convinced them to appoint Pettigrew to the task instead, since no one would suspect such a move. Pettigrew immediately betrayed the Potters to Voldemort, and during the subsequent confrontation with Sirius, caused an explosion to fake his own death, killing twelve nearby Muggle bystanders in the process. Sirius was left framed for Pettigrew's "murder" and those of the bystanders, as well as the Potters' betrayal. In light of the overwhelming evidence against him, his guilt was assumed so completely (in particular by the ruthless Barty Crouch) that he was sent straight to Azkaban without trial and imprisoned there for twelve years, during which he endured relentless mental torture at the hands of the Azkaban guards, the dementors. His later escape from prison led to the widest manhunt ever in the wizarding world (being the first person known to have escaped Azkaban, though in reality, he is second to Barty Crouch, Jr.), and he fled Europe for a time, only to return on Dumbledore's orders in The Order of the Phoenix, where he was forced to stay in his old family home, Grimmauld Place. It was impossible for The Order to reveal his location and prove him innocent for various reasons. His death at the end of The Order of the Phoenix, in the Ministry itself, led to Dumbledore explaining his story to the Minister of Magic. Tragically, Sirius was only recognized as innocent after his death.