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How did the inquisitorial legal procedure contribute to the growth of witch hunts?

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Oil painting The Witches' Sabbath by Francisco de Goya shows a group of figures in dark robes gathered around a crouching person, with eerie creatures flying in a moonlit sky. — Witchcraft *El conjuro* or *Las brujas* (“The Conjuring” or “The Witches”), oil on canvas by Francisco Goya, 1797–98; in the Museo Lázaro Galdiano, Madrid.

The shift from the accusatorial procedure—where a private individual initiated a prosecution—to the inquisitorial procedure was a critical factor in the escalation of witch hunts. Under the inquisitorial system, court officers were tasked with investigating crimes themselves, which fundamentally changed the nature of legal proceedings.12

This procedure typically required either two witness statements or a confession to prove guilt for serious offenses. To secure these confessions, authorities implemented judicial torture, which had been revived in the 12th and 13th centuries. The use of torture significantly contributed to the growth of witch hunts in several ways:123

False Confessions: Torture coerced the accused into admitting to crimes they did not commit, including fantastical acts like flying to a witches’ sabbath.12
Chain of Accusations: Because victims were often forced to name accomplices to end their own suffering, a single accusation could rapidly spawn a larger local hunt by creating a long chain of suspects.312

While some institutions, such as the Inquisition, eventually implemented strict rules to restrain these abuses, the broader adoption of inquisitorial methods in secular courts provided the legal framework that fueled the hysteria.31