Dementor's Kiss

"You can exist without your soul, you know, as long as your brain and heart are still working. But you'll have no sense of self anymore, no memory, no...anything. There's no chance at all of recovery. You'll just -- exist. As an empty shell. And your soul is gone forever...lost."

- Remus Lupin on the Dementor's Kiss

The Dementor's Kiss is the act of having one's soul sucked out by a Dementor. It was sometimes employed as a sentence for criminals by the Ministry of Magic, and is considered a fate worse than death. Prior to when Voldemort was in control of the Ministry, Dementor's Kiss was ordinarily used against those who escape from Azkaban. When Kingsley Shacklebolt became Minister for Magic following the end of the Second Wizarding War in 1998, Dementors (and probably Dementor's Kiss) were no longer used by the Ministry of Magic.

Description
The Dementor will pull back its hood, clamp its jaw around the victim's mouth, and consume his or her soul. When one's soul is being taken from a short distance, the victim's face changes transparent and is distorted and stretched. It takes longer to take a soul from a distance. The Dementor's Kiss is generally considered to be a punishment worse than death. Victims are left in what Muggles would call a Persistent Vegetative State: empty shells that are still alive but irretrievably "gone". It is unknown if the victim can still access the afterlife or return as a ghost.

Usage
"Ah, vengeance is sweet. How I hoped I'd be the one to catch you... But why deny the Dementors? They're so longing to see you. Do I detect a flicker of fear? Ah, yes. The Dementor's Kiss. One can only imagine what that must be like to endure. It's said to be nearly unbearable to witness, but I'll do my best."

- Severus Snape to Sirius Black in 1994

The Dementor's Kiss was occasionally imposed as a sentence for criminals by the Ministry of Magic; given that the reformed Ministry stopped employing Dementors as guards of Azkaban after the Second Wizarding War, it is likely that the Dementor's Kiss was no longer used as a criminal sentence either.

Sirius Black was sentenced to a Dementor's Kiss after his escape from Azkaban in 1993, but evaded punishment through the assistance of Harry Potter and Hermione Granger. The Kiss was performed on Barty Crouch Jr after it was discovered that he had disguised himself as Alastor Moody in order to deliver Harry Potter to Lord Voldemort and had killed his father in 1995.

When Voldemort was in control of the Ministry in late 1997 and early 1998 and Muggle-borns were being persecuted, those detained by the Muggle-Born Registration Commission were threatened with the Kiss if they resisted. Dementors nearly Kissed Mary Cattermole during one trial, but Harry Potter repelled them, and he and Hermione Granger freed her and the other Muggle-borns being held prisoner, assisting them in escaping, along with Ron Weasley. It is possible that some innocent Muggle-borns were Kissed before the Ministry was taken back.

Known Victims

 * Barty Crouch Jr
 * Sirius Black

Appearances

 * Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
 * Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Notes and references
Baiser du Détraqueur