The Kingmaker campaign introduces us to Kundal, a wandering Barbarian werewolf.
My party had other agendas and didn't meet up with him until we were of a higher level than the book probably intended.
Kundal was cured by Accept Affliction, and the person who accepted his affliction then ate some Wolfsbane and made the roll to shrug it off.
The townspeople are demanding justice for the victims of his latest attacks.
The King is going to hold a public trial in order to be transparent about our justice system, and so that all sides may be heard.
What are your thoughts on putting a cured lycanthrope on trial for crimes committed as a werewolf?
Generally speaking in our legal system it would be considered 'temporary insanity' or 'not guilty be reason of insanity.'
That doesn't mean that all legal systems would see it that way, and it depends a lot on how you want your legal system to work.
One could also argue that he could have liability (criminal or civil) if he new or should have known he had that condition and didn't get treatment.
It would be fitting to have him pay a weregild (nothing particularly to do with lycanthropes, but amusing). Typically murdering a freeman would cost about 200 shillings (GP) in fees.
Of course most fantasy games I have run and played in don't let you off for a murder for just some gold, regardless of how historically accurate that is.
There's modern sensibilities versus historically accurate sensibilities versus fantasy sensibilities versus your DM's sensibilities.
In a modern setting, were something like to happen, the concept of premeditated comes into play. It would be argued that while under the lycanthropic curse, the person was literally a different creature, and not acting with intent. Their prior criminal history would be considered, and in a modern court they would likely be acquitted.
In a historically accurate setting, mob mentality would rule unless an authority figure such as a local lord or - as you mention - King got involved, in which case by and large it would come down to whim. Remember, on Earth, things like the inquisition and witch trials were real. People historically were sentenced not based on what we would see as justice or fairness or even guilt. To be accused was frequently sufficient to ensure doom.
In a fantasy setting, you usually see a blend of the above two. Modern players inject their personal experiences and biases into what they imagine the setting to be. You'll see huge table variance, but I suspect most tables would lean towards their reality, mostly as a modern real-world court.
In your DM's mind... I have no idea.
I would largely make the decision based on the alignment of the community.
Lawful Good. There's some variables. If they worship Sarenrae in any significant degree, she praises redemption and thus it's highly likely he would minimally be given opportunity to repent. As they are no longer an evil creature, there's no immediate rush to kill him, however Barbarians are Chaotic in nature, so it's likely he may be cast out from the society based on that kind of ideal.
Lawful Evil. Kill him. He violated the law, and it would be a power play to appease those who lost loved ones to his condition. Unless it could be convinced there was more to gain by sparing him, or someone corrupt has something to gain from him he's a dead man.
Lawful Neutral. Pretty much as either of the above. Minimally he's kicked out for Barbarism because it's not conducive to lawful society, and it sets an example.
Chaotic Good. A sense of community seems more likely, I could see them sparing him and then again, depending on deity more may or may not be done.
Chaotic Evil. What law? There is no law here, only the strong survive. If he didn't piss off someone with a lot of pull then he's probably fine.
Chaotic Neutral. Eeehhh? Either of the above, depends on the community.
Neutral Good. Probably spare. Again, deities.
Neutral Evil. Probably spare, unless someone has something to gain.
True Neutral. This is a forest. Nature rules here and no one particularly cares. (A joke because I can't really picture a true neutral settlement that isn't like a Druid enclave. Lack of imagination on my part.)
This is really an ethical question. Is a person responsible only for the results of their actions or does their intent come into play? As someone stated upthread, did he take any actions to mitigate the possible damages he caused by say locking himself up during a full moon, seeking treatment, etc?
I think this is a PERFECT opportunity for some really in depth character exploring roleplaying!
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The trail was pretty fair.
Kundal was assigned a defense. And there was a single appointed prosecutor.
We spoke to victims' families, the person who found one of the bodies, and had the resident knowledge expert speak on behalf of what they know about lycanthropy.
As details emerged from Kundal's broken and rattled mind, he mentioned once having a family that he cannot remember the fate of. He described a past where he was proud to protect his people. He cannot recollect much in the way of timeline or specifics.
He was stricken with remorse and horror at the possibility that he may be this monster responsible for the deaths of not only the people here, but possibly his own family wherever he came from.
The King ended up declaring to the public that this will not be a kingdom that executes the victims of curable afflictions.
Kundal was sentenced to be imprisoned and rehabilitated. We have sent runners up to the Kelid people for answers. He will remain under guard until they return. But the ultimate goal of his imprisonment is to rehabilitate him once he sobers up and recovers more of his mind.
The defense absolutely killed it, role playing, everything. Since nobody actually seen Kundal as the werewolf, the defense called into question if he ever was. Said someone else could have planted the ear/earring in Kundal's room. Said that if no one was witness to identify the Accept Affliction spell work, do we know if there was an affliction at all? The defense said that many warriors drink in excess and seclude themselves from the public. It was awesome.
The whole trial was a lot of fun.