History tends to back that theory, and it makes sense, really.
John Proctor was having an affair with his maid, and ended it when his wife, Elizabeth Barrett Proctor, became pregnant again. The maid's bitterness had her accuse Elizabeth of witchcraft ... John stepped up to defend his wife. She was spared because she was expecting, John found himself accused, and he died for his defense of his wife.
There were a lot of politics involved, unfortunately, and the Proctors had made a point of NOT taking sides: that didn't do a lot for their popularity. Elizabeth was an amateur botanist, too, and her knowledge of plant lore was "witchy" to the Puritans....
I'm going to go off an a major tangent here, I'd better get off my soapbox.