The hero of the series has been falsely accused of a crime he did not commit.

Maybe he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time -- in line at the bank when it got robbed, or riding in the same subway car as a murder is committed. Maybe the series' BigBad has deliberately sent an EvilTwin to frame him. Maybe it's a GovernmentConspiracy to silence him because he knows too much.

Whatever the root cause, the phony evidence is so convincing, or the convergence of bad luck that [[TheCorpseStopsHere makes him look guilty]] is so unlikely, our hero finds himself struggling to convince anyone that he is an innocent man. Even his own friends seem ready to write him off guilty as charged. (With this belief sometimes persisting to the point of WhatAnIdiot.)

The only way he can set this MiscarriageOfJustice straight is to find the real criminal and bring him to justice. This can take an episode or two, or it can be the premise behind an ongoing arc.

Sometimes this can be resolved while the hero is out on bail, or perhaps it has to wait until he completes his sentence. If he's supposed to be in jail, then it also becomes a SternChase. If they're in jail and put in a DeadlyGame or BloodSport, they become a CondemnedContestant.

If the protagonist [[NotHelpingYourCase actually commits some crimes]] in the course of trying to clear his name, then he will likely benefit from WrongfulAccusationInsurance. SelectiveCondemnation is an extremely contrived VideoGame variant.

If the hero has to clear someone else who has been wrongfully accused of a crime, it's ClearTheirName.
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!!Examples:

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder: Anime and Manga ]]

* Subverted in ''FistOfTheNorthStar''; Rei has been looking for "the man with the seven scars" who kidnapped his sister. The only person who fits that description that we've met so far is Kenshiro, but we know for a fact he didn't do it. His sister is eventually found and cured of her blindness by Ken, but when Rei finds out about Ken's seven scars, he laughs it off, saying that he knows Ken is too nice a guy to ever do something like that. Turns out the real culprit is Jagi, who has been trying to frame Ken the whole time.
* Spoofed early in ''LoveHina'', when Keitaro resolves to "clear his name" with Shinobu. Naru immediately points out that there's nothing to clear up - he really did do the things that made Shinobu upset with him.
* Happens to the {{Nakama}} in ''MahouSenseiNegima'' when ArchEnemy Fate Averruncus destroys the gate port from MagicalLand to the {{Muggle}} side, finding a way to alter the video footage so that it appears the heroes did it. Odd in that the {{Magitek}} cameras probably should've been able to pick up on that, seeing as AWizardDidIt (while several figures who actually ''witnessed'' the event clearly saw the {{Nakama}} trying to defend against Fate and his minions). Needless to say, the entire group is on the lam (and on top of it, scattered around the magic world).
** Amusingly his father is in the nearly same situation in the flashback.
** Apparently he got this problem from his parents: [[spoiler: His mother has it worse than Nagi or Negi ever did; she was framed for ''attempted genocide'' and generally turned into a scapegoat for everything bad that happened as a result of the war. As of now (20 years later), she still hasn't been officially exonerated.]]
* Averted in ''GlassMask''. Maya Kitajima is pretty much kicked out of entertainment industry when [[spoiler: Suzuko Tashiro aka Norie Otobe]] frames her for a scandal, yet she presses forward and starts back in theater. [[spoiler: Ayumi ''does'' punish Suzuko with an HumiliationConfa, though]]
* Subverted slightly in ''DeathNote'' - VillainProtagonist Light gives up his memories of being the mass-murderer Kira and proceeds to spend the next few months attempting to clear his name by catching the 'real' Kira.
* Subverted in ''{{Monster}}''. Everyone assumes that Tenma is trying to clear his name, but he just has [[ShootTheDog other things on his mind]].
* Miki Hosokawa from ''HellTeacherNube'' is [[GossipyHens addicted to gossips]], but makes a point about not spreading downright ''mean'' ones. Well, at one point she ''was'' framed by [[spoiler: a demon]] who impersonated her and made her friends believe she ''was'' spreading MaliciousSlander, deserting her. After a brief HeroicBSOD, she decides to prove her innocence. [[spoiler: The demon almost kills her, but her BadassTeacher Nube saves her]].
* Happens in ''CardCaptorSakura'', where the Mirror card frames Sakura by [[MasterOfDisguise taking up her appearance]] and causing havoc around Tomoeda. [[spoiler: When Sakura's brother Touya unmasks her and gets hurt, but ''still'' offers her his friendship, The Mirror has a HeelFaceTurn and lets Sakura seal her.]]
* In the ''VampirePrincessMiyu'' TV series, a Shinma with shapeshifting powers frames the titular DarkMagicalGirl in an attempt to lure her out. She has to fight and seal him.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Comics ]]

* Happens regularly in {{Batman}} titles:
** An entire [[BatFamilyCrossover storyline]] was devoted to ''Bruce Wayne: Murderer?'' and its follow-up, ''Bruce Wayne: Fugitive''. Notable because the [[{{Nakama}} Batfamily members]] were the ones doing the clearing up, while Batman considered that "[[SecretIdentity Bruce Wayne]]" had just become a burden to be abandoned, even saying that "[[SecretIdentityIdentity Bruce Wayne doesn't exist]]".
** Dick Grayson was once accused of murder and had to fight to prove he was innocent.
** [[ByTheBookCop Renee Montoya]] is accused of murder in a storyline of ''Gotham Central'' when in fact [[spoiler:she's been set up by her StalkerWithACrush Two-Face]]. On that occasion, her colleagues try to prove she's innocent, Batman investigates the case, and Bruce Wayne pays for her lawyer.
* For decades, this is how {{Spider-Man}} stayed a regular guy without a support network, all thanks to J. Jonah Jameson. And now Spidey is a fricken' Avenger? Sigh.
** And ''now'' Jameson is the mayor of New York, who runs the office just like he does the bugle (what with the spider-slander, and sending Spider-slayers after Spidey). [[WallBanger Sigh]].

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Film ]]

* {{Alfred Hitchcock}}'s ''The 39 Steps''. And ''The Wrong Man''. And ''North By Northwest''...
* The ultimate example is, of course, ''TheFugitive.''
** And all of its parodies, such as ''Wrongfully Accused''.
** As well as the sequel, ''[[USMarshals U.S. Marshals]]''
** And the GenderFlip version, ''DoubleJeopardy'', which also stars Tommy Lee Jones as the pursuing law man.
* ''TheStarChamber'' starring Michael Douglas explores the theme of vigilante justice, with a group of judges re-examining cases and 'executing' those they find guilty by means of a contract killer. It later turns out that two petty crooks 'sentenced' in this manner didn't commit the crime they were accused of (a child killing). Michael Douglas is faced with the question of whether he should try and save two 'innocent' criminals, who he finds are PCP dealers.
* ''TheAvengers''. Sir August frames Mrs. Peel for the destruction of the Prospero lab by having her EvilTwin clone do the job. Mother gives Mrs. Peel a chance to prove her innocence by finding out who was behind it.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Literature ]]

* Happens to Dmitri in ''TheBrothersKaramazov.'' [[spoiler: He doesn't end up clearing his name, however, and the main characters are hatching a plan for an escape attempt out of prison as the novel ends.]]
* "Devil Asteroid" from the Mighty Orbots, but subverted a bit when Rondu tells Ohno and Rob that SHADOW has control of the asteroid.
* This happens to Finn and Uncle Stoppard in the fifth ''FinneganZwake'' novel.
* This happens to pilot Tycho Celchu in the ''XWingSeries'' - he was briefly held by TheEmpire's mistress of brainwashing, they dumped thousands of credits into his bank accounts, he was seen with someone who from behind looked liked one of the prominent Imperials, and he was in position to [[spoiler: kill Corran Horn. Who did not actually die]]. It's mentioned that most of the evidence is circumstantial, but there's a mountain of it,
* In DanAbnett's {{Eisenhorn}} novel ''Malleus'' revolved about Eisenhorn's revealing that another inquisitor had really gone rogue, and framed him for it. (Cherubael, who [[XanatosGambit set it up]], was [[EvilCannotComprehendGood shocked]] that Eisenhorn was annoyed by it.)
* In the Matt Helm novel ''The Retaliators'', $20,000 is deposited in Matt's bank account to frame him for treason.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Live Action TV ]]

* ''TheAdventuresOfBriscoCountyJr.'' ("Crystal Hawks")
* ''{{Andromeda}}'':
** In "All Great Neptune's Ocean" Tyr Anasazi is found standing over the dead body with the smoking gun (well, force lance) in his hand. His friends find out that the weapon has been manipulated to fire on a signal tone. Only then did Tyr draw it to get it under control.
** Beka Valentine refers to this incidence, when in "Shards of Rimni" Dylan Hunt is found with the murder weapon in his hand standing next to the killer and arrested for murder. It turns out, Dylan has been set up.
* The premise of ''TheATeam'' has a variation; they actually did commit the crime they're wanted for, but it was part of a secret military operation. Unfortunately their commander died shortly thereafter without explaining this to anyone...
* The ''BattlestarGalactica'' episode ''Murder On The Rising Star'' has Starbuck accused of murder and Apollo struggling to find the evidence to clear her.
* ''BurnNotice''.
* The protagonist of ''DayBreak'' is framed for a murder and must use a GroundhogDayLoop to figure out who's doing it and why.
* Sgt. Doakes in ''{{Dexter}}'' comes under suspicion of being the Bay Harbor Butcher, while he is actually the only one in the department who sees the DevilInPlainSight, and tries to clear his name while on the run. Brutally subverted [[spoiler:when the blood slides he took from Dexter's apartment are mistaken for his property, and when he tries to catch Dexter in the act, Dexter overpowers him, and frames him.]] Also, [[spoiler:Lila kills Doakes by blowing up the cabin he's in, which wasn't in Dexter's plan; he doesn't kill innocents.]]
* This is the driving premise of ''FarScape''. John Crichton spends most of the entire span of the show (including the miniseries finale) running from the current BigBad — each one wanting his head on a platter for something he didn't do (or [[FasterThanLightTravel doesn't know he can do]]) until he gets sick and tired of it and decides to [[DoNotGoGentleIntoThatGoodNight stop running]].
* ''The Fugitive''
* This has happened at least once to ''InspectorMorse''.
* In the Season 6 finale of ''{{Monk}}'', [[spoiler: Monk is framed for murder and escapes custody to try and look for the real murderer.]]
* Ned falls victim to this in one episode of ''PushingDaisies''.
* The title character of ''LaFemmeNikita'' ([[RecycledTheSeries the series]] only) spends very little time trying to clear her name, but the wrongful accusation is an important point in the series setup. She's an innocent accused of murder, forced into government service as a disposable killer.
* Apparently contractually obligated for members of the main ''{{NCIS}}'' team, given that aside from possibly Gibbs and Abby, each of them has had a ClearMyName episode: "Frame-Up" for Tony, "Probie" for [=McGee=], both "Jeopardy" and "Shalom" for Ziva, and "Broken Bird" for Ducky.
** When Tony is briefly implicated for a murder in the episode "Bounce", his response is a dry "And to think I almost made it an entire year without being accused of murder."
* A current plot point in [[TwentyFour 24]] has [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Jack Bauer]] on the run from the FBI, after [[spoiler: [[TheCorpseStopsHere a Starkwood assassin frames him for the murders of 2 government officials]]]].
** And further complicating matters? [[spoiler: Jack ends up killing the assassin (in self defense) before he can get himself cleared. [[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill With a bulldozer.]] [[ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks And an armor-piercing screwdriver.]] [[BoomHeadshot And a 2 by 4.]]]]
*** [[spoiler: And since that '''still''' wasn't enough Jack-Bauer-level-badassness, he takes the screwdriver from the body, inserts said screwdriver into a pickup truck's ignition, starts it up, and drives away. Damn, Jack.]]
* In the first season of ''Series/{{Heroes}}'', Peter Petrelli is arrested for the murder of Jackie Wilcox, when in fact it was Sylar.
* Quite popular in ''{{CSI}}'' and the spinoffs. In ''CSI:NY'' [[spoiler: Danny has been accused of murdering a cop, as well as a kid who had been dealing drugs to support his family. Mac is accused of leaking sensitive information several times, and, on one occasion, of murdering a "helpless" serial killer, and Hawkes is framed for murdering a bartender as revenge for what the mastermind believes is a false guilty verdict.]] In the standard CSI, just offhand, [[spoiler: Warrick, Greg and Jim are all accused of murder.]]
* HarrisonFord has said that he spent much of the first decade of his acting career in small guest roles on police shows, playing a character he calls "the guy who didn't do it".
* The Season 7 finale of ''[[LawAndOrderCriminalIntent Law & Order: Criminal Intent]]'' has Det. Goren being framed for the murder of [[spoiler: his brother]] by [[spoiler: his ArchNemesis Nicole Wallace and mentor [[BrokenPedestal Declan Gage]] ]].
* ''Matlock'' is based on this trope. Virtually every episode involves the eponymous attorney defending an innocent man and his investigation inevitably uncovers the real crook.
* In the ''NipTuck'' episode "Granville Trapp," Christian was hauled into jail on suspicion of being the Carver -- a hypothesis which would have demanded truly frightening devotion on his part, as both he and his partner had been Carver victims. The frame-up was, of course, [[spoiler: perpetrated by the actual Carver team: Dr. Quentin Costa, aided by Det. Kit [=McGraw=].]]
* ''NowhereMan'' incorporated some of this in its core concept.
* ''PrisonBreak''
* The whole plot of the TV series ''{{Renegade}}''.
* In ''{{Stargate SG-1}}'', Colonel O'Neill is framed for the murder of Senator Kinsey and the rest of his team must clear his name.
* Occurs about once a series in the ''StarTrek'' franchise. Usually, a senior officer is accused of committing a crime under alien law, the evidence at the trial looks pretty damning, and then at the end the heroes present The Real Cause.
** In ''StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'':
*** In the episode "Journey to Babel": Ambassador Sarek was suspected of murdering the Tellarite ambassador. [[spoiler:In fact, an Orion posing as the Andorian ambassador had done so.]]
*** In the episode "Wolf in the Fold": Jack the Ripper in energy-being form.
** In ''StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'':
*** "Dax": Dax's previous host is a suspect in a thirty-year-old murder case.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Video Games ]]

* The story mode of ''{{WWE}} Day of Reckoning 2'' sees the main character framed for stealing the WWE Championship belt, and thus banned from Monday Night Raw; he must then prove his innocence while rebuilding his wrestling career as a member of the Smackdown roster.
* Sonic is captured in ''[[SonicTheHedgehog Sonic Adventure 2]]'' because everyone mistakes Shadow for him. You'd think people would have noticed the fact they're completely different colors. Then again, how many anthropomorphic hedgehogs with super-speed do you see running around?
* PhoenixWright had this happen to him in the second case of ''PhoenixWrightAceAttorney'', forcing him to represent himself in court. Also, more or less in ''Apollo Justice: AceAttorney''.
* Happened to [[LegendOfZelda Link]] in ''The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past''. After the evil wizard in residence does away with Princess Zelda, his minions get the word out (with surprising speed) that Link has kidnapped her. Signs are posted in his hometown and if they spot him, his neighbors will yell for the palace guards to come and kill him.
* The [[VideoGameRemake Gamecube remake]] of ''SkiesOfArcadia'' features a BonusBoss like this - the three main characters have impersonators they can go after for a bounty. This has no bearing on the plot, but ''does'' affect the player character's ingame title; he goes from his title marking him as a well-liked hero to "Vyse the Fallen Pirate" until the imposers are taken care of.
* The plot of ''{{Condemned}}: Criminal Origins'' is based on this. [[spoiler:At the end of the first mission, the killer who has stolen main character Ethan's gun shoots two police officers. Ethan's goal for the rest of the game is catching him.]].
* This is part of the basis of the plots of both the ''MaxPayne'' computer games. In the first [[spoiler: He witnesses his partner's murder, which he is framed for. His motive for uncovering the V conspiracy is both to avenge his slain wife, and to find his partner's true murderer.]] In the second [[spoiler: he is again framed for the murder of his partner, although in this case the partner turns out to be working for the BigBad.]] After killing a legion of gangsters and junkies (admittedly in self defense), he benefits from WrongfulAccusationInsurance, as he gets off scot free and even ends up working back in the Police under the man who was hunting him in the first game!
* ''MegaMan 9'' starts off with a variant of this trope - the robots that attack at the start of the game are designed by Dr. Light, and Wily further stains Light's reputation with a video recording and his [[ShoutOut Swiss Bank Account number]] for donations. The goal is, obviously, to clear Dr. Light. [[spoiler:The truth is a bit more complicated. Anyone who's played a Mega Man game before has reason to believe Wily's behind it all, and they're absolutely right]].
** Before that is in ''MegaMan 5'', where [=MegaMan=] has to clear his brother [=ProtoMan=]'s name.
* ''[[SuperMarioBros Super Mario Sunshine]]'' begins with Mario having to clear his name after Bowser jr. frames him for polluting the island.
* This is a plot point used in a late-game story arc in ''CityOfHeroes'' -- in the course of your investigating the CorruptCorporateExecutive Countess Crey, she manages to fabricate charges against you, placing you on the top 10 wanted list and issuing an APB for your arrest. [[StatusQuoIsGod This]] [[GameplayAndStorySegregation being]] [[TakeYourTime a]] [[MassivelyMultiplayerOnlineRolePlayingGame memorpuger]], of course, there's very little influence on your actual gameplay routine, aside from a couple of post-mission ambushes from villain groups looking to get the reward. The solution, of course, is to finally expose the BigBad as the VillainWithGoodPublicity that she is, but again, successfully doing so won't change your gameplay routine for the better or anything.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Webcomics ]]

* Main point of second ''{[Energize}}'' adventures.
* {{Acrobat}} has to worry about this when Kid Laser frames him for Blackhawk's murder.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Western Animation ]]

* ''EdEddNEddy'', "If It Smells Like An Ed": The Eds are framed for wrecking the other kids' "Friendship Day" celebration, and try to find out who set them up.
** [[spoiler: It was Jimmy.]]
* An uncommon variation of Clear My Name is a {{Reincarnation}} being accused of crimes committed in a past life. ''AvatarTheLastAirbender'' put Aang through one of these turning out to be guilty, and ''StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' subjected Dax to one.
* In ''JusticeLeagueUnlimited,'' the whole League is framed when Lex Luthor seizes control of their headquarters' KillSat to destroy a government base and half of a city. While six of the senior Leaguers turn themselves in as an act of good faith, Batman calls that a stupid move, refuses to cooperate and does the hard investigative work to save the day instead. Once cleared, the rest get to be his BigDamnHeroes.
* Happened on ''BatmanTheAnimatedSeries,'' episode "Feat of Clay", where Matt Hagen (prior to becoming Clayface) impersonates Bruce Wayne and gets him framed for an attempted murder -- the man was saved by Batman, of course. Since his only alibi is [[SecretIdentity being Batman]], he's faced with having to clear his name some other way.
* ''{{Jem}}'' plays this trope straight in "One Jem Too Many" in which Misfits fan Clash disguises herself as a rude version of Jem. Clash is revealed by she's changed to sing by Jem, which reveals Clash to be a member in good standing of HollywoodToneDeaf.
* In a bizarre reversal, {{Batman}} races against time to clear ''the Joker's'' name in ''The Joker: Devil's Advocate'', as his insanity defense finally fails and he's sentenced to death, but for a murder he didn't actually commit.
* In ''TheSpectacularSpiderMan,'' this happens to Spider-Man when MasterOfDisguise the Chameleon [[CostumeCopycat impersonates]] him in a series of robberies. Though he clears his name, the [[AllOfTheOtherReindeer damage to his]] [[SlaveToPR reputation]] has been done.
** And again when [[spoiler: Venom returns. Subverted when Captain Stacy notes that, not only does Venom have a different build than Spiderman (when he was wearing the black suit), but that he has a different fighting style, prompting Stacy to see Venom as an imitator]].
** One of the first things that happened to Spiderman after he became a hero was being framed by the Chameleon in the original comics. More specifically he disguised himself as Spiderman and lured him to the roof of a building (with the promise of an oppertunity to make some money) where he was making his escape for a robbery (of secret plans to [[RedScare sell to the Russians]]. It's quickly cleared up when Spiderman chases him down and brings him back (possibly making this one of the quickest resolutions of ClearMyName in comics). Then it happens again (with the Chameleon dropping some smoke bombs and donning a policeman disguise) before being cleared up even more quickly (with Spidey fleeing up a wall and letting them sort it out on their own, which they do since he tore his uniform revealing his SPiderman disguise). The real issue of...[[IncrediblyLamePun that issue]] is how upset he is at being subject to AllOfTheOtherReindeer
*An [[MythArc ongoing Arc]] in ''DannyPhantom'' is the hero himself having to clear his name and prove he's the good guy to his UntrustingCommunity due to an elaborate plan by a [[TheJailer disgruntled ghostly sheriff]]. It takes him several episodes and a near sacrifice, but he succeeds.
* In an episode of ''TheFairlyOddparents'', Timmy ends up getting blamed for a wave of shoplifting when he can't explain how he got everything he wished for. He ends up having to escape from the police to prove his innocence.
* Happened in an episode of ''TimonAndPumbaa''. With a subversion of WrongfulAccusationInsurance, no less.
* An episode of ''SheepInTheBigCity'' had Sheep getting accused of a string of bugularies. He's eventually arrested, put on trial in a KangarooCourt, found guilty, and broken out...at which point the police just let him go, [[ResetButton because they figure he's learned his lesson and won't do it again]].
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