History Main / IWontSayImGuilty

Almost no innocent characters have ever pled guilty in the history of television, unless they're TakingTheHeat for someone else. If it's just them, though, heck no.

[[folder:Anime and Manga]]

[[folder:Film - Live-Action]]

* The Salem witch trials, mentioned below, are depicted in ''Theatre/TheCrucible'', where the question of whether to save himself by giving in to the InsaneTrollLogic of the witch hunters is the main conflict for the protagonist.
* At the end of Theatre/{{Parade|1998}}, Leo Frank is told by [[spoiler:the lynch mob]] that they'll release him [[spoiler:and spare his life]] if he admits to the murder of Mary Phagan. Leo refuses to do so [[spoiler:and they lynch him]].

* Real Life Example: In the Salem witch trials, those accused were given the option to confess to witchcraft, which would guarantee their life. Many, such as Rebecca Nurse, didn't take this option, even with the alternative being death, confiscation of all property, excommunication, and improper burial all at once.

* To get parole, a prisoner usually must confess their crime. For an innocent person, this can be unacceptable. So this puts them in what people call the "innocent prisoner's dilemma": admit guilt and get parole, but at the cost of losing any chance of being exonerated, since this would be used against them in any attempt to get their conviction overturned. Since it has been believed that prisoners who deny guilt are more dangerous as they haven't faced what they did, this requirement came to be standard. However, actual psychological studies show just the opposite: prisoners who freely admit guilt are far more likely to reoffend, since they're comfortable with their illegal acts. Those who deny it are either innocent or not happy with what they did, and thus ''less'' dangerous. As just one of many prisoners who had faced this, [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Morton_(criminal_justice) Michael Mortan]] (who'd been wrongly convicted of murdering his wife) was doing life but then offered a chance at parole in 2010 as his attorneys fought to overturn his conviction. Morton refused, since as stated above here a condition of parole would be expressing remorse for his crime, and was thankfully exonerated later.

* To get parole, a prisoner usually must confess their crime. For an innocent person, this can be unacceptable. So this puts them in what people call the "innocent prisoner's dilemma": admit guilt and get parole, but at the cost of losing any chance of being exonerated, since this would be used against them in any attempt to get their conviction overturned. Since it has been believed that prisoners who deny guilt are more dangerous as they haven't faced what they did, this requirement came to be standard. However, actual psychological studies show just the opposite: prisoners who freely admit guilt are far more likely to reoffend, since they're comfortable with their illegal acts. Those who deny it are either innocent or not happy with what they did, and thus ''less'' dangerous.

* A variation in ''Manga/KaguyaSamaLoveIsWar''. In middle school, Yuu Ishigami gets suspended for punching Ko Ogino, a boy who was the boyfriend of a girl he knew. In truth, he was righteously furious because Ogino was a slimeball who planned on cheating on (and releasing sex tapes of) his girlfriend, but Ogino frames it as an attack from a CrazyJealousGuy. While suspended, the school tells him he's only allowed to come back if he writes an apology letter, essentially admitting that the incident was a simple act of aggression. Ishigami decides to reject the offer, saying that he doesn't want to lie to himself and the school just to have the whole thing over with--and as a result he stayed suspended until the Student Council and Miko Iino vouch for him.

* At the end of Theatre/{{Parade}}, Leo Frank is told by [[spoiler:the lynch mob]] that they'll release him [[spoiler:and spare his life]] if he admits to the murder of Mary Phagan. Leo refuses to do so [[spoiler:and they lynch him]].

* At the end of ''Theatre/Parade'', Leo Frank is told by [[spoiler:the lynch mob]] that they'll release him [[spoiler:and spare his life]] if he admits to the murder of Mary Phagan. Leo refuses to do so [[spoiler:and they lynch him]].

* This was a critical piece of the New York case of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalief_Browder Kalief Browder]], who sat in jail for three years awaiting trial on a theft charge due to numerous procedural delays (he had been on probation at the time of the arrest so was not eligible for bail). At several points along this process, judges and prosecutors offered him plea bargains with generous terms (including, near the end of the three years, a "time served" sentence that would have allowed for his immediate release), but Browder refused the offers because he would have had to plead guilty to a crime he didn't commit. (When the case finally did go to trial, it was promptly dismissed due to lack of evidence, and Browder was released; however, the years he spent in jail ruined Browder's life, and he would ultimately [[DrivenToSuicide die by suicide]] just two years later.)

* This was a critical piece of the New York case of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalief_Browder Kalief Browder]], who sat in jail for three years awaiting trial on a theft charge due to numerous procedural delays (he had been on probation at the time of the arrest so was not eligible for bail). At several points along this process, judges and prosecutors offered him plea bargains with generous terms (including, near the end of the three years, a "time served" sentence that would have allowed for his immediate release), but Browder refused the offers because he would have had to plead guilty to a crime he didn't commit. (When the case finally did go to trial, it was promptly dismissed due to lack of evidence, and Browder was released; however, by then the ordeal had left its mark on Browder, who would ultimately [[DrivenToSuicide take his own life]] just two years later.)

---> '''Dawson:''' If a court decides that what we did was wrong, then I'll accept whatever punishment they give. But I believe I was right sir, I believe I did my job, and I ''will not'' dishonor myself, my unit, or the Corps ''so I can go home in SIX MONTHS!!!'' ...Sir.
* The aerobics lady from ''Film/LegallyBlonde'' is also an exception.

*** One man accused of witchcraft, Giles Corey, famously refused to plead either way. In those days, the law said that a person could not be tried without entering a plea first. Those who refused were "motivated" to by being pressed between two flat stones, with heavier stones placed on top. When given the choice to plead guilty (he'd live, but be deprived of all his property, thus leaving his family in poverty) or not guilty (he would be tried, inevitably convicted, put to death, and lose his property anyway), he reportedly yelled, "More Weight!" It was the only way to leave his family with anything. Merely being accused of witchcraft had sealed his fate one way or the other. It was also, of course, a way of going out while {{defiant to the end}}.

* Related is the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alford_plea "Alford plea,"]] where a defendant maintains their innocence while acknowledging that they're all but guaranteed to be convicted if it goes to trial; it's officially recorded as a guilty plea, but unlike a standard guilty plea, the defendant doesn't have to go on the record saying they did it. It's basically a plea of {{not what it looks like}}. Alfords are rare as hell; they're typically only offered/accepted in extraordinary situations.

When a LawProcedural plot involves an innocent defendant, there will almost invariably be a point where the case will be stacked horribly against them, and they will be offered a deal by the DA. Something like, "Wendell, we can't win this. Your car was found at the scene of the crime, forty eyewitnesses are positive it was you, it sure does look like you on the security footage, and the jury are apparently collaborating on a book called ''Burn in Hell, Wendell Spatz, You Guilty Guilty Scumbag''. The DA says if we plead guilty you'll be out in three days, and you'll also get a week in the Bahamas with Scarlett Johansson. Plead now and they'll throw in a set of steak knives."

Another reason for this to be [[JustifiedTrope justified]] is that having a conviction, even if minor, on your record [[JaywalkingWillRuinYourLife can really mess up your day.]] Even though you only spent three days in prison, you're still a convicted criminal for the rest of your life. Trying to apply for jobs, loans, and things like that gets a ''lot'' harder.

[[folder: Film ]]

* The aerobics lady from ''Film/LegallyBlonde'' is also an exception.
* ''Film/{{Braveheart}}'': Captured by the English crown and convicted for leading the Scots in rebellion, William Wallace is informed that he will receive a swifter death if he apologizes to King Edward. Wallace refuses: ''"Never in my life did I swear loyalty to him."''
* Averted in ''Film/ConAir'': Poe pleads guilty to murder, following his attorney's advice, but it doesn't make much sense how the odds could possibly be so stacked against him when it was clearly self-defense in a bar-brawl against four guys. Not that it matters much -- Poe had the bad luck of being assigned a HangingJudge who refused to grant him mercy either way (the judge's reason to put him in jail, paraphrased: "as a trained soldier, you are a LivingWeapon and you must be judged by harsher standards than normal men!").

[[folder: Literature ]]

* In his [[Literature/ApologyOfSocrates Apology]], Creator/{{Socrates}} refuses to plead guilty, even under the risk of losing his life.
* Basically every one of ''Literature/MickeyHaller'''s clients. Probably because it wouldn't be any fun to read a book about someone making a plea agreement. [[spoiler: However, this does not mean that they're ACTUALLY not guilty.]]

[[folder: Live Action Television ]]

* In an episode of ''Series/NYPDBlue'', a young wannabe gangsta cops to shooting someone but refuses to plead to any charge. He was convinced since [[MurderByMistake he shot the wrong person]], [[TooDumbToLive the charges didn't]] [[HollywoodLaw apply to him.]]

* In ''Bangkok Hilton'', Kat is offered the chance to plead guilty for possession of the heroin that her smuggler boyfriend hid in her camera case, which would result in a life sentence. She refuses, despite being told that if she's found guilty of trafficking, it's a mandatory death sentence.
* A variation in ''Series/{{Porridge}}'': Long-time convict Blanco is granted parole but bitterly refuses to accept it, insisting that he was wrongly convicted all along and wants a pardon instead.
* ''Series/WhenTheySeeUs'': All five of the boys rejected a plea deal from the DA because they wouldn't plead guilty to something they didn't do. Yusef and Kevin categorically refuse to say they raped anyone for the mandatory sex offenders group as well. Korey refuses to lie at his parole hearings by saying he committed the crimes which he's been convicted of, despite it meaning he'll stay in prison.
* In the Creator/{{CBS}} MiniSeries ''Gone In The Night'', BasedOnATrueStory of the abduction and murder of [[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Jaclyn_Dowaliby Jaclyn Dowaliby]], her mother and stepfather are relentlessly interrogated and at one point, are outright told to confess so that the DA will take it easier on them. They refuse.
* [[spoiler:Spencer Reid]] in ''Series/CriminalMinds'' refuses a plea deal when arrested of murder because a conviction would prevent them from working for the FBI.

[[folder: Theater ]]

[[folder: Visual Novels ]]

[[folder: Western Animation ]]

* Bart Simpson "confessed" to Lisa stealing textbooks in an episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''. An example of the aforementioned TakingTheHeat exception.
* Spinelli does this in the ''WesternAnimation/{{Recess}}'' episode "The Trial" until she gets the guts to go up into the stands herself.

[[folder: Real Life ]]

* This was a critical piece of the New York case of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalief_Browder Kalief Browder]], who sat in jail for three years awaiting trial on a theft charge (he had been on probation at the time of the arrest so was not eligible for bail). At several points along this process, judges and prosecutors offered him plea bargains with generous terms (including, near the end of the three years, a "time served" sentence that would have allowed for his immediate release), but Browder refused the offers because he would have had to plead guilty to a crime he didn't commit. When the case finally did go to trial, it was promptly finally dismissed due to lack of evidence, but the time spent behind bars pretty much ruined Browder's life, and he was ultimately DrivenToSuicide a few years after his release.

* This was a critical piece of the New York case of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalief_Browder Kalief Browder]], who sat in jail for three years awaiting trial on a theft charge (he had been on probation at the time of the arrest so was not eligible for bail) before the case was finally dismissed due to lack of evidence. At several points along this process, judges and prosecutors offered him plea bargains with generous terms (including, near the end of the three years, a "time served" sentence that would have allowed for his immediate release), but Browder refused the offers because he would have had to plead guilty to a crime he didn't commit.

** In the third case of ''VisualNovel/TheGreatAceAttorney 2'', Ryunosuke buts heads with his own client, Albert Harebrayne, on this. While he protests the charge of murder, Albert is content to accept charges of wrongful death, more motivated to preserve his hypothesis and integrity as a scientist than his freedom. Ryunosuke, however, is insistent on a full acquittal, which he aims to get by arguing that the invention which allegedly killed the victim was a sham. Absolutely horrified by this, Albert winds up testifying against ''himself'' until [[spoiler:Ryunosuke successfully convinces Albert that his engineer has swindled him and should be further investigated]].

** In the third case of VisualNovel/TheGreatAceAttorney 2, Ryunosuke buts heads with his own client, Albert Harebrayne, on this. While he protests the charge of murder, Albert is content to accept charges of wrongful death, more motivated to preserve his hypothesis and integrity as a scientist than his freedom. Ryunosuke, however, is insistent on a full acquittal, which he aims to get by arguing that the invention which allegedly killed the victim was a sham. Absolutely horrified by this, Albert winds up testifying against ''himself'' until [[spoiler:Ryunosuke successfully convinces Albert that his engineer has swindled him and should be further investigated]].

* Bart Simpson "confessed" to Lisa stealing textbooks in an ep of ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''. An example of the aforementioned TakingTheHeat exception.

* Happens all the time in ''Series/ThePractice.'' In one episode, the defendant reluctantly agrees to plead guilty (while still privately denying guilt), ''after'' the jury is done deliberating. The plea is accepted, and then Bobby discovers that [[spoiler:the jury returned a verdict of Not Guilty]].

** Most recently, the so-called [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Memphis_Three#Plea_deal_and_release_.282011.29 "West Memphis 3"]] were permitted to enter an ''Alford'' plea to charges that they murdered 3 boys in 1993. Two of the three defendants were sentenced to life imprisonment, while the third was given a death sentence. All had maintained their innocence (and evidence and later events revealed massive amounts of misconduct by police, prosecutors, and jurors) and the evidence was starting to support this, but the state didn't want to fully throw out the case in case they were wrong, so the boys were offered an Alford plea with a sentence of time served, allowing them to be released without having to go on the record saying they'd done it. All three accepted as it gave them the quickest path to getting out while allowing them to maintain their innocence.

** Most recently, the so-called [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Memphis_Three#Plea_deal_and_release_.282011.29 "West Memphis 3"]] were permitted to enter an ''Alford'' plea to charges that they murdered 3 boys in 1993. Two of the three defendants were sentenced to life imprisonment, while the third was given a death sentence. All had maintained their innocence (and evidence and later events revealed massive amounts of misconduct by police, prosecutors, and jurors), but agreed to the plea so they could just be released, as the state promised to drag it out otherwise.

* There's also a plea of "No Contest" or "nolo contendere," where the defendant (generally ''not'' in a murder trial) is doing nothing more than saying "The evidence is so stacked against me, I'm not going to fight it anymore... but I still maintain that I'm innocent."