I’m talking about the term in the most widely-used fictional sense, in which someone commits a crime, and deliberately leaves clues and evidence that points to an innocent party instead. (As you can see by my definition, I exclude police involvement in the frame; that’s more common and less interesting, IMO.)
If there ever has been such a case, did it work (at least at the time)?
It didn’t work, but do the words Helter Skelter mean anything to you?
You realized the error of this but I feel that it needs to be stressed: If it worked, no one would ever know.
Not ever? Seems to me like most criminals would eventually either brag about it to the wrong person, or come clean to the right person.
There have been cases where someone has murdered his/her spouse and tried to blame it on intruders/drug addicts. Charles Stuart apparently killed his wife and tried to blame it on a random black man, the police came down hard on the neighborhood where the murder occurred only to find out it was a lie: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,969173,00.html
I just remembered a similar case, Jeffrey R. MacDonald was convicted of murdering his family after claiming that a gang of hippies akin to the Manson family did it.
Years ago, in the local Maryland/Washington DC papers was the case of a lady who served jail time for defrauding the bank where she worked. Years later it came to light she was set up by higher-ups in the bank.
I regret I have no cite.
Two Words: O J
Tawana Brawley and her allegations of rape were believed initially, but later discredited.
[Tawana] No one manips-mapes me! [/Tawana]
Its more likely that hippies did kill his family, just that due to a botched crime scene, evidence suppression, etc. a jury didn’t see it that way.
He described the intruders as two male caucs, one male black and one female cauc. These four people did exist, did hang out together, were drug addicts, didn’t have alibis for the evening and two admitted to going to the house for drugs. The woman he described as holding a candle, with a floppy hat and long blonde wig. Exactly such a woman was seen a few blocks away by MP’s on the way to the crime scene. She was a known drug addict who had no alibi. Candle wax and long blonde wig hairs were found in the home that could not be traced to anyone or anything in the house. Not to mention no motive, dozens of people in the house rearranging furniture, tracking up evidence, etc.
John Christie testified for the Crown at the trial of Timothy Evans for the murder of his wife and daughter, for which he was hanged. It was subsequently discovered that Christie was a serial killer, and many have speculated that Christie was the actual murderer.
Years ago I heard about a disgruntled employee who spray painted graffiti on the wall of his place of employment. The graffiti said disparaging things about the owner of the place. He was, of course, fired. The resulting court case proved that the boss did the spray painting himself as an excuse to terminate the employee.
No cite for that either, I was told about it by the handwriting analyst who was brought in as an expert witness. She even showed my photos that were used as evidence.
And Diane Downs (subject of the book and TV movie “Small Sacrifices”) gives a similar defense. And serial rapist Kevin Coe, who was identified by seven of his victims, claims everyone is lying. And Billy Milligan blamed his crimes on “another personality” in the midst of the whole Sybil bruhaha.
Police call it the SODDI defense (Some Other Dude Did It).
Heh. Wappingers Falls.
Wappingers.
Heh.
For example, when Susan Smith drowned her children in a lake, she claimed to have been carjacked by a black man, spurring a huge search.
10 Rillington Place is a great unjustly obscure UK film about this case (which supposedly led to the abolition of the death penalty in the UK)with John Hurt, Richard Attenborough and Judy Geeson.
Corrupt FBI agent H. Paul Rico collaborated with an informant who testified against 4 men who he knew to be innocent in the murder of Ed Deegan. 2 of them died in prison, 2 were eventually released.
It’s possible that William Herbert Wallace was framed for the murder of his wife. Certainly the case against him is filled with holes and there’s some evidence at least as strong that points to others.
That’s not really a frame-job, it’s just a lie.
Read the FAQ part on the website of Alton Maddox, one of her attorneys.
They really really really tried to frame Steve Pagones.