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The most innocent iteration of the character will have caused the death only indirectly, such as by neglecting to watch a child under their care closely enough to prevent a deadly mishap. Others were directly responsible for killing the child but still as a genuine accident, such as a car crash, with no intention of hurting anyone. Grimmer still are characters who fully intended to use lethal force, but [[ShootHimHeHasAWallet mistook the child for someone threatening]] or killed them inadvertently as CollateralDamage while [[MurderByMistake aiming for someone else.]] If violence was part of the character's profession (law enforcement, military, wandering adventurer), they will question their ability to continue that job, and may outright quit.
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The most innocent iteration of the character will have caused the death only indirectly, such as by neglecting to watch a child under their care closely enough to prevent a deadly mishap. Others were directly responsible for killing the child but still as a genuine accident, such as a car crash, with no intention of hurting anyone. Grimmer still are characters who fully intended to use lethal force, but [[ShootHimHeHasAWallet mistook the child for someone threatening]] or killed them inadvertently as CollateralDamage while [[MurderByMistake aiming for someone else.]] If violence was part of the character's profession (law enforcement, military, wandering adventurer), ProfessionalKiller), they will question their ability to continue that job, and may outright quit.
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* ''Film/MeanGuns'': Lou, a retired hitman, quits the mob after a botched hit in the past where he accidentally shot a little boy. It was his mistake that led him into partaking in the film's main event, a free-for-all shootout where a hundred killers, many of the {{Death Seeker}}s, will hunt down and execute each other until the SoleSurvivor gets to leave with a 10 million cash reward.
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* ''Film/MeanGuns'': Lou, a retired hitman, quits the mob after a botched hit in the past where he accidentally shot a little boy. It was his mistake that led him into partaking in the film's main event, a free-for-all shootout where a hundred killers, many of the them {{Death Seeker}}s, will hunt down and execute each other until the SoleSurvivor gets to leave with a 10 million cash reward.
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* ''Film/AWalkAmongTheTombstones'': This is the reason protagonist Matthew Scudder quit his job as a cop and gave up alcohol, because a stray shot from his gun during a shootout killed a little girl.
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* ''Film/AWalkAmongTheTombstones'': This is the reason protagonist Matthew Scudder quit his job as a cop and gave up alcohol, alcohol because a stray shot from his gun during a shootout killed a little girl.
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-->'''Jim:''' Then one day, I was just walking down the street when I heard a voice behind me say, "Reach for it, mister!" I spun around... and there I was, face to face with a six-year old kid. Well, I just threw my guns down and walked away.... Little bastard shot me in the ass.
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-->'''Jim:''' Then one day, I was just walking down the street when I heard a voice behind me say, "Reach for it, mister!" I spun around... and there I was, face to face with a six-year old six-year-old kid. Well, I just threw my guns down and walked away.... Little bastard shot me in the ass.
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* ''Film/MeanGuns'': Lou, a retired hitman, quits the mob after a botched hit in the past where he accidentally shot a little boy. It was his mistake which led him into partaking in the film's main event, a free-for-all shootout where a hundred killers, many of the {{Death Seeker}}s, will hunt down and execute each other until the SoleSurvivor gets to leave with a 10 million cash reward.
* ''Film/TheNovemberMan'': Peter Deveroux, the titular hitman, quits his profession in disgrace after botched mission in Montenegro accidentally left a young boy dead, until he's dragged back into the force five years later. Subverted that its Peter's partner, Mason, who pulled the trigger that killed the child, but Peter still felt that he was responsible over the killing due to poor timing.
* ''Film/TheNovemberMan'': Peter Deveroux, the titular hitman, quits his profession in disgrace after botched mission in Montenegro accidentally left a young boy dead, until he's dragged back into the force five years later. Subverted that its Peter's partner, Mason, who pulled the trigger that killed the child, but Peter still felt that he was responsible over the killing due to poor timing.
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* ''Film/MeanGuns'': Lou, a retired hitman, quits the mob after a botched hit in the past where he accidentally shot a little boy. It was his mistake which that led him into partaking in the film's main event, a free-for-all shootout where a hundred killers, many of the {{Death Seeker}}s, will hunt down and execute each other until the SoleSurvivor gets to leave with a 10 million cash reward.
* ''Film/TheNovemberMan'': Peter Deveroux, the titular hitman, quits his profession in disgrace after a botched mission in Montenegro accidentally left a young boy dead, until he's dragged back into the force five years later. Subverted that its Peter's partner, Mason, who pulled the trigger that killed the child, but Peter still felt that he was responsibleover for the killing due to poor timing.
* ''Film/TheNovemberMan'': Peter Deveroux, the titular hitman, quits his profession in disgrace after a botched mission in Montenegro accidentally left a young boy dead, until he's dragged back into the force five years later. Subverted that its Peter's partner, Mason, who pulled the trigger that killed the child, but Peter still felt that he was responsible
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* In Theo's backstory in ''Literature/ChildrenOfMen'', he inadvertently ran over his own daughter while backing out of the driveway. His then-wife never forgave him, and he does not seem to have ever forgiven himself either. (This happens only in the book; in the film his child, a son, died in an epidemic.)
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* In Theo's backstory in ''Literature/ChildrenOfMen'', he inadvertently ran over his own daughter while backing out of the driveway. His then-wife never forgave him, and he does not seem to have ever forgiven himself either. (This happens only in the book; in the film film, his child, a son, died in an epidemic.)
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* ''Malevolent'': [[HardboiledDetective Arthur Lester]] originally had a daughter, Faroe; however, she died several years before the events of the series. Bringing her up is a major sore spot for him, even after stumbling onto the eldritch events of the series. It's eventually revealed that he accidentally let her drown in the bath, due to getting to engrossed whilst writing a song to remember to check on her.
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* ''Malevolent'': [[HardboiledDetective Arthur Lester]] originally had a daughter, Faroe; however, she died several years before the events of the series. Bringing her up is a major sore spot for him, even after stumbling onto the eldritch events of the series. It's eventually revealed that he accidentally let her drown in the bath, due to getting to too engrossed whilst writing a song to remember to check on her.
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* ''VideoGame/{{Omori}}'': Downplayed because Sunny was also a child during the incident, but during an argument with his big sister Mari after he threw his violin down the stairs in frustration, Sunny angerly tries to push her away to get away from her, only to accidentally push her down the stairs to her death. His best friend Basil, who witnessed the incident, helped Sunny stage it as a suicide by hanging Mari's lifeless body from a tree in the backyard. The guilt and self-hatred that Sunny felt after the incident drives the conflict for the game.
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* ''VideoGame/{{Omori}}'': Downplayed because Sunny was also a child during the incident, but during an argument with his big sister Mari after he threw his violin down the stairs in frustration, Sunny angerly angrily tries to push her away to get away from her, only to accidentally push her down the stairs to her death. His best friend Basil, who witnessed the incident, helped Sunny stage it as a suicide by hanging Mari's lifeless body from a tree in the backyard. The guilt and self-hatred that Sunny felt after the incident drives the conflict for the game.
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If murder is the most heinous crime, [[WouldHurtAChild murder of a child]] is [[ThisIsUnforvigable considered especially unforgivable]]. A character who is revealed to have killed a child in the past will usually be considered to have retroactively crossed the MoralEventHorizon.
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If murder is the most heinous crime, [[WouldHurtAChild murder of a child]] is [[ThisIsUnforvigable [[ThisIsUnforgivable considered especially unforgivable]]. A character who is revealed to have killed a child in the past will usually be considered to have retroactively crossed the MoralEventHorizon.
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If murder is the most heinous crime, [[WouldHurtAChild murder of a child]] is considered especially unforgivable. A character who is revealed to have killed a child in the past will usually be considered to have retroactively crossed the MoralEventHorizon.
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If murder is the most heinous crime, [[WouldHurtAChild murder of a child]] is [[ThisIsUnforvigable considered especially unforgivable.unforgivable]]. A character who is revealed to have killed a child in the past will usually be considered to have retroactively crossed the MoralEventHorizon.
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* ''Literature/TheLangoliers'' has British spy/agent Nick Hopewell, who volunteers for a certain death task that ''must'' be performed -- because, as a younger man, he accidentally shot some children in Ireland, who were miming throwing hand grenades at him... which were really potatoes.
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* ''Literature/TheLangoliers'' has British spy/agent Nick Hopewell, who volunteers for a certain death task that ''must'' be performed -- because, as a younger man, he accidentally shot some children in Northern Ireland, who were miming throwing hand grenades at him... which were really potatoes.
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Removing orphaned spoiler markup start.
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* In ''Theatre/TheMousetrap,'' [[spoiler:it's revealed that the SerialKiller using [[IronicNurseryRhyme "Three Blind Mice"]] as a CallingCard is targeting a trio of individuals connected to a past tragedy: three children were sent to live with foster parents, only to be horrifically abused to the point of one dying. The "three blind mice" who the murderer intends to kill are Maureen Lyon, the children's foster mother; Mrs. Boyle, the magistrate who ordered the children sent to the farm; and [[spoiler: Mollie Ralston, who is perhaps the best fit for this trope: she was the children's schoolteacher, and the boy who died managed to send her a letter detailing what was happening. But in a [[ForWantOfANail cruel twist of fate]], Mollie developed pneumonia on the day the letter was delivered and didn't see it until she returned to the school, by which point the child was already dead. She admits that she has been haunted by the incident all her life and [[ItsAllMyFault blames herself]] for what happened.]]
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* In ''Theatre/TheMousetrap,'' [[spoiler:it's revealed that the SerialKiller using [[IronicNurseryRhyme "Three Blind Mice"]] as a CallingCard is targeting a trio of individuals connected to a past tragedy: three children were sent to live with foster parents, only to be horrifically abused to the point of one dying. The "three blind mice" who the murderer intends to kill are Maureen Lyon, the children's foster mother; Mrs. Boyle, the magistrate who ordered the children sent to the farm; and [[spoiler: Mollie Ralston, who is perhaps the best fit for this trope: she was the children's schoolteacher, and the boy who died managed to send her a letter detailing what was happening. But in a [[ForWantOfANail cruel twist of fate]], Mollie developed pneumonia on the day the letter was delivered and didn't see it until she returned to the school, by which point the child was already dead. She admits that she has been haunted by the incident all her life and [[ItsAllMyFault blames herself]] for what happened.]]
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The Mousetrap is exempt from Spoilers Off policy as per the Spoilers Off page.
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* ''Film/AWalkAmongTheTombstones'' This is the reason [[spoiler:protagonist Matthew Scudder quit his job as a cop and gave up alcohol, because a stray shot from his gun during a shootout killed a little girl.]]
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* ''Film/AWalkAmongTheTombstones'' ''Film/AWalkAmongTheTombstones'': This is the reason [[spoiler:protagonist protagonist Matthew Scudder quit his job as a cop and gave up alcohol, because a stray shot from his gun during a shootout killed a little girl.]]
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* In ''Theatre/TheMousetrap,'' it's revealed that the SerialKiller using [[IronicNurseryRhyme "Three Blind Mice"]] as a CallingCard is targeting a trio of individuals connected to a past tragedy: three children were sent to live with foster parents, only to be horrifically abused to the point of one dying. The "three blind mice" who the murderer intends to kill are Maureen Lyon, the children's foster mother; Mrs. Boyle, the magistrate who ordered the children sent to the farm; and [[spoiler: Mollie Ralston, who is perhaps the best fit for this trope: she was the children's schoolteacher, and the boy who died managed to send her a letter detailing what was happening. But in a [[ForWantOfANail cruel twist of fate]], Mollie developed pneumonia on the day the letter was delivered and didn't see it until she returned to the school, by which point the child was already dead. She admits that she has been haunted by the incident all her life and [[ItsAllMyFault blames herself]] for what happened.]]
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* In ''Theatre/TheMousetrap,'' it's [[spoiler:it's revealed that the SerialKiller using [[IronicNurseryRhyme "Three Blind Mice"]] as a CallingCard is targeting a trio of individuals connected to a past tragedy: three children were sent to live with foster parents, only to be horrifically abused to the point of one dying. The "three blind mice" who the murderer intends to kill are Maureen Lyon, the children's foster mother; Mrs. Boyle, the magistrate who ordered the children sent to the farm; and [[spoiler: Mollie Ralston, who is perhaps the best fit for this trope: she was the children's schoolteacher, and the boy who died managed to send her a letter detailing what was happening. But in a [[ForWantOfANail cruel twist of fate]], Mollie developed pneumonia on the day the letter was delivered and didn't see it until she returned to the school, by which point the child was already dead. She admits that she has been haunted by the incident all her life and [[ItsAllMyFault blames herself]] for what happened.]] ]]
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* Worf from ''Franchise/StarTrek'' is exceptionally rigid and uptight, rarely allowing himself to relax around others. An unusual enough trait for humans- who he was raised among- but especially odd for a Klingon. It's eventually revealed that as a child he was much less self-controlled, until a collision with another boy during a soccer game. Klingons are physically much tougher than humans, and the other boy died, which made Worf realize he had to maintain strict control of himself to avoid hurting the humans around him.
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'''As this is a DeathTrope, beware unmarked spoilers.'''
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** ''Film/SawIII'': Timothy Young was driving drunk when he struck and killed Jeff's son Dylan. He felt horrible about the accident, but that didn't stop Jigsaw from sticking him in a DeathTrap to test Jeff's capacity for forgiveness. Jeff tries but fails to save Timothy, who dies [[CruelAndUnusualDeath gruesomely.]]
** Subverted with Anna in ''Film/{{Jigsaw}}''. During the first traps of the barn game, Anna tells the other victims that she and her husband simply lost their child, but it's revealed near the end that she actually [[VorpalPillow asphyxiated the baby]] intentionally and tricked her husband into thinking he did it accidentally, which [[DrivenToSuicide drove him to suicide]].
** Subverted with Anna in ''Film/{{Jigsaw}}''. During the first traps of the barn game, Anna tells the other victims that she and her husband simply lost their child, but it's revealed near the end that she actually [[VorpalPillow asphyxiated the baby]] intentionally and tricked her husband into thinking he did it accidentally, which [[DrivenToSuicide drove him to suicide]].
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** ''Film/SawIII'': Timothy Young was driving drunk when he struck and killed Jeff's son Dylan. He felt horrible about the accident, but that didn't stop Jigsaw from sticking putting him in a DeathTrap to test Jeff's capacity for forgiveness. Despite his efforts, Jeff tries but fails to save Timothy, who dies [[CruelAndUnusualDeath gruesomely.]]
dies gruesomely]].
** Subverted with Anna in ''Film/{{Jigsaw}}''.During Just before the first traps second trap of the barn game, game begins, Anna tells the other victims that she and her husband simply lost their child, but it's revealed near the end that she actually [[VorpalPillow asphyxiated the baby]] intentionally and tricked her husband into thinking he did it accidentally, which [[DrivenToSuicide drove him to suicide]].
** Subverted with Anna in ''Film/{{Jigsaw}}''.
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** ''Film/SawIII'': Timothy Young was driving drunk when he struck and killed Jeff's son Dylan. He felt horrible about the accident, but that didn't stop Jigsaw from sticking him in a DeathTrap to test Jeff's capacity for forgiveness. Jeff does not save Timothy, who dies [[CruelAndUnusualDeath gruesomely.]]
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** ''Film/SawIII'': Timothy Young was driving drunk when he struck and killed Jeff's son Dylan. He felt horrible about the accident, but that didn't stop Jigsaw from sticking him in a DeathTrap to test Jeff's capacity for forgiveness. Jeff does not tries but fails to save Timothy, who dies [[CruelAndUnusualDeath gruesomely.]]
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[[folder:Film -- Live-Action]]
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-->'''Jim:''' Then one day, I was just walking down the street when I heard a voice behind me say, "Reach for it, mister!" I spun around... and there I was, face to face with a six-year old kid. Well, I just threw my guns down and walked away. ... Little bastard shot me in the ass.
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-->'''Jim:''' Then one day, I was just walking down the street when I heard a voice behind me say, "Reach for it, mister!" I spun around... and there I was, face to face with a six-year old kid. Well, I just threw my guns down and walked away. ...away.... Little bastard shot me in the ass.
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* ''[[Film/ItsAWonderfulLife It's a Wonderful Life]]'': Zig-zagged. In the original timeline, George Bailey prevents Mr. Gower from accidentally poisoning a child, as the druggist was despondent over the death of his son to the flu, and did not fill out the prescription properly. In the new timeline where George never existed, he wasn't there to prevent Mr. Gower from poisoning the child, and the man is considered a pariah by the local community.
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* ''[[Film/ItsAWonderfulLife It's a Wonderful Life]]'': ''Film/ItsAWonderfulLife'': Zig-zagged. In the original timeline, George Bailey prevents Mr. Gower from accidentally poisoning a child, as the druggist was despondent over the death of his son to the flu, and did not fill out the prescription properly. In the new timeline where George never existed, he wasn't there to prevent Mr. Gower from poisoning the child, and the man is considered a pariah by the local community.
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* ''Literature/TheLangoliers'' has British spy/agent Nick Hopewell, who volunteers for a certain death task that ''must'' be performed-- because, as a younger man, he accidentally shot some children in Ireland, who were miming throwing hand grenades at him... which were really potatoes.
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* ''Literature/TheLangoliers'' has British spy/agent Nick Hopewell, who volunteers for a certain death task that ''must'' be performed-- performed -- because, as a younger man, he accidentally shot some children in Ireland, who were miming throwing hand grenades at him... which were really potatoes.
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* ''[[Series/AmericanHorrorStoryAsylum American Horror Story: Asylum]]'' has Sister Jude, who became a nun after running over a young girl while driving drunk. She later learns that the girl actually survived, which contributes to her HeelFaceTurn.
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* ''[[Series/AmericanHorrorStoryAsylum American Horror Story: Asylum]]'' ''Series/AmericanHorrorStoryAsylum'' has Sister Jude, who became a nun after running over a young girl while driving drunk. She later learns that the girl actually survived, which contributes to her HeelFaceTurn.
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* ''[[Series/LukeCage2016 Luke Cage (2016)]]'': Detective Rafael Scarfe is a dirty, corrupt cop but it's indicated that his start of darkness was the death of his son- inadvertently caused by Scarfe himself when he left his gun out, fully loaded and his son played with it and shot himself.
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* ''[[Series/LukeCage2016 Luke Cage (2016)]]'': ''Series/{{Luke Cage|2016}}'': Detective Rafael Scarfe is a dirty, corrupt cop but it's indicated that his start of darkness was the death of his son- son -- inadvertently caused by Scarfe himself when he left his gun out, fully loaded and his son played with it and shot himself.
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* The ''Series/{{Monk}}'' episode "Mr. Monk Meets Dale the Whale" has Dr. Christiaan Vezza--or, to use his real name, Glenn Q. Sindell, a disgraced former surgeon who inadvertently killed a child by operating while high out of his mind on drugs. Sindell jumped bail and tried to start a new life for himself, only for [[EvilGenius Dale]] [[FatBastard "the Whale"]] [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Biederbeck III]] to learn the secret and use it to blackmail him into following his every order, including committing a murder. At the end of the episode, Sindell decides to turn states' evidence against Dale to [[TheAtoner atone for his crimes.]]
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* The ''Series/{{Monk}}'' episode "Mr. Monk Meets Dale the Whale" has Dr. Christiaan Vezza--or, Vezza -- or, to use his real name, Glenn Q. Sindell, a disgraced former surgeon who inadvertently killed a child by operating while high out of his mind on drugs. Sindell jumped bail and tried to start a new life for himself, only for [[EvilGenius Dale]] [[FatBastard "the Whale"]] [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Biederbeck III]] to learn the secret and use it to blackmail him into following his every order, including committing a murder. At the end of the episode, Sindell decides to turn states' evidence against Dale to [[TheAtoner atone for his crimes.]]
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* ''Series/TheOuterLimits1995'' episode "[[Recap/TheOuterLimits1995S4E12FearItself Fear Itself]]". Subverted. Bernard is initially a very troubled man who accidentally killed his little sister in a fire by playing with matches while she was sleeping, thus starting his crippling anxiety. In the last scene, he discovers that it was actually a PedophilePriest who gaslit him and blamed the young boy for his crime.
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* ''Series/TheOuterLimits1995'' ''Series/{{The Outer Limits|1995}}'' episode "[[Recap/TheOuterLimits1995S4E12FearItself Fear Itself]]". Subverted. Bernard is initially a very troubled man who accidentally killed his little sister in a fire by playing with matches while she was sleeping, thus starting his crippling anxiety. In the last scene, he discovers that it was actually a PedophilePriest who gaslit him and blamed the young boy for his crime.
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[[folder:Web Video]]
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[[folder:Web Video]]Videos]]
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[[/folder]]
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----
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* In ''Theatre/TheMousetrap,'' it's revealed that the SerialKiller using [[IronicNurseryRhyme "Three Blind Mice"]] as a CallingCard is targeting three individuals connected to a past tragedy: a trio of children were sent to live with foster parents, only to be horrifically abused to the point of one dying. The "three blind mice" who the murderer intends to kill--and thus the three individuals who fit this trope--are Maureen Lyon, the children's foster mother; Mrs. Boyle, the magistrate who ordered the children sent to the farm; and [[spoiler: Mollie Ralston, who is perhaps the best fit for this trope: she was the children's schoolteacher, and the boy who died managed to send her a letter detailing what was happening--but in a [[ForWantOfANail cruel twist of fate]], Mollie developed pneumonia on the day the letter was delivered and didn't see it until she returned to the school, by which point the child was already dead. She admits that she has been haunted by the incident all her life and [[ItsAllMyFault blames herself]] for what happened.]]
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* In ''Theatre/TheMousetrap,'' it's revealed that the SerialKiller using [[IronicNurseryRhyme "Three Blind Mice"]] as a CallingCard is targeting three a trio of individuals connected to a past tragedy: a trio of three children were sent to live with foster parents, only to be horrifically abused to the point of one dying. The "three blind mice" who the murderer intends to kill--and thus the three individuals who fit this trope--are kill are Maureen Lyon, the children's foster mother; Mrs. Boyle, the magistrate who ordered the children sent to the farm; and [[spoiler: Mollie Ralston, who is perhaps the best fit for this trope: she was the children's schoolteacher, and the boy who died managed to send her a letter detailing what was happening--but happening. But in a [[ForWantOfANail cruel twist of fate]], Mollie developed pneumonia on the day the letter was delivered and didn't see it until she returned to the school, by which point the child was already dead. She admits that she has been haunted by the incident all her life and [[ItsAllMyFault blames herself]] for what happened.]]
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* ''Literature/AndThenThereWereNone'': Subverted. Agatha Christie spends the whole of the novel building up Vera Claythorne as a sympathetic character; the "crime" for which U.N. Owen wants to punish her is the accidental death of a child. Until the end of the novel, that is, when it is revealed that Vera deliberately arranged for the circumstances of the boy's death in an effort to be with her lover.
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* ''Literature/AndThenThereWereNone'': Subverted. Agatha Christie spends the whole of the novel building up Vera Claythorne as a sympathetic character; the "crime" for which U.N. Owen wants to punish her is the accidental death of Cyril, the young boy she looked after as a child. governess. Until the end of the novel, that is, when it is revealed that Vera deliberately arranged for the circumstances of the boy's death Cyril's death--she was in an effort to be love with his uncle Hugo, who had been disinherited after Cyril was born because the younger boy had a greater legal claim to the bloodline. She set Cyril up to die so that Hugo could receive the full inheritance, only to learn (too late) that Hugo genuinely loved the child and was absolutely disgusted by her lover.actions.
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* The ''Series/{{Monk}}'' episode "Mr. Monk Meets Dale the Whale" has Dr. Christiaan Vezza--or, to use his real name, Glenn Q. Sindell, a disgraced former surgeon who inadvertently killed a child by operating while high out of his mind on drugs. Sindell jumped bail and tried to start a new life for himself, only for [[EvilGenius Dale]] [[FatBastard "the Whale"]] [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Biederbeck III]] to learn the secret and use it to blackmail him into following his every order, including committing a murder. At the end of the episode, Sindell decides to turn states' evidence against Dale to [[TheAtoner atone for his crimes.]]
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* In ''Theatre/TheMousetrap,'' it's revealed that the SerialKiller using [[IronicNurseryRhyme "Three Blind Mice"]] as a CallingCard is targeting three individuals connected to a past tragedy: a trio of children were sent to live with foster parents, only to be horrifically abused to the point of one dying. The "three blind mice" who the murderer intends to kill--and thus the three individuals who fit this trope--are Maureen Lyon, the children's foster mother; Mrs. Boyle, the magistrate who ordered the children sent to the farm; and [[spoiler: Mollie Ralston, who is perhaps the best fit for this trope: she was the children's schoolteacher, and the boy who died managed to send her a letter detailing what was happening--but in a [[ForWantOfANail cruel twist of fate]], Mollie developed pneumonia on the day the letter was delivered and didn't see it until she returned to the school, by which point the child was already dead. She admits that she has been haunted by the incident all her life and [[ItsAllMyFault blames herself]] for what happened.]]
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* ''Literature/TheLangoliers'' has British spy/agent Nick Hopewell, who volunteers for a certain death task that ''must'' be performed-- because, as a younger man, he accidentally shot some children in Ireland, who were miming throwing hand grenades at him... which were really potatoes.
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The reason Susanna the nursemaid killed herself was more because she was falsely blamed as an accomplice than that she felt responsible
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* ''Literature/MurderOnTheOrientExpress'': While Daisy Armstrong's death was very much not accidental, Daisy's French nursemaid felt responsible enough for failing to protect her that she killed herself over it. This inspires her loved ones to join in on the plot to kill Daisy's murderer, Casetti.
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* ''Film/AWalkAmongtheTombstones'' This is the reason [[spoiler:protagonist Matthew Scudder quit his job as a cop and gave up alcohol, because a stray shot from his gun during a shootout killed a little girl.]]
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* ''Film/AWalkAmongtheTombstones'' ''Film/AWalkAmongTheTombstones'' This is the reason [[spoiler:protagonist Matthew Scudder quit his job as a cop and gave up alcohol, because a stray shot from his gun during a shootout killed a little girl.]]
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* ''Film/AWalkAmongtheTombstones'' This is the reason [[spoiler:protagonist Matthew Scudder quit his job and gave up alcohol, because a stray shot from his gun during a shootout killed a little girl.]]
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* ''Film/AWalkAmongtheTombstones'' This is the reason [[spoiler:protagonist Matthew Scudder quit his job as a cop and gave up alcohol, because a stray shot from his gun during a shootout killed a little girl.]]
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* ''Film/AWalkAmongtheTombstones This is the reason [[spoiler:protagonist Matthew Scudder quit his job and gave up alcohol, because a stray shot from his gun during a shootout killed a little girl.]]
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* ''Film/AWalkAmongtheTombstones ''Film/AWalkAmongtheTombstones'' This is the reason [[spoiler:protagonist Matthew Scudder quit his job and gave up alcohol, because a stray shot from his gun during a shootout killed a little girl.]]
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* ''Film/AWalkAmongtheTombstones This is the reason [[spoiler:protagonist Matthew Scudder quit his job and gave up alcohol, because a stray shot from his gun during a shootout killed a little girl.]]
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* ''VideoGame/{{Omori}}'': Downplayed because Sunny was also a child during the incident, but during an argument with his big sister Mari after he threw his violin down the stairs in frustration, Sunny angerly tries to push her away to get away from her, only to accidentally push her down the stairs to her death. His best friend Basil, who witnessed the incident, helped Sunny stage it as a suicide by hanging Mari's lifeless body from a tree in the backyard. The guilt and self-hatred that Sunny felt after the incident drives the conflict for the game.
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* ''Literature/HarryPotterAndTheDeathlyHallows'': 14-year-old Ariana Dumbledore died in the crossfire of a duel between her brothers and Gellert Grindelwald. Neither Albus nor Aberforth knew which of them dealt the killing blow.
to:
* ''Literature/HarryPotterAndTheDeathlyHallows'': 14-year-old Ariana Dumbledore died in the crossfire of a duel between her brothers and Gellert Grindelwald. Neither Albus nor Aberforth knew which of them dealt the killing blow.blow, but the death broke Albus and Gellert's relationships apart, and Albus never trusted himself with power again.
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* ''Literature/MurderOnTheOrientExpress'': While Daisy Armstrong's murder was very much not accidental, Daisy's French nursemaid felt responsible enough for failing to protect her that she killed herself over it. This inspires her loved ones to join in on the plot to kill Daisy's murderer, Casetti.
to:
* ''Literature/HarryPotterAndTheDeathlyHallows'': 14-year-old Ariana Dumbledore died in the crossfire of a duel between her brothers and Gellert Grindelwald. Neither Albus nor Aberforth knew which of them dealt the killing blow.
* ''Literature/MurderOnTheOrientExpress'': While Daisy Armstrong'smurder death was very much not accidental, Daisy's French nursemaid felt responsible enough for failing to protect her that she killed herself over it. This inspires her loved ones to join in on the plot to kill Daisy's murderer, Casetti.
* ''Literature/MurderOnTheOrientExpress'': While Daisy Armstrong's
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* ''Literature/MurderOnTheOrientExpress'': While Daisy Armstrong's murder was very much not accidental, Daisy's French nursemaid felt responsible enough to kill herself over it.
to:
* ''Literature/MurderOnTheOrientExpress'': While Daisy Armstrong's murder was very much not accidental, Daisy's French nursemaid felt responsible enough for failing to kill protect her that she killed herself over it.it. This inspires her loved ones to join in on the plot to kill Daisy's murderer, Casetti.
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* ''Film/TheCrimesOfGrindelwald'': Leta LeStrange feels responsible for the death of her infant brother Corvus, due to switching him with another infant to get some peace from his crying. When the ship sank, the real Corvus is lost at sea, while the other child, presumed to be Corvus, was put into hiding and grew up to be Credence.
to:
* ''Film/TheCrimesOfGrindelwald'': ''Film/FantasticBeastsTheCrimesOfGrindelwald'': Leta LeStrange [=LeStrange=] feels responsible for the death of her infant brother Corvus, due to switching him with another infant to get some peace from his crying. crying while they were sailing to America. When the ship sank, the real Corvus is was lost at sea, while the other child, presumed to be Corvus, was put into hiding and grew up to be Credence.Credence. The drowning infant became her boggart when she was older.
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* ''Film/InBruges'': Rookie hitman Ray is sent to Bruges (it's in Belgium) after royally screwing up his first assignment: shooting a Catholic priest in a confession booth, only for a stray bullet to kill a little boy waiting to give confession. While he appears snarky on the outside, the guilt is quickly making him manic and suicidal.
to:
* ''Film/TheCrimesOfGrindelwald'': Leta LeStrange feels responsible for the death of her infant brother Corvus, due to switching him with another infant to get some peace from his crying. When the ship sank, the real Corvus is lost at sea, while the other child, presumed to be Corvus, was put into hiding and grew up to be Credence.
* ''Film/InBruges'': Rookie hitman Ray is sent to Bruges (it's in Belgium) after royally screwing up his first assignment: shooting a Catholic priest in a confession booth, only for a stray bullet to kill a little boy waiting to give confession. While he appears snarky on the outside, the guilt is quickly making him manic and suicidal.
* ''Film/InBruges'': Rookie hitman Ray is sent to Bruges (it's in Belgium) after royally screwing up his first assignment: shooting a Catholic priest in a confession booth, only for a stray bullet to kill a little boy waiting to give confession. While he appears snarky on the outside, the guilt is quickly making him manic and suicidal.
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* ''Literature/MurderOnTheOrientExpress'': While Daisy Armstrong's murder was very much not accidental, Daisy's French nursemaid felt responsible enough to kill herself over it.
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[[folder:Video Games]]
* ''VideoGame/DarkestDungeon'': The Highwayman's backstory comic shows him conducting an attack on a stagecoach where he reflexively fires into the stagecoach's window, killing a mother and her child. If his quotes while [[SanitySlippage Afflicted]] and his Crimson Court trinket set (which includes a locket containing his victims' faces) are any indication, he feels immense guilt about the murders.
[[/folder]]
* ''VideoGame/DarkestDungeon'': The Highwayman's backstory comic shows him conducting an attack on a stagecoach where he reflexively fires into the stagecoach's window, killing a mother and her child. If his quotes while [[SanitySlippage Afflicted]] and his Crimson Court trinket set (which includes a locket containing his victims' faces) are any indication, he feels immense guilt about the murders.
[[/folder]]
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* In Theo's backstory in ''Literature/ChildrenOfMen'', he inadvertently ran over his own daughter while backing out of the driveway. His then-wife never forgave him, and he does not seem to have ever forgiven himself either. (This happens only in the book; in the film his child, a son, died in an epidemic.)
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** Suzanne "Crazy Eyes" Warren was left unattended and without her antipsychotic medication, which led her to unwittingly abduct a young boy from a park and causing him to fall to his death from a fire escape. The guilt definitely hasn't helped her mental health.
to:
** Suzanne "Crazy Eyes" Warren was left unattended unsupervised and without her antipsychotic medication, which led her to unwittingly abduct medications. She met a young boy from little kid while working as a store greeter, then she saw him at the park and causing invited him home. But when he wanted to fall go home and she wouldn't let him leave, he got scared and ran out on the fire escape, falling to his death from a fire escape.death. The guilt definitely hasn't helped her mental health.
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If murder is the most heinous crime, [[WouldHurtAChild murder of a child]] is considered especially unforgivable. A character who is revealed to have killed a child in the past will usually be considered to have retroactively crossed the MoralEventHorizon.
Unless, of course, [[AccidentalMurder they didn't mean to]].
In this character's DarkAndTroubledPast, they made a terrible mistake and [[DeathOfAChild a child died]] because of it. For heroic characters, the child's death will become MyGreatestFailure. Expect all their interactions with children in the present to be influenced by this; they may become either a FriendToAllChildren or emotionally closed off and hesitant to spend any time around them.
The most innocent iteration of the character will have caused the death only indirectly, such as by neglecting to watch a child under their care closely enough to prevent a deadly mishap. Others were directly responsible for killing the child but still as a genuine accident, such as a car crash, with no intention of hurting anyone. Grimmer still are characters who fully intended to use lethal force, but [[ShootHimHeHasAWallet mistook the child for someone threatening]] or killed them inadvertently as CollateralDamage while [[MurderByMistake aiming for someone else.]] If violence was part of the character's profession (law enforcement, military, wandering adventurer), they will question their ability to continue that job, and may outright quit.
The most unfortunate cases will either [[OutDamnedSpot be driven mad from the guilt]] or be murdered themselves, as {{Revenge}} for the child's death. Alternatively, a character may be given MyGreatestSecondChance when another child's life is in danger, although they may wind up performing a HeroicSacrifice, [[RedemptionEqualsDeath dying to save the kid that reminded them of their horrible mistake.]] Heroes that survive will learn to live with themselves, but always carry the knowledge of their actions.
Universally results in the character thinking MyGodWhatHaveIDone If the child's death was a FailureToSaveMurder, the person responsible [[ILetGwenStacyDie Let Gwen Stacy Die]]. Sometimes they MustMakeAmends, possibly through a RedemptionQuest.
May be part of a StandardCopBackstory. Compare SympatheticMurderBackstory. Compare and contrast TheAtoner, whose previous crimes were intentional, and numerous.
'''As this is a DeathTrope, beware unmarked spoilers.'''
----
!!Examples:
[[foldercontrol]]
[[folder:Comic Books]]
*''ComicBook/AnthonyBourdainsHungryGhosts'': Subverted in "The Heads". The trattoria owner claims that he once sold cheap cheese which fatally poisoned a customer. The illustration shows a young boy [[BloodFromTheMouth coughing up blood]] while the owner looks on in horror. This tragedy apparently led him to live a better life, eager to help people like the protagonist...but it's all a lie to gain sympathy and trust. The owner, a demon in disguise, does not want to help the protagonist so much as ''eat'' him.
* ''ComicBook/{{LAW}}'': Mitchell Black was once a surgeon who performed a risky surgery on a seven-year-old boy against the objections of the boy's parents. When the boy died from complications caused by the surgery, Mitchell had his medical license revoked. He joined the Peacemaker Corps to atone for his actions.
* ''ComicBook/SevenSoldiers'': Before becoming the Manhattan Guardian, Jake Jordan was a police officer who quit the force after shooting an unarmed teenager whom he had mistaken for the man who murdered his partner.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Film -- Live-Action]]
* ''Film/BlazingSaddles'' has a subversion, where the setup for this trope instead ends with KidsAreCruel. Jim "the Waco Kid" is a former gunslinger who's now a washed-up alcoholic. When asked how he wound up this way, he describes how his fame as a gunslinger attracted every punk with a gun, eager to make a name for themselves by challenging the Waco Kid, until:
-->'''Jim:''' Then one day, I was just walking down the street when I heard a voice behind me say, "Reach for it, mister!" I spun around... and there I was, face to face with a six-year old kid. Well, I just threw my guns down and walked away. ... Little bastard shot me in the ass.
* ''Film/DieHard'': Officer Al Powell shot and killed a child [[ShootHimHeHasAWallet whom he believed was holding a gun.]] He gets his [[MyGreatestSecondChance second chance]] by saving [=McClane=] at the end of the movie.
* ''Film/InBruges'': Rookie hitman Ray is sent to Bruges (it's in Belgium) after royally screwing up his first assignment: shooting a Catholic priest in a confession booth, only for a stray bullet to kill a little boy waiting to give confession. While he appears snarky on the outside, the guilt is quickly making him manic and suicidal.
* ''[[Film/ItsAWonderfulLife It's a Wonderful Life]]'': Zig-zagged. In the original timeline, George Bailey prevents Mr. Gower from accidentally poisoning a child, as the druggist was despondent over the death of his son to the flu, and did not fill out the prescription properly. In the new timeline where George never existed, he wasn't there to prevent Mr. Gower from poisoning the child, and the man is considered a pariah by the local community.
* ''Film/LittleChildren'': As in the novel, Larry is a TroubledSympatheticBigot who was forced out of the police and hunts down the child molester Ronnie as a result. It turns out that Larry was fired after shooting and killing a child after mistaking his toy pistol for a real gun.
* ''Film/TheMachinist'': At the start of the film, once-popular mechanic Trevor Reznik is a walking skeleton, slowly going insane from hallucinations tormenting him and accusing him of having committed a heinous crime. The audience ultimately learns that Trevor accidentally ran over a little boy with his car and then fled the scene of the crime. Turning himself in and coming to terms with his actions finally puts him on the road to salvation.
* ''Film/MeanGuns'': Lou, a retired hitman, quits the mob after a botched hit in the past where he accidentally shot a little boy. It was his mistake which led him into partaking in the film's main event, a free-for-all shootout where a hundred killers, many of the {{Death Seeker}}s, will hunt down and execute each other until the SoleSurvivor gets to leave with a 10 million cash reward.
* ''Film/TheNovemberMan'': Peter Deveroux, the titular hitman, quits his profession in disgrace after botched mission in Montenegro accidentally left a young boy dead, until he's dragged back into the force five years later. Subverted that its Peter's partner, Mason, who pulled the trigger that killed the child, but Peter still felt that he was responsible over the killing due to poor timing.
* ''Film/ThePrince'' stars Jason Patric as Paul, a former hitman who retired in disgrace after a failed attempt to kill New Orleans crime boss, Omar via CarBomb, only to accidentally blow up Omar's wife and daughter. Unfortunately, Omar isn't willing to let Paul off easily and sends his thugs after Paul's daughter.
* ''Film/QuigleyDownUnder'': "Crazy" Cora tells a heartbreaking tale to Matthew Quigley about how she accidentally smothered her son trying to quiet him so that a group of Comanches wouldn't find them. Her husband, Roy, sent her on the first boat to Australia. She almost repeats her mistake while caring for an Aboriginal child when attacked by dingoes, but she realizes in time what she's doing, and instead, decides that she and the child should both "make some noise" as she starts blasting the attacking dingoes.
* ''Franchise/{{Saw}}'':
** ''Film/SawIII'': Timothy Young was driving drunk when he struck and killed Jeff's son Dylan. He felt horrible about the accident, but that didn't stop Jigsaw from sticking him in a DeathTrap to test Jeff's capacity for forgiveness. Jeff does not save Timothy, who dies [[CruelAndUnusualDeath gruesomely.]]
** Subverted with Anna in ''Film/{{Jigsaw}}''. During the first traps of the barn game, Anna tells the other victims that she and her husband simply lost their child, but it's revealed near the end that she actually [[VorpalPillow asphyxiated the baby]] intentionally and tricked her husband into thinking he did it accidentally, which [[DrivenToSuicide drove him to suicide]].
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Literature]]
* ''Literature/AndThenThereWereNone'': Subverted. Agatha Christie spends the whole of the novel building up Vera Claythorne as a sympathetic character; the "crime" for which U.N. Owen wants to punish her is the accidental death of a child. Until the end of the novel, that is, when it is revealed that Vera deliberately arranged for the circumstances of the boy's death in an effort to be with her lover.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
* ''[[Series/AmericanHorrorStoryAsylum American Horror Story: Asylum]]'' has Sister Jude, who became a nun after running over a young girl while driving drunk. She later learns that the girl actually survived, which contributes to her HeelFaceTurn.
* ''Series/BreakingBad'': While in rehab after his girlfriend's death, Jesse hears his group leader talk about accidentally backing a car over his own daughter while high on cocaine. The leader now spends his time trying to help others keep from making the same mistakes.
* ''Series/CriminalMinds'': Roy Woodridge, the killer in the episode [[Recap/CriminalMindsS2E17Distress "Distress"]], is a ShellShockedVeteran who never fully recovered from the time when he instinctively [[NeckSnap snapped an enemy combatant's neck]], only to realize it was a ChildSoldier. Believing he is still at war, he goes on a killing spree, which ends when he sees a boy in the street whom he hallucinates is the dead soldier. When he rushes toward the child to try and "save" him, Woodridge is shot and killed by a police sniper who thought he was attacking.
* ''Series/DoctorWho'': Danny Pink accidentally shot and killed a child during his service in Afghanistan. It caused him to leave the service. When Danny is killed in a car accident, and then resurrected as a Cyberman, The Doctor gives him a means of returning to life to live with Clara. Danny sacrifices this opportunity to instead restore the child he'd accidentally killed.
* ''Series/{{House}}'': In "Emancipation", House's teenage patient needs a bone marrow transplant from a family member, but she lies about her identity to avoid seeing her parents. House guesses that something happened that makes her think she doesn't deserve to live, so she confesses that she ran away from home because her little brother drowned in the bathtub when she was supposed to be looking after him. She assumes her parents must hate her, but House convinces her to call them by pointing out they really will hate her if she lets herself die.
* ''[[Series/LukeCage2016 Luke Cage (2016)]]'': Detective Rafael Scarfe is a dirty, corrupt cop but it's indicated that his start of darkness was the death of his son- inadvertently caused by Scarfe himself when he left his gun out, fully loaded and his son played with it and shot himself.
* ''Series/{{MASH}}'': The series finale "Goodbye, Farewell, and Amen" has Hawkeye suffering a mental breakdown because he feels responsible for a mother smothering her child while they were trying to hide from a Chinese patrol when he demanded that she keep the infant quiet. When the noise stops, he looks around, horrified, realizing what his words have wrought. It was so traumatic, he edits the memory in his own mind, remembering it as a chicken rather than a baby. But Sidney Freedman forces him to confront the truth in an effort to try and salvage his mind.
* ''Series/OrangeIsTheNewBlack'':
** Yoga Jones is in prison for accidentally shooting an 8-year-old boy with a hunting rifle (she was trying to ward deer away from her marijuana crop and he was running away from home). Her hippie, Buddhist lifestyle is how she copes with the guilt.
** Suzanne "Crazy Eyes" Warren was left unattended and without her antipsychotic medication, which led her to unwittingly abduct a young boy from a park and causing him to fall to his death from a fire escape. The guilt definitely hasn't helped her mental health.
* ''Series/TheOuterLimits1995'' episode "[[Recap/TheOuterLimits1995S4E12FearItself Fear Itself]]". Subverted. Bernard is initially a very troubled man who accidentally killed his little sister in a fire by playing with matches while she was sleeping, thus starting his crippling anxiety. In the last scene, he discovers that it was actually a PedophilePriest who gaslit him and blamed the young boy for his crime.
* ''Series/{{Oz}}'': Beecher was sent to prison for accidentally killing a child in a drunk driving accident. While the act itself is rightfully treated as heinous and warranting punishment, Beecher's status as [[TokenGoodTeammate one of the kinder inmates]] and the horrific TraumaCongaLine he goes through after being incarcerated make him one of the more sympathetic characters.
* ''Series/PersonOfInterest'': One VictimOfTheWeek was a supervisor of a 911 call center. Her work is driven by the fact that when she was a teenager, a child she was babysitting died on her watch.
* ''Series/TrueDetective'': In Season 1, Rust's nihilism is revealed to have stemmed from the death of his young daughter, who he accidentally ran down in the driveway of his and his wife's home.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Podcasts]]
* ''Malevolent'': [[HardboiledDetective Arthur Lester]] originally had a daughter, Faroe; however, she died several years before the events of the series. Bringing her up is a major sore spot for him, even after stumbling onto the eldritch events of the series. It's eventually revealed that he accidentally let her drown in the bath, due to getting to engrossed whilst writing a song to remember to check on her.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Theatre]]
* ''Theatre/PeterPanGoesWrong'': [[PlayedForLaughs Played For]] BlackComedy. Robert (or Creator/DavidSuchet, in the case of the 2016 BBC broadcast) tells the audience about how during a stage production of ''Literature/OliverTwist'', the person playing Mr. Bumble fell on one of the child actors, and the child died of his injuries due to Robert / David having parked his car in such a way that the ambulance couldn't get to him in time. He blames himself for the child's death... [[CrossesTheLineTwice then he reveals that he was the one who was playing Mr. Bumble]].
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Web Video]]
* ''WebVideo/CriticalRole'': In the campaign pre-stream, Keyleth accidentally killed a young boy when her attempt to rescue him from the Dread Emperor ended in a NeckSnap. The aftereffects of this carry over into the show, where we see her resolve in her personal quest begin to falter due to the guilt.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Western Animation]]
* Parodied in ''WesternAnimation/TheClevelandShow'' where Cleveland gives a speech about accidentally shooting a kid, only to be told he is ripping off ''Film/DieHard''.
[[/folder]]
Unless, of course, [[AccidentalMurder they didn't mean to]].
In this character's DarkAndTroubledPast, they made a terrible mistake and [[DeathOfAChild a child died]] because of it. For heroic characters, the child's death will become MyGreatestFailure. Expect all their interactions with children in the present to be influenced by this; they may become either a FriendToAllChildren or emotionally closed off and hesitant to spend any time around them.
The most innocent iteration of the character will have caused the death only indirectly, such as by neglecting to watch a child under their care closely enough to prevent a deadly mishap. Others were directly responsible for killing the child but still as a genuine accident, such as a car crash, with no intention of hurting anyone. Grimmer still are characters who fully intended to use lethal force, but [[ShootHimHeHasAWallet mistook the child for someone threatening]] or killed them inadvertently as CollateralDamage while [[MurderByMistake aiming for someone else.]] If violence was part of the character's profession (law enforcement, military, wandering adventurer), they will question their ability to continue that job, and may outright quit.
The most unfortunate cases will either [[OutDamnedSpot be driven mad from the guilt]] or be murdered themselves, as {{Revenge}} for the child's death. Alternatively, a character may be given MyGreatestSecondChance when another child's life is in danger, although they may wind up performing a HeroicSacrifice, [[RedemptionEqualsDeath dying to save the kid that reminded them of their horrible mistake.]] Heroes that survive will learn to live with themselves, but always carry the knowledge of their actions.
Universally results in the character thinking MyGodWhatHaveIDone If the child's death was a FailureToSaveMurder, the person responsible [[ILetGwenStacyDie Let Gwen Stacy Die]]. Sometimes they MustMakeAmends, possibly through a RedemptionQuest.
May be part of a StandardCopBackstory. Compare SympatheticMurderBackstory. Compare and contrast TheAtoner, whose previous crimes were intentional, and numerous.
'''As this is a DeathTrope, beware unmarked spoilers.'''
----
!!Examples:
[[foldercontrol]]
[[folder:Comic Books]]
*''ComicBook/AnthonyBourdainsHungryGhosts'': Subverted in "The Heads". The trattoria owner claims that he once sold cheap cheese which fatally poisoned a customer. The illustration shows a young boy [[BloodFromTheMouth coughing up blood]] while the owner looks on in horror. This tragedy apparently led him to live a better life, eager to help people like the protagonist...but it's all a lie to gain sympathy and trust. The owner, a demon in disguise, does not want to help the protagonist so much as ''eat'' him.
* ''ComicBook/{{LAW}}'': Mitchell Black was once a surgeon who performed a risky surgery on a seven-year-old boy against the objections of the boy's parents. When the boy died from complications caused by the surgery, Mitchell had his medical license revoked. He joined the Peacemaker Corps to atone for his actions.
* ''ComicBook/SevenSoldiers'': Before becoming the Manhattan Guardian, Jake Jordan was a police officer who quit the force after shooting an unarmed teenager whom he had mistaken for the man who murdered his partner.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Film -- Live-Action]]
* ''Film/BlazingSaddles'' has a subversion, where the setup for this trope instead ends with KidsAreCruel. Jim "the Waco Kid" is a former gunslinger who's now a washed-up alcoholic. When asked how he wound up this way, he describes how his fame as a gunslinger attracted every punk with a gun, eager to make a name for themselves by challenging the Waco Kid, until:
-->'''Jim:''' Then one day, I was just walking down the street when I heard a voice behind me say, "Reach for it, mister!" I spun around... and there I was, face to face with a six-year old kid. Well, I just threw my guns down and walked away. ... Little bastard shot me in the ass.
* ''Film/DieHard'': Officer Al Powell shot and killed a child [[ShootHimHeHasAWallet whom he believed was holding a gun.]] He gets his [[MyGreatestSecondChance second chance]] by saving [=McClane=] at the end of the movie.
* ''Film/InBruges'': Rookie hitman Ray is sent to Bruges (it's in Belgium) after royally screwing up his first assignment: shooting a Catholic priest in a confession booth, only for a stray bullet to kill a little boy waiting to give confession. While he appears snarky on the outside, the guilt is quickly making him manic and suicidal.
* ''[[Film/ItsAWonderfulLife It's a Wonderful Life]]'': Zig-zagged. In the original timeline, George Bailey prevents Mr. Gower from accidentally poisoning a child, as the druggist was despondent over the death of his son to the flu, and did not fill out the prescription properly. In the new timeline where George never existed, he wasn't there to prevent Mr. Gower from poisoning the child, and the man is considered a pariah by the local community.
* ''Film/LittleChildren'': As in the novel, Larry is a TroubledSympatheticBigot who was forced out of the police and hunts down the child molester Ronnie as a result. It turns out that Larry was fired after shooting and killing a child after mistaking his toy pistol for a real gun.
* ''Film/TheMachinist'': At the start of the film, once-popular mechanic Trevor Reznik is a walking skeleton, slowly going insane from hallucinations tormenting him and accusing him of having committed a heinous crime. The audience ultimately learns that Trevor accidentally ran over a little boy with his car and then fled the scene of the crime. Turning himself in and coming to terms with his actions finally puts him on the road to salvation.
* ''Film/MeanGuns'': Lou, a retired hitman, quits the mob after a botched hit in the past where he accidentally shot a little boy. It was his mistake which led him into partaking in the film's main event, a free-for-all shootout where a hundred killers, many of the {{Death Seeker}}s, will hunt down and execute each other until the SoleSurvivor gets to leave with a 10 million cash reward.
* ''Film/TheNovemberMan'': Peter Deveroux, the titular hitman, quits his profession in disgrace after botched mission in Montenegro accidentally left a young boy dead, until he's dragged back into the force five years later. Subverted that its Peter's partner, Mason, who pulled the trigger that killed the child, but Peter still felt that he was responsible over the killing due to poor timing.
* ''Film/ThePrince'' stars Jason Patric as Paul, a former hitman who retired in disgrace after a failed attempt to kill New Orleans crime boss, Omar via CarBomb, only to accidentally blow up Omar's wife and daughter. Unfortunately, Omar isn't willing to let Paul off easily and sends his thugs after Paul's daughter.
* ''Film/QuigleyDownUnder'': "Crazy" Cora tells a heartbreaking tale to Matthew Quigley about how she accidentally smothered her son trying to quiet him so that a group of Comanches wouldn't find them. Her husband, Roy, sent her on the first boat to Australia. She almost repeats her mistake while caring for an Aboriginal child when attacked by dingoes, but she realizes in time what she's doing, and instead, decides that she and the child should both "make some noise" as she starts blasting the attacking dingoes.
* ''Franchise/{{Saw}}'':
** ''Film/SawIII'': Timothy Young was driving drunk when he struck and killed Jeff's son Dylan. He felt horrible about the accident, but that didn't stop Jigsaw from sticking him in a DeathTrap to test Jeff's capacity for forgiveness. Jeff does not save Timothy, who dies [[CruelAndUnusualDeath gruesomely.]]
** Subverted with Anna in ''Film/{{Jigsaw}}''. During the first traps of the barn game, Anna tells the other victims that she and her husband simply lost their child, but it's revealed near the end that she actually [[VorpalPillow asphyxiated the baby]] intentionally and tricked her husband into thinking he did it accidentally, which [[DrivenToSuicide drove him to suicide]].
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Literature]]
* ''Literature/AndThenThereWereNone'': Subverted. Agatha Christie spends the whole of the novel building up Vera Claythorne as a sympathetic character; the "crime" for which U.N. Owen wants to punish her is the accidental death of a child. Until the end of the novel, that is, when it is revealed that Vera deliberately arranged for the circumstances of the boy's death in an effort to be with her lover.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
* ''[[Series/AmericanHorrorStoryAsylum American Horror Story: Asylum]]'' has Sister Jude, who became a nun after running over a young girl while driving drunk. She later learns that the girl actually survived, which contributes to her HeelFaceTurn.
* ''Series/BreakingBad'': While in rehab after his girlfriend's death, Jesse hears his group leader talk about accidentally backing a car over his own daughter while high on cocaine. The leader now spends his time trying to help others keep from making the same mistakes.
* ''Series/CriminalMinds'': Roy Woodridge, the killer in the episode [[Recap/CriminalMindsS2E17Distress "Distress"]], is a ShellShockedVeteran who never fully recovered from the time when he instinctively [[NeckSnap snapped an enemy combatant's neck]], only to realize it was a ChildSoldier. Believing he is still at war, he goes on a killing spree, which ends when he sees a boy in the street whom he hallucinates is the dead soldier. When he rushes toward the child to try and "save" him, Woodridge is shot and killed by a police sniper who thought he was attacking.
* ''Series/DoctorWho'': Danny Pink accidentally shot and killed a child during his service in Afghanistan. It caused him to leave the service. When Danny is killed in a car accident, and then resurrected as a Cyberman, The Doctor gives him a means of returning to life to live with Clara. Danny sacrifices this opportunity to instead restore the child he'd accidentally killed.
* ''Series/{{House}}'': In "Emancipation", House's teenage patient needs a bone marrow transplant from a family member, but she lies about her identity to avoid seeing her parents. House guesses that something happened that makes her think she doesn't deserve to live, so she confesses that she ran away from home because her little brother drowned in the bathtub when she was supposed to be looking after him. She assumes her parents must hate her, but House convinces her to call them by pointing out they really will hate her if she lets herself die.
* ''[[Series/LukeCage2016 Luke Cage (2016)]]'': Detective Rafael Scarfe is a dirty, corrupt cop but it's indicated that his start of darkness was the death of his son- inadvertently caused by Scarfe himself when he left his gun out, fully loaded and his son played with it and shot himself.
* ''Series/{{MASH}}'': The series finale "Goodbye, Farewell, and Amen" has Hawkeye suffering a mental breakdown because he feels responsible for a mother smothering her child while they were trying to hide from a Chinese patrol when he demanded that she keep the infant quiet. When the noise stops, he looks around, horrified, realizing what his words have wrought. It was so traumatic, he edits the memory in his own mind, remembering it as a chicken rather than a baby. But Sidney Freedman forces him to confront the truth in an effort to try and salvage his mind.
* ''Series/OrangeIsTheNewBlack'':
** Yoga Jones is in prison for accidentally shooting an 8-year-old boy with a hunting rifle (she was trying to ward deer away from her marijuana crop and he was running away from home). Her hippie, Buddhist lifestyle is how she copes with the guilt.
** Suzanne "Crazy Eyes" Warren was left unattended and without her antipsychotic medication, which led her to unwittingly abduct a young boy from a park and causing him to fall to his death from a fire escape. The guilt definitely hasn't helped her mental health.
* ''Series/TheOuterLimits1995'' episode "[[Recap/TheOuterLimits1995S4E12FearItself Fear Itself]]". Subverted. Bernard is initially a very troubled man who accidentally killed his little sister in a fire by playing with matches while she was sleeping, thus starting his crippling anxiety. In the last scene, he discovers that it was actually a PedophilePriest who gaslit him and blamed the young boy for his crime.
* ''Series/{{Oz}}'': Beecher was sent to prison for accidentally killing a child in a drunk driving accident. While the act itself is rightfully treated as heinous and warranting punishment, Beecher's status as [[TokenGoodTeammate one of the kinder inmates]] and the horrific TraumaCongaLine he goes through after being incarcerated make him one of the more sympathetic characters.
* ''Series/PersonOfInterest'': One VictimOfTheWeek was a supervisor of a 911 call center. Her work is driven by the fact that when she was a teenager, a child she was babysitting died on her watch.
* ''Series/TrueDetective'': In Season 1, Rust's nihilism is revealed to have stemmed from the death of his young daughter, who he accidentally ran down in the driveway of his and his wife's home.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Podcasts]]
* ''Malevolent'': [[HardboiledDetective Arthur Lester]] originally had a daughter, Faroe; however, she died several years before the events of the series. Bringing her up is a major sore spot for him, even after stumbling onto the eldritch events of the series. It's eventually revealed that he accidentally let her drown in the bath, due to getting to engrossed whilst writing a song to remember to check on her.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Theatre]]
* ''Theatre/PeterPanGoesWrong'': [[PlayedForLaughs Played For]] BlackComedy. Robert (or Creator/DavidSuchet, in the case of the 2016 BBC broadcast) tells the audience about how during a stage production of ''Literature/OliverTwist'', the person playing Mr. Bumble fell on one of the child actors, and the child died of his injuries due to Robert / David having parked his car in such a way that the ambulance couldn't get to him in time. He blames himself for the child's death... [[CrossesTheLineTwice then he reveals that he was the one who was playing Mr. Bumble]].
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Web Video]]
* ''WebVideo/CriticalRole'': In the campaign pre-stream, Keyleth accidentally killed a young boy when her attempt to rescue him from the Dread Emperor ended in a NeckSnap. The aftereffects of this carry over into the show, where we see her resolve in her personal quest begin to falter due to the guilt.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Western Animation]]
* Parodied in ''WesternAnimation/TheClevelandShow'' where Cleveland gives a speech about accidentally shooting a kid, only to be told he is ripping off ''Film/DieHard''.
[[/folder]]
