History Main / FalseConfession

[[folder:Film]]

** An early episode does this. A woman confesses to shooting her father before he feel overboard while at sea. Later, when his body washes ashore with two gunshot wounds to his chest she claims to have fabricated the story as part of a plan to help her father fake his death. The established time of death and the mismatch of the bullets in his body with her gun seems to support her claim, as does Jessica having met the man ''after'' he had been "lost" at sea. [[spoiler: In a twist, the daughter actually ''had'' murdered her father, and was hoping that her easily disproved false confession would create the impression that she was being framed and eliminate her as a suspect.]]

* ''Series/LawAndOrderCriminalIntent'': In "Stress Position", the VictimOfTheWeek was a prison guard who was murdered by his shift supervisor who was worried that he might be about to spill the beans regarding the the mistreatment of the [[TheJailer 'off-the-books' prisoners]] in the secure wing. He then gave enough information about the killing to make a believable confession to an ex-con he knew to be a serial confessor, and pointed Goren and Ames at the ex-con as someone who had beef with the guard. The ex-con immediately confesses when Goren and Ames confront him, but Goren gets suspicious because the man was packed up and ready to go back to prison before they arrived at his apartment.

* Two examples in ''Spider's Web'' by Creator/AgathaChristie: Act I ends with twelve-year-old Pippa hysterically declaring that she killed her biological mother's lover. This leads to her GoodStepmother Clarissa dosing her with a sleeping draught and TakingTheHeat. When Pippa awakens in Act III, it turns out she's been dabbling in witchcraft and thought she killed him with a curse. Clarissa tells her that he was killed with a blunt instrument, not magic.

* Two examples in ''Spider's Web'' by Creator/AgathaCristie: Act I ends with twelve-year-old Pippa hysterically declaring that she killed her biological mother's lover. This leads to her GoodStepmother Clarissa dosing her with a sleeping draught and TakingTheHeat. When Pippa awakens in Act III, it turns out she's been dabbling in witchcraft and thought she killed him with a curse. Clarissa tells her that he was killed with a blunt instrument, not magic.

* The 1994 HBO film ''The Enemy Within'' (a modern remake of ''Literature/SevenDaysInMay'') has low-level Mac Casey discovering that a general, the Secretary of Defense and Vice-President are planning what amounts to a coup to remove the President in protest over his refusal to invade a foreign country. They're mocking the President on how he has no evidence and they're about to pull the plot off when Mac bursts into the Oval Office. He tells them to call the whole thing off or he'll go to the press and... confess. "To my complicity in ''our'' plot to take over the government." As he points out, how else could he know of all this unless he was in on it? The conspirators realize to their shock that by confessing to involvement, Mac will reveal the entire plot and [[TakingYouWithMe while he may go to jail, they certainly will for treason]].

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* Sort-of done in ''Film/MyCousinVinny'' in a good example of why it's ''always'' a good idea to get a lawyer, even if you're innocent. After the boys are arrested, they assume it's because they accidentally shoplifted a can of tuna. In fact, they're suspected of murdering the store clerk ([[spoiler:it was a completely different pair of guys that happened to do it mere minutes after they leave and who happened to have a similar car color]]). One of them starts explaining the shoplifting, causing the sheriff to ask if that's why they shot the clerk. Cue the kid's confused half-question-half-statement "I shot the clerk?" which he repeats several times, trying to wrap his head around the idea. The sheriff takes it as a confession and later testifies to that effect in court. Notably, the kid doesn't sign a written confession, but his utterance is treated as one. [[spoiler:The sheriff later admits he misinterpreted it after the real killers turn up in another state, though.]]

* ''Fanfic/{{Innocent}}'': After [[WhatHaveIDone realising that she has]] [[spoiler:tried to kill an innocent man]], Marlene [=McKinnon=] goes to the police and confesses to a violent crime that she didn't commit, just so that she will be imprisoned and punished.

* ''Fanfic/WithPearlAndRubyGlowing'': Blue Oak's father Maxie confessed to raping and murdering Leaf Ketchum. His demeanor during his confession in "Statements" makes it clear that he didn't really do it, but it isn't until the 50th chapter of ''Water of the Womb'' that the real killer is revealed: [[spoiler:Leaf's sister Green was manipulated by Bill Cipher into drowning her in the Oaks' pool, but Maxie saw her and he took the fall to protect her.]]

* From David Fincher's ''Film/{{Zodiac}}'':

[[folder: Anime & Manga ]]

* ''Fanfic/{{Innocent}}'': After [[WhatHaveIDone realising that she has]] [[spoiler:tried to kill an innocent man]], Marlene McKinnon goes to the police and confesses to a violent crime that she didn't commit, just so that she will be imprisoned and punished.

* In ''Film/NightworldLostSouls'': Jack Mennias, who has been imprisoned for the last eight years for the murders of two children, was a mentally ill drifter who was constantly confessing to different crimes he didn't commit, and who "forgot" almost every detail of the murders. Most people agree that his conviction was a miscarriage of justice. [[spoiler:They're right. Mennias really was innocent.]]

* ''Series/TheFive'': Jakob Marosi confessed to killing Jesse. As he did kill other children, this was believed until Jesse's blood turns up at another crime scene. It's revealed he'd targeted Jesse and really did plan to murder him, but was stopped by Frank intervening. He then confessed just to screw with Jesse's family. Years later, he even led police to where he'd supposedly buried Jesse. It turns out to be a different victim of his.

** ''VisualNovel/DanganronpaTriggerHappyHavoc'': The fourth case has ''three'' of these, although two are due to the individuals involved not knowing if they actually dealt a fatal blow to the victim. [[spoiler:Yasuhiro, thinking Sakura had invited him to a meeting with the intention of killing him, panicked and hit her over the head with a heavy glass bottle, but Sakura is MadeOfIron and merely fell unconscious. Toko, who had been hiding in the room where this all took place, collapsed at the sight of [[AfraidOfBlood so much blood]] - and then, when Sakura recovered and tried to see if she was alright, shifted into her alter-ego and hit Sakura with ''another'' bottle before fleeing. Ultimately, Sakura's best friend Aoi claims to have given her poison instead of the medicine she requested, but in actuality Sakura had drank the poison herself, wanting to repent and prevent anyone else from being executed; Aoi intended on having the others vote incorrectly and die for turning their backs on Sakura for being TheMole.]]

*** The second case involves one in regards to motive. [[spoiler:Peko claims that she's the SerialKillerKiller Sparkling Justice, and killed Mahiru for having covered up a murder in the past, so that the other students will vote for her. Though she isn't Sparkling justice, she actually ''did'' kill Mahiru. However, since she was raised from birth to be Fuyuhiko's bodyguard and servant, and to view herself as nothing more than a tool without free will, in her mind she ''isn't'' the murderer but the murder ''weapon'', and Fuyuhiko is the real murderer since she acted on his behalf. Thus, voting for her is the wrong choice and Fuyuhiko wins the killing game and gets to go free. Neither Monokuma ''or'' Fuyuhiko accept this argument]].

* ''Series/InJustice'': In his backstory, Conti got a suspect to confess that he'd committed rape and murder. The man hanged himself in prison, and it turns out he was innocent. Conti has been haunted by the case ever since, and this inspired him to join the National Justice Project working for innocent prisoners so they can go free.

* The 1994 HBO film ''The Enemy Within'' (a modern remake of ''Literature/SevenDaysInMay'') has low-level Mac Casey discovering that a general, the Secretary of Defense and Vice-President are planning what amounts to a coup to remove the President in protest over his refusal to invade a foreign country. They're mocking the President on how he has no evidence and they're about to pull the plot off when Mac bursts into the Oval Office. He tells them to call the whole thing off or he'll go to the press and...confess. "To my complicity in ''our'' plot to take over the government." As he points out, how else could he know of all this unless he was in on it? The conspirators realize to their shock that by confessing to involvement, Mac will reveal the entire plot and while he may go to jail, they certainly will for treason.