Generally, the person who is framing someone else is the actual perpetrator of the crime. In other cases it is an attempt by law enforcement to get around due process. Motives include getting rid of political dissidents or "correcting" what they see as the court's mistake. Some lawbreakers will try to claim they were framed as a defense strategy.
Frameups in labor disputes sometimes swing public opinion one way or the other. In Massachusetts, during the 1912 Lawrence Textile Strike, police acting on a tip discovered dynamite and blamed it on the union. National media echoed an anti-union message. Later, the police revealed that the dynamite had been wrapped in a magazine addressed to the son of the former mayor. The man had received an unexplained payment from the largest of the employers. Exposed, the plot swung public sympathy to the union.[2]
A frameup where a police officer shoots an unarmed suspect and then places a weapon near the body is a form of police misconduct known as a "throw down". This is used to justify the shooting by making it appear that the officer fired in self-defence or to defend other bystanders.[3]
In British usage, to frame, or stitch up, is to maliciously or dishonestly incriminate someone or set them up, in the sense trap or ensnare.
The dictionary definition of frame up at Wiktionary
The dictionary definition of stitch up at Wiktionary
Some notable frame-ups
Dreyfus affair, in which a French Jewish soldier who was framed for treason eventually won exoneration.
Carl Ingold Jacobson, Los Angeles, California, City Council member, framed on a morals charge.
Arthur Allan Thomas, New Zealand farmer convicted of the Crewe murders and later acquitted after it was found police had planted evidence at the crime scene.
Meng Wanzhou, deputy chairwoman & CFOofHuawei, was framed on suspicion she violated U.S. trade sanctions against Iran in 1 December 2018. Over the years, her case has become an irritant in straining U.S.-China relations.
The dictionary definition of frame up at Wiktionary
Media related to Frameups at Wikimedia Commons
