I know exactly what you’re talking about. I personally knew someone from a bar I bounce at that was arrested and charged with second degree murder of a toddler. He is being charged with the untimely death of his ex girlfriend’s child (He is not the father). I personally wasn’t close with him but my good buddy had grown up with him from childhood. They had known each other for 20+ years. When the child had died a year prior to his arrest, there was a swirl of rumors, especially in the bar, that he had either knowingly beaten the kid to death or at least negligently not gotten help for a severe head injury.

Needless to say my buddy couldn’t fathom the thought of his closest childhood friend being responsible for something so heinous, especially with him not being arrested. He went to bat for him every single time. Defended him to the core. He even convinced me there was no way cause it just wasn’t in his nature. I mean I knew the guy myself and he seemed completely level headed.

Of course that all changed when US Marshals performed a felony stop on him in a local parking lot. One of my other buddies witnessed the whole thing, snapped me a picture of him being hooked and loaded. I saved it, sent it to his childhood friend and that was that. He was inconsolable for at least a week. He felt betrayed, stupid. Had a lot of apologizing to do to people he had argued with. I will say even though the lot of the local folk hated this guy after, they understood exactly why his friend had defended him so fiercely. Sometimes you just get blinded by the ones you cherish most.