dead to rights
Caught red-handed
Dead to rights means caught in the act with undeniable proof of guilt.
The phrase typically appears with verbs of catching or having: The police had him dead to rights—his fingerprints were on the murder weapon.
Someone caught dead to rights has no plausible defense or escape from the evidence against them.
- red-handedCaught mid-crime
- caughtSeized or grabbed
- smoking gunIrrefutable proof of wrongdoing
- unequivocallyIn a completely clear manner
- slam dunkForceful basket from above
incriminated · truth · guilty · evidence · unquestionably · irrefutable · fair and square · conclusive · gotcha · case closed · guilty as charged · busted · law · incontrovertible · airtight · absolute · caught red-handed · prosecution
- death idiomskick the bucket, six feet under, deadbeat, deadpan, bought the farm
- predicamentspredicament, dilemma, bind, pickle, pinch
- stubbornnessstubbornness, obstinacy, pigheadedness, bullheadedness, mulishness
dead to rightsin the clear
Free of blame or danger
off the hook · innocent · blameless · exonerated · cleared
dead to rightsnot guilty
Cleared of charges
charges dropped · case dismissed · insufficient evidence · reasonable doubt · unprovable
dead to rightsscot-free
Without penalty or harm
slipped through the cracks · walked · beat the rap · untouchable · beyond reach
dead, deaden, deadened, deadening, deadly, deadness, death, deathly, right