(an) accessory to (some crime)
Someone who knowingly incites or assists in the commission of some crime without direct participation. He was found guilty of murder, while his wife was found guilty of being accessory to murder due to her involvement in luring the victim to the abandoned warehouse. If they find out you helped steal the getaway car, you'll be tried as an accessory to the robbery! Yes, I'm Wild Bob's brother, but I'm not an accessory to his crime, I swear. I has no idea he was planning to rob a bank until I saw it on the news!
after the fact
After an event or situation has already happened. Bob only realized he had been scammed after the fact, when he received a bank statement full of fraudulent charges. Look, this project has been in development for way too long as it is. At this point, let's just get it released—we can fix any problems that arise after the fact. Ugh, I always think of the perfect witty retort after the fact.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
after the fact
after something has happened; after something, such as a crime, has taken place. (Originally a legal phrase.) John is always making excuses after the fact.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
after the fact
After an actual occurrence, particularly after a crime. For example, I know the brakes should have been repaired, but that doesn't help much after the fact . The use of fact for a crime dates from the first half of the 1500s. The word became standard in British law and is still used in this way today. The idiom was first recorded in 1769 in the phrase accessories after the fact, referring to persons who assist a lawbreaker after a crime has been committed. Now it is also used more loosely, as in the example above.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
ˌafter the ˈfact
after something has happened or been done when it is too late to prevent it or change it: On some vital decisions employees were only informed after the fact.Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017