perp walk

British

noun

informal an arranged public appearance of a recently arrested criminal for the benefit of the media

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Oswald was killed two days later by Dallas nightclub owner Jack Ruby during a perp walk broadcast on live television.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 18, 2025

Though he had mulled the value of doing a perp walk, there was no such parade.

From New York Times • Apr. 5, 2023

Other US media say there will be no perp walk - when a handcuffed suspect is publicly marched by officers to face charges.

From BBC • Mar. 20, 2023

It will probably be a negotiated turn in which means that we will not see a perp walk.

From Salon • Oct. 17, 2022

Would he be marched in front of the cameras in a perp walk?

From Slate • Apr. 26, 2021

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023