the.com/presumption of innocence

means The principle that a person accused of a crime is treated as innocent unless and until the prosecution proves guilt beyond reasonable doubt.

from Rooted in Roman law's idea that the burden of proof lies with the one who asserts, not the one who denies ('ei incumbit probatio qui dicit, non qui negat'). The maxim sharpened over centuries of legal thought, often traced through English common law, and was later crystallized in phrases like 'innocent until proven guilty' — a slogan more modern than the principle itself, but one that captures a legal instinct far older than any single court or century.