"Innocent people don't apologize."

Oh, come on, PHtest!  Of COURSE they do, especially in this enlightened 21st century era.  Just like some did in the bad ol' days of the Hollywood 10 and the Communist witch hunts. Apologize--In a desperate strategy to attempt to save or salvage one's career.  

You might say, "well, things are different now."  And you're right.  People get caught in the "difference" time-warp of social history all the time.  Today, people are reaching back into the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s to point fingers of sexual behaviour.  In the 1950s, they reached back to the 1920s and 1930s to point fingers at political no-nos. Things changed. The question was asked, "Are you now, or HAVE YOU EVER BEEN a member of the Communist party?