The heroes of Disney are usually seen as characters to look up to - they are brave, and kind, and go to the ends of the earth to help the people they love. (The great singing voices help, too!) Kids (and adults) watching these shows can emulate their favorite characters in real life... for the most part. Despite how wonderful some heroes are, some of them are also technically criminals - and these are not things that anyone else should be doing!
Of course, Disney hero has aged well (John Smith and the story of Pocahantas is appropriately recognized as problematic as a Disney love story these days), but these heroes have no excuse.
Snow White: Breaking And Entering
Sure, Snow White was on the run from the huntsman, and feared for her life, but it was still a crime to just break into a stranger's home, clean it, and then fall asleep in their bed. No matter how sweet she is, if someone came home to their house cleaned, food in the oven, and a stranger in their bedroom, they would be calling the police - or at the very least, be sincerely creeped-out! Of course, this all works out for the Seven Dwarves, who are surprisingly hospitable, but still.
Aladdin: An Actual Thief
Not only is he a criminal, but he actually goes to jail in the course of the film - a rarity, for our law-bending Disney heroes. Of course, audiences have a lot of sympathy for Aladdin (especially if they have seen the sequels and learned a little more of his backstory), as he is living in poverty, and only steals in order to survive (or occasionally help others survive). Is the real crime here that the Sultan sees extreme poverty in his kingdom and just doesn't care?
Frozen: Property Damage
Again, we can sympathize with this one, as Elsa doesn't intend to wreck parts of the town with her ice-magic, or send her people into a panic as a result.
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She was simply not taught how to manage her abilities as a child, but to hide them away until they exploded, causing chaos. But still, this could technically count as a crime.
Flynn Rider: Professional Thief
This one feels a bit obvious, given that Flynn Rider's story revolves around the fact that he is a professional thief, but there's no escaping that he is a criminal. And unlike Aladdin, who stole food because he needed to eat, Flynn stole for money. He made no secret of the fact that he wanted to live on a private island surrounded by 'enormous piles of money' - hardly a sympathetic motivation!
Mulan: Identity Theft/Fraud/Treason
It may not technically count as 'identity theft' given that Mulan didn't steal the identity of a living person, but she made one up in order to the army for her family. If nothing else, that is fraud, and it's definitely treason (in this time period and setting). Of course, we're sympathetic to her, though, as she was committing her crimes in a desperate attempt to save her father's life - and good thing she did, too, as she saved China as a result!
Peter Pan: Breaking And Entering, Kidnapping
Peter Pan may be a charming young man, but let's not sugarcoat that he technically broke into a house, kidnapped three children, and put them in real danger.
In the live-action Hook, viewers got to see a little of what it would be like for parents to come home and find their children missing - a scene missing in the Disney animation.
Robin Hood: Professional Thief
Once again, we have a Disney hero whose thievery is a central part of their story - but a sympathetic one, as he 'robs from the rich to give to the poor'. He's not just a minor-league thief, either. Over the course of the movie, he stops and robs carriages, manages to rob royalty, and even stages a jailbreak, for his other 'criminal' friends. (Of course, their only crime was being poor under a terrible monarch.)
Tramp: Stray
Of all the 'crimes' on the list, this may well be the most minor, but Tramp's 'stray dog' status makes him a canine criminal. Lady and the Tramp even shows various pups who have been caught for the same crime and thrown in 'jail' (the pound). It's possible to expand Tramp's rap sheet, too: he panhandles at various restaurants for food, and he breaks into the zoo. All in a good cause, of course (freedom, food, and love), but the dog catcher doesn't see it that way!
Belle: Breaking & Entering
Belle may look sweet and innocent, but she's practically in a crime family, by Disney standards, as both she and her father break into the Beast's castle. As usual, our heroine remains heroic thanks to her motivation - her father was lost and knocking on the door to look for shelter, and he doesn't actually get past the front hall before he is welcomed in by the servants. Belle, however, wanders all over the castle and to the top tower after she breaks in... and then proves herself to be a continual rulebreaker once there.
Pacha: Blackmail
It's hard to think of this sweet, careful village leader as a criminal, but he did blackmail an Emperor, and that's still a crime. Of course, he felt driven to do so, as the opportunity fell in his lap, and it was the only way he could see to save his village. Well-intentioned, and probably the first thing he's ever done that was less-than-lawful, but still a crime. As usual, though, it all works out in the end, because this is Disney!
