Would you lie to protect an innocent person from being falsely accused?

What is this question really asking?

1. Do you look first at whether the lie immediately protects an innocent person, or whether the truth rule can be broken at all?
2. Many people do not support or reject lying across the board. They look at the situation and whether institutional trust gets damaged.
3. The scenario switches below show how the same "lie to save someone" setup can feel different once the details change.