jump over the fence—(coll.) exceed the limits of reasonable conduct; go too far:
- She goes pretty near the knuckle sometimes, but she never jumps over the fence.
Note: The expression is not antonymous in meaning to the phrase sit on the fence—be undecided in opinion or action:
- The French delegation, which has hitherto been sitting on the fence, has suddenly become exceedingly active.
jump over the wall —(also: go over the wall) leave a religious order:
- No one knows how many religious have jumped over the wall—partly because it is so easy today to take a leave of absence and never return.