Scott White, the man arrested for the 1988 death of Scott Johnson, pleaded guilty to manslaughter today in the NSW Supreme Court.
During a pre-trial hearing in 2022, White pleaded guilty to murder, however, he then immediately tried to reverse his plea.
- Scott Johnson was found dead on rocks at the base of a northern beaches headland in 1988.
- 1989 inquest found Scott died by suicide.
- Second inquest in 2012 returned an open finding.
- A third inquest in 2017 found Scott fell to his death as a result of actual or threatened violence by unidentified persons who attacked him because he was gay.
- Police charged Scott White with Scott Johnson’s murder after a tip-off from White’s ex-wife.
“Guilty. I’m Guilty”
After initially proclaiming his innocence, White surprised his own legal team, when the 52-year-old suddenly pleaded guilty.
“Guilty, I’m Guilty,” he called out over the top of a court official reading the charge sheet.
White’s ex-wife later told a sentencing hearing that he often bragged about bashing gay men. She told the court that around 2008 she asked him about a newspaper article referring to the death of Scott Johnson.
She said White responded, “the only good poofter is a dead poofter.”
Sentenced to 12 years in jail, White later appealed the sentence claiming he pleaded guilty because of stress and confusion.
The Court of Criminal Appeal found the judge applied the wrong legal test in determining the withdrawal of White’s plea.
Three inquests later
Johnson’s death was one of Sydney’s longest-running mysteries. It was the subject of three inquests and the government eventually offered a $2 million dollar reward for information.
White’s sentencing is set to take place in early June.
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