‘I’m guilty’: Scott White pleads guilty to 1988 murder of Scott Johnson

In a bombshell development, a man accused of a historic gay hate murder has ‘emphatically’ pleaded guilty.

A man accused of a historic gay hate murder has “emphatically” pleaded guilty to the charge after previously denying it, in a bombshell court appearance.

Scott Phillip White, 50, pleaded guilty on Monday to the murder of American Scott Johnson in 1988, saying “Guilty, I’m Guilty” over the top of the court officer reading out the charge.

His legal team was taken aback and questioned him about his decision to change his plea to not guilty.

He said he did so despite not killing the man because he “wanted to put the matter to rest” for Mr Johnson and his family, but added it was not a “split (second) decision”.

His legal team applied to Justice Helen Wilson to withdraw the plea, arguing he did not stand by it.

Scott Johnson was killed in 1988.

However, Justice Wilson refused that application and convicted Mr White for the murder Mr Johnson.

His legal team plans to appeal the orders, which include the conviction, the court heard.

The naked body of Mr Johnson, 27, was found on rocks at the bottom of Manly’s North Head, then known as a gay cruising spot, his clothes folded neatly at the top of the cliff above.

Despite investigations, it took 32 years before someone was charged – Mr White – over Mr Johnson’s death.

Mr White was set to confirm his not guilty pleas in the Supreme Court on Monday ahead of standing trial this year, but pleaded guilty instead.

The May trial date has now been vacated.

Justice Wilson recalled in a “very emphatic manner [Mr White said] ‘Guilty, I’m Guilty’, speaking over the top of my associate” as she began to read out the charge.

He then said the word “guilty” for the third time.

“Three iterations. I recall three distinct entries of a plea … ‘Guilty. I’m Guilty. Guilty’ in a manner which is very determined and firm and using a loud and clear voice,” Justice Wilson told the court.

On Tuesday, Mr White’s legal team worked to reverse the plea, and said he had been stressed on the morning of the court appearance.

His barrister Belinda Rigg SC argued he had consistently told them he didn’t murder Mr Johnson and that sticking to the plea amounted to a “miscarriage of justice”.

In notes from a meeting he had with his legal team in the cells after his Monday court appearance, Mr White said it wasn’t a “split (second) decision” to change his plea.

“This isn’t a split decision … I’ve had four occasions. You look on the system,” referring to prior occasions on which he had talked to his legal team about changing his plea from not guilty to guilty.

His lawyer Louise Sutherland, who took the stand, agreed it was “not isolated” and was something he did in “situations of intense stress”.

In that meeting, Mr White talked about Mr Johnson’s death.

When asked by his legal team why he didn’t tell them of his intention to change his plea ahead of the court sitting on Monday, Mr White said: “I was thinking about it, but didn’t”.

He continued: “I just wanted it to be put to rest for Scott, for the brother. He needs to let this go. He needs to understand he can’t do that. Gay people are private.”

Steve Johnson, the brother of Scott Johnson, outside court in Sydney. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Jeremy Piper

“Did he ever think about why he, Scott, came over here? Why he was here for five years? Why can’t he understand how he might have been feeling about liking other blokes?

“The deceased wouldn’t have wanted this; dragging his name through all of this.”

Ms Sutherland said she took it to be a “statement of empathy”, from Mr White’s perspective, about the alleged victim’s passing and the impact on his family.

And added: “(His) feelings around the deceased being a person of gay sexuality and expressing his feelings around whether or not it’s appropriate for the manner of his death to still be the subject to such very stressful deliberation at this time”.

White had earlier mentioned to his legal team he could see Mr Johnson’s brother in court on Monday morning, saying “it’s too much”.

In that meeting, his legal counsel had also explained what it meant if he pleaded guilty to the murder: “You are telling the whole world you killed Scott Johnson and you intended to kill him or cause him serious harm”, to which Mr White responded “Yes”, suggesting he understood.

“But you said you didn’t do it,” his lawyers added.

Mr White responded: “I didn’t, but it’s the only way” and referred to his ex-wife “coming after him”.  

Mr White also said “Saying ten years, I’ll take that”.

Later, the Crown prosecutor argued that “feeling sorry for the alleged victim’s brother” and speaking of “putting it to rest for the family” were things a person would say for things they had a “guilty feeling, remorse about”.

The prosecutor said you could “infer there was some aspect of consciousness of guilt reflected in the plea that was entered in court on Monday”.

He added: “[He’s] implicitly identifying with the deceased as if he’s spoken to him or has some knowledge of him”.

The Crown prosecutor argued Mr White may have been “painted into a corner” with his not guilty plea and may have felt he needed to keep that up for his legal team after all the work they had done for him.

He said this was evident in the first thing Mr White said to his legal team after changing his plea: “I’m sorry to all of you. I appreciate all the work you’ve done, but I can’t handle it”.

He argued Mr White was perfectly capable of telling his lawyers and the court what he wanted to do.

In closing, the prosecutor said Judge Wilson would “not be persuaded that a miscarriage of justice has occurred … no matter what he has said to his lawyers”.

White was arrested in May 2020 at his Lane Cove home and charged with murder, just weeks after NSW Police announced a $2 million reward for information into the mystery case.

Police allege Mr White went with Mr Johnson to the cliffs at North Head on December 10, 1988.

Johnson had already removed his clothes when Mr White allegedly panicked and punched him, causing him to fall to his death, according to the police case.

The case has a vexed history.

In the years since 1988, one coronial inquest into the death of Mr Johnson ruled he had died by suicide, while another inquest was inconclusive.

As a result, Mr Johnson’s US-based family began campaigning for justice.

In a third inquest in 2017, Magistrate Michael Barnes found Mr Johnson was the victim of a hate crime and fell off the cliff as a result of actual or threatened violence.

Police announced a $1 million reward for information to solve the case in December 2018, which doubled to $2 million in March 2020.

Mr Johnson’s brother, Steve, had put up the extra $1 million.

The matter is listed for sentence hearing on May 2, 2022.