Scott Austic: WA man acquitted of brutal Stacey Thorne murder facing meth, cannabis charges

A WA man who spent 12 years behind bars for a brutal murder he was later acquitted of has been hit with a raft of charges for allegedly possessing illicit drugs. In 2009, Scott Austic was convicted of stabbing his pregnant lover Stacey Thorne to death in Boddington, south-east of Perth. He was handed a minimum jail term of 25 years but was granted a retrial in November 2020, where a jury acquitted him within a matter of hours. On Wednesday, Mr Austic was listed in Perth Magistrates Court for a first hearing under police summons — having been charged with possessing meth, cannabis and drug paraphernalia. The 48-year-old was not in court for the hearing but his lawyer, acting on instructions from his client, asked for an adjournment until March 7. Details of the alleged offences were not read out in court but documents claim they were committed in the Mirrabooka area in December. Speaking with The West Australian at his home north of Perth following the brief hearing, Mr Austic declined to comment on the charges. He was working on renovations to his shed and appeared relaxed. “I’m good, I’m doing well and just getting on with life and keeping to myself,” he said. “It’s been great since I haven’t been in jail. I’ve been working and that, working on renovations for my house.” It’s not the first time Mr Austic has found himself on the court list since his release three and a half years ago. In April last year, Mr Austic was fined $500 in Joondalup Magistrates Court after he was convicted of driving with a prescribed illicit drug in his system. A month later Mr Austic was back in the headlines for different reasons when he was granted a $1.6 million ex-gratia payment by the State Government. The payment, which was compensation for wrongful imprisonment, was a fraction of the $8.5 million he was chasing. It was also less than half the amount awarded to Andrew Mallard — who was also acquitted of murder having spent more than a decade in jail. Mr Mallard was jailed for the 1994 murder of Mosman Park jeweller Pamela Lawrence Mr Austic’s case — for Ms Thorne’s 2007 murder — was embroiled in controversy from the outset and later even became the subject of a Corruption and Crime Commission inquiry. After he was convicted his first appeal was thrown out before he was granted a second in 2018. That was aided by Attorney-General John Quigley — who had long-championed Mr Austic’s case while in opposition — who exercised the royal prerogative of mercy. That resulted in a retrial in November 2020, in which a jury acquitted Mr Austic within a matter of hours. A State Government spokesperson confirmed to The West that an additional payment had been made for “reasonable” legal costs Mr Austic incurred preparing two petitions to Mr Quigley and his predecessor Michael Mischin, and conducting his appeal and retrial. After his acquittal, a suppression on the Court of Appeal judgment was lifted, revealing damning suggestions of misconduct. It said the court believed there was “credible, cogent and plausible evidence” that “someone” had planted a bloodied knife and cigarette packet at the scene of Ms Thorne’s murder. There were also doubts around a can of bourbon and cola that had Mr Austic’s DNA on it and which put him near the scene at the right time. The CCC investigation however concluded that fading memories of key players and patchy forensics records meant it was impossible to make a finding of police corruption.