[mbyron]

Originally Posted by greymule

They most likely got away "Scott free"

I can't resist commenting on the phrase Scot free. In America, a jury (generally) has to choose between "guilty" and "not guilty." In Scotland, they have long had a third choice: "not proven."

So though the phrase Scot free is often used to mean "completely free," it's actually a way of saying, "He did it, but they couldn't prove it."

'Scot free' has nothing to do with Scotland or its jurisprudence. The term originates from a borrowed Scandanavian word for a kind of property tax.