After 12 years in jail for a crime he says he didn't do, Scott Austic is about to walk out
A man jailed over the murder of his pregnant secret lover in Western Australia more than a decade ago will walk out of prison after being granted bail prior to his retrial.
Scott Austic was previously convicted of the murder of Stacey Thorne, right.
Scott Austic was previously convicted of the murder of Stacey Thorne, 34, who died after being stabbed 21 times at her Boddington home in 2007.
The pair had been in a relationship, with Ms Thorne 22 weeks pregnant with Mr Austic's baby when she died.
Convicted of Ms Thorne's murder in 2009, Mr Austic was sentenced to a minimum of 25 years in prison.
A previous appeal to have his conviction overturned in 2010 failed, but WA Attorney General John Quigley agreed to a fresh hearing last year amid concerns police may have planted evidence.
A blood-spattered cigarette packet on a table in Austic's backyard was not there when initially photographed, but appeared in a photo taken about 30 hours later.
And there were questions about the knife believed to have been used in the stabbing, which police said they eventually discovered in a paddock.
UK forensic pathologist Richard Shepherd testified at the second appeal some of Ms Thorne's wounds measured between 13cm and 15cm, which meant they were "very unlikely" to be caused by the weapon presented as evidence.
The WA Court of Appeal quashed Mr Austic's conviction last month, with the reasons for the judgment suppressed.
A retrial will start in October.
- with AAP