Origin of Phrases - S
Scot free
Meaning: To get away with something without paying a price.
Example: Some might say OJ got off scot free.
Origin: Scot was the Scottish term for a unit of taxation. Anyone who did not have to pay taxes got off "Scot free". Alternatively, A slate for marking pub bills is called a scot. Scot free is to not pay the bill on your Scot.
Alternatively,
Refers to Dred Scott, a slave who crossed from a "slave state" to a "free state". In the days of US slavery, the Dred Scott case was a landmark US Supreme Court decision that ruled that slaves were property and had no rights.