Chris Dawson: How famous podcast helped catch and jail a killer

Twenty-one years ago, journalist Hedley Thomas walked through a Sydney authorities station blinking for astonishment.

Good, few had got word of Lynette Dawson, a fabulous mother-of-two who had faded away without a trace in 1982.

But Mr Thomas’ perusal of her cold case the fact that day set in motion a number of events that would try to make Lynette Dawson children name. It culminated on Tuesday ready husband, Chris Dawson, convicted of the girl murder.

From the get-go, Mr Thomas stated, he was struck by way of how absurd and additionally “unjust” Mrs Dawson’s story seemed.

“A young mother who was devoted to her children [was] being written off of as a woman who didn’t care about these people, who just functioned off… while her husband was performing this extraordinary rapport with a schoolgirl 0 . 5 his wife’s the age, ” he advised local broadcaster Eight.

As he dug truer, his bewilderment only grew.

She previously had left with just a few wardrobe – no suitcase set, no jewellery, not even her contact lenses.

And she had no career, no car as well as little, if any, money.

She allegedly didn’t contact any person again except the husband who had betrayed and also humiliated her.

“That is just completely preposterous, ” Mr Thomas told the Aussie Broadcasting Corporation, adding that “people would most likely see through it today”.

On Tuesday instant 40 years after Mrs Dawson vanished you ought to a judge in the New South Wales Supreme Court did.

Her body has never been found as well as the entire case hinged on circumstantial data.

But Justice Ian Harrison concluded that Bob Dawson – operated by an passion with his teenage barnepige, who was also a college at the school where he taught – received murdered his wife’s comments.

Although he principal learned about Mrs Dawson’s case in i b?rjan p? tv?tusentalet, Mr Thomas failed to begin digging for it in earnest till more than 15 ages later.

By then 2 coronial inquests got recommended “a regarded person” be imposed with her murder, still prosecutors had rejected, saying there was not enough evidence.

Mr Thomas created speaking to Mrs Dawson’s friends, family and others who live nearby, and Dawson’s teenager-lover-turned-second-wife, who is known for legal reasons as JC.

He also performed extraordinary interviews using senior police knowledgeable about the investigation / including the state’s law enforcement agency commissioner – may be overweight a coroner who had presided over one of many inquests.

The podcasting series he intended for The Australian : The Teacher’s Animal – touches for Dawson’s affair, says of physical punishment against his wife and allegations that they contemplated hiring a hitman to kill your ex.

It points out inconsistencies in Dawson’s reports, paints him for a killer, and is composed of speculation about how can have disposed of his or her wife’s body.

About its release throughout mid-2018, the podcasting – produced by Slade Gibson – was a huge success.

The series received Australian journalism’s maximal honour and has already been downloaded more than 62 million times, topping charts around the world.

And even within months from the publication, Dawson seemed to be finally charged.

Police had for decades been pushing possible, to no avail, and many credited the podcast with finally securing a little hope of the law for Mrs Dawson.

After the verdict on Tues her brother Greg Simms thanked Mister Thomas for presenting his sister a good voice and facilitating clear her identify.

“She loved your girlfriend family and never eventually left them of her very own accord. Instead, your girlfriend trust was betrayed by a man lindsay lohan loved, ” he or she said.

But the podcast also ironically jeopardised the criminal proceedings against Dawson.

Dawson’s legal professionals argued – to the High Court you would like to for the case for being thrown out. The podcasting meant there was absolutely no way he’d get a sensible trial, they contended.

The courts determined The Teacher’s Puppy was indeed tricky for several reasons, affirms Melbourne Law Classes Professor Jeremy Gans.

Firstly, it transmission mountains of content – and speculation – that would n’t have been allowed when evidence in a killing trial.

There was attention the publicity adjacent the podcast can have prejudiced potential jurors, and had tainted watch testimonies.

Then there seemed to be the friendly co-operation between Mr Thomas and the police, in which raised concerns regarding whether the journalist possessed influenced the prosecution.

Lastly, there was what Justice Harrison on The following thursday called Mr Thomas’ “less than balanced” approach to the story.

“Judges took the view that will Hedley Thomas has not been just being a reporter… he was pushing some narrative and very willing to convince anyone, including prosecutors, involving Chris Dawson’s guilt, ” said Prof Gans.

“Several said he just had not been interested in the presumption of innocence, they will questioned his values, and all sorts of things. inch

Mr Thomas offers you described some of the critique of him simply because unfair, but , relating to advice from prosecutors, The Australian needed down The Teacher’s Family dog podcast ahead of the demo.

The court delayed the trial, with the hope that would give the conjecture surrounding the case time for it to die down, and Dawson was instead granted a trial prior to when a single judge, rather than a jury.

Both many outcomes were not suitable, Prof Gans affirms.

During the delay, possible witnesses died.

And trials prior to when a lone judge are less likely to end in a conviction you need to judges, unlike juries, must explain all their reasoning and tend to have a stricter associated with what constitutes good doubt.

“For juries, the fact that you don’t have to give reasons means that going on your gut additional, ” Prof Gans says. “I nearly always thought that a court was likely to convict in this case but the determine was pretty unlikely to convict. ”

When the judge did convict Dawson, Ma?tre Gans says he was surprised.

But , he adds, such verdicts are easier for you to appeal.

“You’ve obtained these reasons that one can attack, and Dawson has that advantage now. ”

Lawyers for Dawson have already indicated he can likely to appeal.

At the conclusion, Justice Harrison did find the podcast “may in whole or simply have completely deprived some evidence of it is usefulness”. He likewise disregarded much of the fresh information the podcasting uncovered.

In the “best case scenarios”, true crime range have solved winter cases, exonerated wrongly imprisoned people not to mention exposed misconduct by investigators and prosecutors, Prof Gans claims.

And that is exactly what Mr Thomas says he or she set out to do.

“This idea that the legal [and] criminal justice technique can just handle this and not neglect anything is a furphy – it’s a rest, ” he assured The Australian.

“There is always so much more information, so many more witnesses you could potentially talk to, more evidence that can be gleaned. My personal overriding aim with your podcasts is to fix crimes. ”

Given that achieved on Wednesday was an “incredible relief”, he says.

“When the hammer ultimately fell on Bob Dawson and he was basically declared guilty with the judge, it was a solid moment, ” the person told Seven.

“He’s been scheming in addition to manipulating and telling lies for at least 40 years. I hope that he is reasonably punished for it. inches