Convicted killer Chris Dawson allegedly engaged in sexual activity with teen in pool, court told
Chris Dawson allegedly called himself “God” in one of “hundreds” of notes sent to a 16-year-old student he allegedly abused.
The woman who was allegedly groomed and abused by wife killer Chris Dawson while she was his student gave an emotional testimony in court, which heard he once referred to himself as “God” to her.
The 74-year-old is on trial in the NSW District Court charged with one charge of carnal knowledge of a girl by a teacher – an historic charge meaning sexual intercourse with a minor.
Police allege he was a sports teacher in his 30s at Cromer High School in Sydney’s northern beaches when he began a relationship with the then-16-year-old girl, known only as AB, in 1980.
During opening arguments of the judge-alone trial on Tuesday, crown prosecutor Emma Blizard told the court Dawson and the girl first engaged in sexual activity at his parent’s house and they continued to do so in his school office, during fitness classes and later at his home.
It heard of one alleged occasion where he engaged in sexual activity with the 16-year-old in a pool, while his twin brother was at the other end with another student.
In an emotional testimony given via audio-visual link, AB told the court how she had little to do with Mr Dawson until he “fought” to have her in his year-11 physical education class.
She said the first interaction she recalled was when he had gotten his hands on a topless photo of her that had been passed around the school and said “here you go, I just found this”.
“So he had seen what I looked like in a vulnerable position and that was his introduction to me,” she told the court.
Once she was in his class, she said his attention escalated as she confided in him about her difficulties at home.
He first allegedly touched her on her leg at a school carnival.
Then, he began inviting her to tennis matches outside school hours and offered to teach her to drive.
Before long, the time they spent together “got out of control,” AB told the court.
He would leave “hundreds” of notes and cards in her bag, including one in which he called himself “God”.
AB was asked about a Christmas card she received from Dawson in 1980 which read “once or twice every minute, Love Always, God”.
Addressing the card, she said Dawson “was trying to disguise himself as God”.
“We must have agreed that’s what he would call himself in any capacity, as I was 16 and he knew it”.
For her 17th birthday, the court heard he gave her a card that read: “To my lovely beautiful bub, hoping today is a very happy one, and knowing we will share all the birthdays to follow. All my love forever”.
AB spoke of the first time the alleged sexual activity occurred and said Dawson had disturbingly said to her once it finished: “That was a great start”.
Clearly distressed and stopping at times to sigh during her evidence, AB told the court the alleged activity happened on Dawson’s parents’ bed while they were away for the weekend.
From then, the alleged sexual activity happened weekly, AB said.
The court heard Dawson would often “bribe” her by buying her chocolate and they would drive to the same spot at Little Manly, overlooking the Sydney Harbour.
“He would motion me into the back of the car and… he’d take the baby seat out of the car so he could fold the seats down and we would climb over into back of car and lie down,” she said.
“He asked me to marry him many, many times when I was 16 – I almost felt obligated,” she told the court.
The sexual relationship between Dawson and AB is not in dispute – but defence lawyer Claire Wasley argued it did not start until after the student had turned 17.
Under the historical law, Dawson is only guilty if the student was under the age of 17 and one of his students when the alleged sexual activity began.
Earlier in court, Ms Blizzard submitted the sexual activity, which is first alleged to have happened in Dawson’s parent’s home, continued into 1981 at various locations including his school office, his car and later his home.
On some alleged occasions, Dawson and his twin brother taught a fitness class together and “it is alleged in those classes, one brother would instruct the class while the other was behind closed doors with one of the girls and, it was during these classes that sexual activity occurred,” Ms Blizzard told the court.
Elaborating on this, AB told the court that Chris and his brother, Paul, ran weekly fitness classes at a separate high school to where they taught.
“They would alternate songs and exercises and in the times when one twin was running a class the other one was out the back with whichever student was their property at the time,” she said.
“So if the twin brother was running the class then the accused and I would duck out the back, you might say, for the length of that song.
“And then we would come back to the class and Paul would go out the back with (another girl)”.
She said she got into the pool with three others, where Dawson and her would stay up one end of the pool and engage in sexual activity.
On another occasion, a fellow student allegedly walked in on AB standing in between his legs in his school office.
Last December, Dawson was sentenced to a maximum of 24 years prison with a non-parole period of 18 years after he was found guilty of murdering his wife, Lynette, in 1982.
During the sentencing, Justice Ian Harrison said Dawson would likely die in jail, as he will be eligible for parole in 2040.
Throughout the high-profile trial, Dawson’s legal team argued 33-year-old Lynette walked out on the family after her trust was broken due to her husband’s behaviour.
But Justice Harrison found the only logical explanation for Lynette’s disappearance from their Bayview house was that he killed her.
Dawson’s lawyers have lodged an intention to appeal his guilty verdict for murder.
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Dawson had previously been required to attend the carnal knowledge trial in person, where he sat looking tired and wearing prison greens.
But due to health issues, the court heard he would attend via audio-visual link from Wednesday.
The trial, which is presided over by Judge Sarah Huggett, continues.