Teacher’s Pet: murder case against Chris Dawson ‘overwhelming’

A criminal defence lawyer says the case against Chris Dawson over the suspected murder of his wife is “almost overwhelming”.

Chris and Paul Dawson in an advertisement from the early 1980s.

An experienced criminal defence lawyer says the case against former star footballer Chris Dawson over the suspected murder of his wife Lyn is “almost overwhelming” and a jury would have “no difficulty” convicting him.

Peter Lavac is “dumbfounded” the NSW Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions has not taken Mr Dawson to trial over Lyn’s 1982 disappearance from Bayview on Sydney’s northern beaches. Mr Lavac has prosecuted and defended in dozens of murder trials in 42 years as a lawyer. He said Mr Dawson’s lies and omissions to police in a statement provided powerful new evidence in a circumstantial case.

“Circumstantial evidence is often better than direct evidence because it’s independent. It takes no sides,” he said. “It’s like a jigsaw. When all the pieces all come together a clear picture emerges.

“It’s almost overwhelming. A jury would have no difficulty convicting if all that evidence was presented to them.”

The comments increase the pressure on the DPP and police, who are facing a public campaign to charge Mr Dawson as a result of The Australian’s investigative podcast series, The Teacher’s Pet .

Mr Dawson and his twin brother Paul were celebrities on Sydney’s northern beaches through their days playing rugby with Eastern Suburbs and later rugby league with the Newtown Jets. As young children they ­developed a language only they could understand and both ­became PE teachers, lived in houses in the same street and ­appeared as models in national advertising campaigns.

When Lyn went missing 36 years ago, Mr Dawson had been in an intense sexual relationship with a teenager, Joanne Curtis, for 14 months. It had started when Joanne was 16 and a student of his at Cromer High.

In his police statement Mr Dawson made no mention of his affair and instead blamed his marriage problems on his wife’s credit card spending.

The statement was lost along with the rest of the police file and was not known to the detective who previously led the investigation, Damian Loone, or to two coroners who examined the case.

It was discovered by The Australian during investigations for the podcast series.

Police have told Lyn’s family it is now part of the evidence that has gone to the DPP for a fresh look at whether there is enough evidence to prosecute.

Speaking for a new episode of the podcast series, released ­tomorrow, Mr Lavac agreed the statement was “gold” for prosecutors. “No 1, it shows that he’s lying about something very important. He is lying about his relationship with the girl and the relationship with the girl is his motive for murdering his wife.

1970-1979

Timeline: Lyn Dawson

Chris Dawson marries Lynette Simms, both aged 21. They have two children and Chris begins working as a PE teacher at Cromer High School.

1980

Timeline: Lyn Dawson

Chris begins a secret affair with Joanne Curtis, 16, his student, soon after introducing her to his family as the babysitter. He starts asking her to marry him.

1981

Timeline: Lyn Dawson

Lyn is persuaded by Chris to let Joanne move into their family home as the teenager's step father is violent. Lyn discovers the relationship.

December, 1981

Timeline: Lyn Dawson

With his marriage to Lyn in trouble, Chris flees Sydney with Joanne to start a new life in Queensland, but along the way Joanne changes her mind and wants to take a break. They return to Sydney.

January, 1982

Timeline: Lyn Dawson

Joanne goes camping with her sister and school friends to mark the end of year 12. Chris and Lyn attend marriage counselling together. On January 8, Lyn speaks with her mother on the phone. The next day, Lyn fails to meet her family at Northbridge Baths as planned.

January 10-11, 1982

Timeline: Lyn Dawson

One or two days after Lyn's no-show at the pool, Chris drives up the Central Cost to pick up Joanne and they return to Sydney. He asks Joanne to move in with him. He does not report Lyn missing until almost six weeks later.

1983-1985

Timeline: Lyn Dawson

Chris divorces the missing Lyn and marries Joanne. The couple move to Queensland and have a daughter together. They separate in 1990 and Joanne returns to Sydney. She contacts Lyn's family and police and provides information about Chris and Lyn.

1992-2000

Timeline: Lyn Dawson

Areas of the Dawsons' former Sydney home are excavated by police on different occasions, and a woman's cardigan is found, in pieces and bearing what appear to be slash marks. Forensic testing does not make a positive match with Lyn.

2001-2003

Timeline: Lyn Dawson

Two inquests are held into Lyn's disappearance. Two coroners find she was murdered by someone known to her. Chris does not appear at either inquest. The DPP does not support a prosecution for murder or the laying of charges, citing a lack of evidence.

2010-2014

Timeline: Lyn Dawson

Rewards of up to $200,000 are offered for information to help solve the case.

It was “neither here nor there” that Lyn’s body had not been found. “Cases have been successfully prosecuted in the absence of a body,” he said. “I’m absolutely dumbfounded that any DPP would refuse to run with that.”

Retired Family Court judge Brian Jordan, who has done criminal work, said he too believed there was enough evidence to prosecute and potentially convict Mr Dawson.

“Certainly there is enough from what I’ve read and heard about to ask the court to refer the matter to a jury and once it’s referred to a jury there may well be sound prospects of a successful prosecution,” he said.

It would be up to a prosecutor to bring the strands of the case together. These included Mr Dawson’s affair and the “inherent improbability” of a devoted mother abandoning “for no apparent reason” her two daughters, then four and two.

The two coroners found, in 2001 and 2003, that Mr Dawson murdered his wife. But he has not been charged and maintains his innocence.

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