The popular podcast The Teacher’s Pet presented circumstantial evidence that former high school teacher Chris Dawson murdered his wife. In August, he was convicted guilty of murdering her to pursue a connection with a high school student with whom he was having an affair.
A popular podcast prompted a new police investigation, which resulted in the sentencing of a former Australian high school teacher for the murder of his wife forty years ago.
Chris Dawson, age 74, was the subject of the popular podcast The Teacher’s Pet after he was accused of murdering Lynette Dawson in January 1982, even though her corpse has never been located.
An inquest in 2003 suggested that Dawson be charged with the murder of his wife, but prosecutors rejected it, citing a lack of evidence.
The cold case against him was resurrected in 2018 after a podcast prompted police to renew the probe.
It presented circumstantial evidence that the former rugby league player killed his wife.
In August of this year, he was found guilty of the offense of pursuing a relationship with a teen student who had stayed in his Sydney home and babysat for him.
Due to the notoriety surrounding his case, he was tried without a jury.
Due to how he was portrayed in The Teacher’s Pet, a true-crime podcast produced by News Corp’s The Australian newspaper, Dawson’s legal team said he was denied a fair trial.
Judge Harrison acknowledged that the podcast – a number one success that has reportedly been downloaded more than 50 million times, according to the newspaper – had put Dawson in a poor light, but it had no bearing on the finding.
In sentencing him at the Supreme Court of New South Wales, Judge Ian Harrison stated that Dawson’s assertion that his wife had left him was a fabrication.
“Dawson enjoyed 36 years in the community before his arrest, unencumbered by the stigma of a murder conviction or any punishment for killing his wife,” he stated.
His rejection of culpability for the crime has benefited him in several ways.
Dawson has denied involvement in his wife’s disappearance.
His attorney stated that he would appeal the punishment. Friday he told reporters, “He maintains his innocence.”
Dawson will be eligible for release at the age of 92 in 2040.
Greg Simms, the brother of Lynette Dawson, stated that the family appreciated the sentencing.
“We respect and appreciate Judge Harrison’s sentence, and we hope Chris Dawson lives a long life to serve it,” he said.
Detective Dan Doherty, who was engaged in the investigation, stated that while the punishment might provide some solace to the victim’s family, the case remained open because the victim’s body has not yet been located.
