CARRAMAR mother Dawn Edge finds herself in a situation unthinkable for a mother.
While four people have been charged over her son Jason’s murder, the body of her only child has not been found.
A 28-year-old man and another man aged 21 have been charged with murder.
A third man (26) and a 37-year-old woman were charged with being an accessory after the fact.
Mr Edge (29) was last seen in Clarkson on the Anzac Day long weekend last year but it was not until October police revealed they were treating his disappearance as a homicide.
“It’s been an absolute nightmare and very distressing for both of us,” Mrs Edge said of the trauma for her and Jason’s father.
The experience has prompted Mrs Edge to back a push, led by Margaret Dodd – the mother of missing teenager Hayley Dodd – for the introduction of a ‘no body, no parole’ law.
The pair have become a support for each other after Mrs Edge contacted Mrs Dodd when she saw her online petition for the introduction of the legislation.
The law would have a convicted murderer not given the possibility of parole if the location of the victim’s body was not disclosed.
“She’s (Mrs Dodd) a brilliant woman and she’s been through so much as well,” Mrs Edge said.
“We’ve only been through it for under a year and she’s had 16 years of this.
“One day I Facebooked her as a friend and she got back to me and I explained to her our predicament.
The petition attracted about 20,000 signatures but it was not in the correct format to be formally presented to Parliament.
Butler MLA John Quigley assisted Mrs Dodd in writing up an eligible petition, which was signed by the Edges and the Dodds. Mrs Edge and Mrs Dodd will join Mr Quigley in Parliament today when he tables the four-signature petition.
Mr Quigley said this method would allow them to refer to Mrs Dodd’s original petition to support their advocacy for the change.
“I’m going to really debate it strongly; it’s just obvious isn’t it?” Mr Quigley said.
He criticised Attorney-General Michael Mischin for describing Labor’s backing of the law as “a beat-up based on a lady’s grief”.
Mr Mischin emphasised he meant no offence to Mrs Dodd and offered his regret over any distress to her.
“My comments were, plainly, aimed at the Opposition dressing up as an innovative policy law reform something that is already accommodated by the law and reflected in current practice,” he told the Weekender on Wednesday.