 His mother was a founding member of the Communist Party of Australia in 1919, and remained a member for the rest of her life.Dodie was never formally a member of the party, but had participated in guerrilla training in the Dandenong Ranges as a member of its youth arm, the Eureka Youth League.Because of these associations and the Cold War tensions of the time, Throssell became a person of interest to the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO).