Visitors queue for public gallery seats in mushroom trial courtroom

Australia Broadcast Center

3 days ago

A line has been seen forming outside the Latrobe Valley law courts from the crack of dawn.
People from as far away as Melbourne have been travelling to Morwell for each day of the trial of Erin Patterson.
Ms Patterson is charged with three counts of murder and one count of attempted murder in relation to a beef Wellington meal which contained death cap mushrooms.
She has always maintained her innocence and her defence team says the inclusion of the mushrooms was a tragic accident.
The case has drawn international interest, with journalists travelling from across the globe to be in the court room.
On the ground, people with no association to the case have tried not to miss a moment in the trial.
School groups, aspiring authors and internationally renowned authors such as Helen Garner have even attended.
Michelle Wilson who lives 10 minutes from the courtroom, said she rang ahead to find out how she could watch the trial when she found out it would be sitting in Morwell.
The casual worker said she turned down many shifts and put her social life on hold to make sure she did not miss a day.
"I went along and then I was just addicted," Ms Wilson said.
"You want to watch the next bit, even if you're tired.
Ms Wilson said it was the first time she had been to court and she had become interested in courtroom dynamics and characters.
"I actually really love listening to the different approaches of the prosecution versus the defence," Ms Wilson said.
"I really like both of them and they draw me in.
She said she "absolutely" loved prosecution barrister Nanette Rogers.
"I love what she wears," she said.
"And then of course [there is defence barrister] Colin Mandy.
"He's very likeable and he engages with the people."
She said and about 10 other regulars had struck up friendships, texting each other to keep tabs and to debrief afterwards.
"We text each other in the mornings, asking 'how many people in line', because of course I've got cows to feed and things to do," she said.
They have even come up with remedies to brave the cold mornings.
"We go and get a coffee, we wear scarves and we've actually got those little hand warmer things," she said.
Donna Robinson homeschools her son Ruben.
She took him to court early in the case for an educational opportunity.
The 10-year-old observed court for the first time in his life and even tried his hand at a courtroom sketch.
Mykey O'Halloran, who lives between Phillip Island and Melbourne, said he had not spent as much time in court as Ms Wilson, but had dedicated five full days.
He has been waking up at 3.30am to make it to Morwell in time to jump in line.
"It drew me in because it was local to South Gippsland, happening in my backyard basically," he said.
He said he was initially unsure if his usual rainbow attire would be too much for a sombre setting.
"I'm a really colourful person so I thought 'Would it be inappropriate if I'm there?'" Mr O'Halloran said.
"One of the Wilkinson family spoke to me and said 'I love your hair' and they noticed my beard and said 'You didn't have a beard last week, did you?'"
He decided to travel to court after listening to the ABC's Mushroom Case Daily.
"Every detail that's been coming out on Mushroom Case Daily just intrigued me so much that I needed to be in the room," he said.
"I needed to see her tears and feel the emotion in the room as it was happening."
But he said the seriousness of the case was not lost on him.
"It feels tense, very serious," he said.
"You feel the reality that people have lost family members, you feel the grief and especially having Ian [Wilkinson] in the room.
"He lived through this and almost lost his life."